Bun Festival blues

There's a story in today's South China Morning Post about the upcoming Bun Festival. Since the online SCMP is by paid subscription, and I haven't subscribed, I can't link to the story or copy judicious bits to here. No matter.
Here goes:
For as long as anyone remembers, the Bun Festival was organised and put on by the locals. That has changed. Firstly, the quango-like and gormless Tourist Authority started pestering the locals to fix a regular date for the festival. The timing of which until then seemed to depend on lunar readings, tidal flows and how the incense sticks fell in the local temple. Nobody local seemed to know until about six weeks beforehand, but it all seemed to work out allright on the night. A fixed date, however, for the elephantine and over-bloated TA means: 'lead time'. It means a regular fixture in the annual calendar to 'target market' the Festival to its 'target markets'.
Whoever runs this island finally agreed.
Fifteenth of May, it is.
Somewhere along the way, the Leisure and Recreational Services Department also got involved.
The result?
This year, thanks to the TA, LRSD, and whoever on the island thinks they can make a buck, we now have a very tall steel, yes steel, structure going up. It really does look like a Long March rocket.
Bye, bye, three bamboo towers.
The powers that be have also recruited some people to climb this thing -- but they will have to do some sort of mountaineering course beforehand with helmets, ropes and buckles and stuff.
No kiddin'.
What was a vibrant and organic local event is now commodified and gutted.
Time to bring out the Blessed Oscar W: "they know the price of everything and the value of nothing."
So it goes.

Ciao!