Honestly, lets face facts, nothing is ever going to change between the forums. Too many chiefs that think they are "the authority and the voice" of all things pinball and not enough genuine guys running the show.
Spot on. The current pinball expo is not the issue - though it does represent another tangible manifestation of a deeper underlying problem with the pinball hobby in Australia.
Not surprisingly it has caused a great deal of frustration amongst those who are
genuinely passionate about seeing the hobby grow beyond the boundaries of the current entrenched fringe group hierarchical structure. It is simply another opportunity lost due to it being an exercise in personal/forum hubris and one upmanship, rather than a chance for magnanimity and impartiality.
As you said, nothing is going to change unless the structure of the hobby itself changes in Australia.
