Interesting replies. Vancouver, I appreciate your hard work. But, I want to 
raise the wider political sense of what we're (all) doing and how we might do 
it otherwise. Let's not recreate the same old problems.

In response to Steve Pile; but of more general relevance.

Let me say that I do not reject the idea of conferences or bodily presences (I 
did say this in my initial posting but...). 

I would always prefer to meet with people in spaces.(which/whose identity am I 
contronting here, is it more real than letters, phones etc ?: discuss...). I 
just wanted to acknowledge that this physical location  is not possible for 
most people. I wondered about how we might be more inclusive. (seems to be 
something central to the aim of the forum)

I did not suggest that virtual was better than real presence. In fact I reject 
the dualism. Technology  constitutes  our social relations and visa versa: it's 
a co-production. It's within this web (amongst others) that we spin our 
relations of power.

The power /gender/ knowledge aspect of the internet is crucial (in fact I made 
an explicit point in my original note about this). 

Aspects of power inequality/use/abuse are not erased by bodily presence ! 

However, they can be differently configured in virtual/real meetings. This is 
the point. Money is a thing many are concerned with. The agreement to forego 
the benefits travelling to confs. for some my benefit the (potential) community 
more [now that's an old fashioned point for you!].

We have had many repeats of the same configurations (of conferences) and we all 
see the problems, maybe doing it a bit differently might open up some new 
avenues, it may reconfiure the balance of power a little (not perfect, but it 
may benefit)

I experience deja vu here. People used to spend alot of time in anarchist 
settings debating how means should be commensuarte with ends. Hence, if you are 
organizing for a different configuration of power you should apply that to your 
own dealings, you own organizations etc. (this is where the debate about the 
personal is political is correctly situated). Eradicating hierachies is just as 
difficult in cyberspace as it ever was/is in 'real' space.
 PS - don't forget part 2 of this debate :'the tyrany of structurlessness' ?

So, can we reflect upon the above, and conference, or even the organization of 
critical geog meetings/ activity ?

The above does not erase the possibility of the conference, but we should 
justify what we are doing, why, and in what way we're doing it.

Andy C Pratt

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