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CES 2009 Shrinks With Dwindling Economy
nandemoari writes "Not long after we first heard murmurs Microsoft may be ready to lay off as much as 17 per cent of its workforce, the popular Consumer Electronics Show, held every year in Las Vegas, is rumored to be shrinking alongside the global economy. The Consumer Electronics Association, host of the CES, estimates that the numbers of both exhibitors and visitors will be down in 2009. The CEA expects about 130,000 people will attend this year, down 11,000 from last year. And about 2,700 exhibitors are expected to attend, down from 3,000 in 2008."
I'm a U.S. citizen who has been residing abroad for the last several years. One thing I have noticed, in speaking with friends from all over the world, is how much more difficult it is to attend family ad professional functions in the US. People have to apply for transit visas, they have to get fingerprinted, have more and more data entered into federal databases. More and more people seem to being denied entry, too. I've heard of nominees for the Latin Grammies who were denied entry because they were coming from Cuba, Europeans who were denied entry because they overstayed a visa a decade ago by two days. Other governments are getting more hostile to travellers, too; please don't get me wrong. (rant=on)However, the US goes a magnitude beyond most other Western governments. The UK seems to be the only other western country that treats business persons, shoppers, etc., whose only fault is being born on the wrong side of an arbitrary line in the sand, like criminals.
Of course because non-citizens can't vote, it's next to impossible to get this reported in media in the US, and policy will not loosen anytime soon. Of course, policymakers don't realize how much this hurts trade relations, tourism, etc.