AMTA as alien life form

The AMTA seems like a foreign entity to me more and more.

Alien Observation #1

There used to be a bulletin board at the convention. You posted "hey, meet me at McDs for lunch!" and "anyone found a blue umbrella?" and "can I catch a ride to the airport Sunday morning?" and those kind of notes on it.

I intended to put a note on it about my book and asking for certain kind of MTs to contact me if they were willing to let me interview them.

But there's no bulletin board. It's been "cancelled" because there were too many "inappropriate" postings.

Join me now in a big "huh?".

I asked for clarification. They hemmed and hawed but finally said people were posting "for a good time call...." notes and (drumroll please) poetry. Really, it just couldn't be tolerated any more. So, rather than removing the offensive posts, they just cancelled the bulletin board.

Care to join me in another "huh?".

Alien Observation #2

The FAQ on the AMTA website about the convention included questions about recommendations more affordable lodging suggestions since the lodging deal is with the Hilton. The answer was, in effect, no we won't provide that. But we will help you find a roommate!

Because everyone loves sharing a room with a stranger.

Does the national office not understand their own statistics that say the average MT in America working full-time makes less than 35K? That makes the Hilton, even with a discount, not so attractive to many people.

And do they appreciate that the vast majority of us are self-employed? We don't have an employer willing to pay for our travel and lodging? (Actually, I've been to the national offices and talked to them about just that question and I can tell you the answer: a very loud "no". They actually believe the majority of us are somebody's employees!)

But to be honest, I don't generally find that the AMTA national office "gets" massage therapists all that well. Kinda disappointing for a membership-based organization.