They're just tacky hucksters — hucksters who, if they'd been at the first Christmas, would have probably tried to make a buck off the angels singing to the shepherds.
The terms are also being applied to those trying to obtain tickets by lying, influence peddling, schmoozing, threats and intimidation. People are even threatening lawsuits because they can't obtain tickets. The tickets are distributed randomly to a fraction of those who apply and all of this year's tickets have been distributed.
(See, "Scalping tickets can cause loss of good will" by Jerry Johnston and "Tickets tempt fibbers and scalpers" by Doug Robinson, both in the Deseret News.)
The MoTab Christmas concert is the best bargain in the entertainment world if you can get in. Imagine an event that is in extreme high demand but low on supply and features a world-class venue with world-class guest entertainers and arguably the world's finest choir — and it costs nothing. Even parking is free.
Anything limited is seen as exclusive and prestigious. I'm only vaguely aware of David Archuleta and I have plenty of access to MoTab music but suddenly I feel deprived because I don't have tickets to this event. Will my testimony suffer? Will I be permanently spiritually deprived? Who can tell.
If control over the event is wrested away from the Church or too much abuse of their free gift to the community occurs, chances are they won't offer it in the future. Or, future events may be scaled down to smaller and more frequent performances. Perhaps it may be offered free over the Church's satellite system to local meetinghouses. I can only guess.
In any event, it is sad to see this sort of behavior occurring.
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