To me, undoubtedly, this is about $$. The convention venues are realizing that there are plenty of dubs who feel as Gopher pointed out: too much of a hassle to fill & carry coolers, be neat (bringing "glory to Jah"), and keep kids in check.
The poor kids (and ALL attendees) have been having to sit still in uncomfortable seating, in uncomfortable climate conditions, for HOURS and really do want a break to socialize and let their hair down a bit. So they opt to make the little ones (and the big ones) happier by taking a break from the SITE and their kids PLAY like normal children at a McDonald's Playplace or something.
The convention owners would like to have their percentage of the concession, but the Watchtower Society has gone from "we'll feed our people HOT meals" to "we'll feed our people COLD meals" to "our people will provide their OWN meals", so give us a break on the rental fee, please. When the convention owners see that, in fact, the JWs are NOT providing their own meals but are giving business to local fast food restaurants in large numbers, they are angry that the Watchtower misrepresented things. Neither the WT (in the form of increased conributions) nor the convention venue owners are getting a cut of the food profits. Once the arena management is aware, they likely put pressure on the Society to let them open the concessions, but the Society is resisting, hence the instruction to not patronize local establishments. Which is all bullshit, because THE CONVENTION ATTENDEES, NOT THE SOCIETY, will eventually be the ones who bear the brunt of paying increased location rental fees anyway. So it is definitely not about COST, but about PROFIT for the Society.
outnfree
