<p>Your notion of stealing business from consultants is predicated on the weird but commonly-held notion that the work is theirs to begin with.  To me, that's akin to saying that people who have potluck dinners are stealing business from caterers.  It's not their business in the first place but rather a task that is outsourced to them when it's convenient, and any caterer who blames potlucks for their lousy business probably has much greater problems.</p>

<p>The very first step into commercial food provision entails a very significant amount of work - finding a trustworthy company, agreeing on contract terms, payment method, coming up with the cash, conveying accurately what you want done, etc.  That initial cost gets easier to swallow as the scale of the project grows, but for small questions it's absurd.  Potlucks mostly just need a venue (conveniently provided for us by Atwood and Co.).</p>

<p>Potlucks also have all kinds of benefits that aren't really available in the market - a greater variety of dishes is possible (some good, some bad); the satisfaction of human connection, community, reputation; an opportunity for people who can't or won't be caterers (which can be for many reasons other than skill) to share their talents; cooking for the simple joy of it.  I bet most professional cooks love potlucks - it provides an opportunity to experiment outside of work, get new ideas from others, cast aside the restrictions that constrain commercial cooking, and do something they enjoy in a low-pressure environment.  Is there a risk for freeloading?  Sure - but the community can regulate that without contracts and legal enforcement of obligations.</p>

<p>The bottom line is that this site provides something that consultants do not, which is low-friction, zero-cost access to a diverse body of self-validating experts who do this for the love of it, with great potential for learning, reciprocity, pride, community.  Whether this site exists or not, that's a service that can't be bought.</p>
