I am no longer one of the Kool Aid crowd, mostly because I prefer to spend the con having fun, not working. However while I was working with them everything was run on the very fringes of what could be afforded. If you really are convinced they are bilking 60 (or 100) thousand loyal attendees, by all means contact the IRS and inform them that a non-profit corporation is committing fraud. Have fun with that.

Furthermore, as for the 'ass raping' of other 'cons, remember that while DC can probably negotiate bulk pricing most smaller cons get the more premium pricing and naturally pass that on to the attendees. They are also more specialty events. NY Comic Con charged $40 last year, slightly cheaper than my DC pass but it was 1/4 the size and was lackluster to say the least. DefCon (big hacker 'con) charges $80 for their pass but again, a specialty event and for hacker con's it was by far the cheapest (the big one Black Hat charges in four figures). I know you desperately want to feel cheated having stupidly paid full price but seriously that's your own damn fault.

I can think of ALOT of things that cost as much or more than my yearly pass and don't provide me with nearly as much enjoyment. Please however, if you think you are being cheated, name me a convention with the kind of attendance, popularity and general enthusiasm DC has that charges less. The only rival I can think of is the SD Comic Con, but a THREE day pass to San Diego Comic Con will run you $50 and that's assuming you buy in advance before they get sold out. So if there are some far cheaper alternative conventions please let us all know.

As for the outside party crashers, they are a nuisance and this city does have a shitty history of pissing on any real fun they aren't personally profiting from. The only thing I can advise is next year bring some of your own eggs. Otherwise don't let the door hit your ass on the way out.