@waxbanks

You make a very good point (er... several actually). But at the same time, I wonder if the work of keeping from a "consumerist" or dismissive attitude shouldn't be happening on the demand side rather than the supply side, so to speak.

In other words, those values are important, but so is discussion of honestly held opinions. It would be a shame if people were dissuaded from commenting/dissecting/obsessing just because they were bored or not otherwise enthusiastic about a performance and therefore worried about the effect they would be having on newer fans. (I don't think that's what you are suggesting necessarily, but still...)

A better way to say what I'm trying to say is that I think doing the work of holding on to that initial enthusiasm and putting critical opinions in proper perspective is best done primarily by those doing the reading, not those doing the writing. There is a certain type of fan who can't stomach negative assessments of Phish performances, because (I would guess) it genuinely and profoundly affects their enjoyment of the music. And that's a shame, because it is possible to gain value from those with "expertise" or whatever you want to call it without losing appreciation of how great garden-variety (heh) Phish is. Maybe that's wishful thinking, but I'd like to think it's true to a large extent.

Again, I don't think we are necessarily disagreeing, just wanted to point that out.