Mellow gathering goes all corporate

I am disappointed a once enjoyable festival has become nothing more than another money-grubbing event for profiteers. What was once a gathering of peaceful, loving and generous folks who shared common interests and beliefs has now become a venue for the greedy.

It’s no wonder that people are charged $6 for a bottle of water when the current event organizers are charging about $600 for the right to sell one’s products. I attended the very first Hempfest at Gasworks Park in Seattle long ago and many since then, but alas, will not in the future.

Big business has found yet another way to reap what they haven’t earned and by doing so have destroyed one more beautiful thing. Some friends and I are planning to revive the spirit that created the first Hempfest by creating a new event in “Berkeley North” (Bellingham). The “Good Travelers Fair” will be about people, not money.

Matthew L. Begley

Everett