Originally Posted by
speedracerntrixie
Now back to thread topic. We should be able to share our points of Veiw without it getting nasty. We all,are adults right. I get it that some of you have had bad experiences with either the AMA or clubs. We all have the right to enjoy our hobby the way we want as long as it is done legally and safely. As long as those two items are met neither side of this devide is not doing any harm to the other. Yes the financials of the AMA look bad right now. All organizations go through such challenges. Look at Sears right now. The AMA has survived multiple wars and conflicts and several recessions. I am confident they will survive this as well. If not I see the seperate special interest groups stepping into the CBO role. The dues collecting club environment is never going to go away. As far as guys within the AMA not voting, IMO that means that those guys are happy with the way things are being run. Just like here on RCU. We have hundreds of AMA members that are also regular contributors here on RCG. How many of them come into the AMA forum and post? I see only a handful. People generally only voice their opinions when there is something to complain about otherwise they rather remain quiet. How many times have we all complained about a server at a restaurant? How many have taken the time to ask for a manager and wait around to tell them you received great service? Nobody here is going to end up being The savior of the hobby.
When you throw Sears into the conversation, you have to look at what led Sears to the situation it's in now. Let me fill in the blanks:
1) K Mart went into bankruptcy protection due to mismanagement and overexpansion
2) K Mart was able to somehow aquire Sears as it came out of it's bankruptcy
3) Somehow, the K Mart CEO was able to keep his position in the merged corporation
4) Somehow, the K Mart CEO was able to keep his job, even though he oversaw the company again start to fail
5) Somehow, the K Mart CEO was able to keep his job while shutting down stores under both brand names while not keeping product on the store shelves or do any maintenance on the stores. Many of the stores are literally falling apart
6) When the two chains merged in 2005, the total chain was 3500 stores
7) Somehow the K Mart CEO was able to keep his job, even though he's put the corporation back under bankruptcy protection
8)
Despite its struggles, Sears CEO gets raise. Sears CEO Eddie Lampert only gets a salary of $1 a year to run the troubled retailer. But he does get a stock bonus, and for 2017 that bonus increased by $850,000, giving him a 24% raise
9) Since 2005, the chain has gone from 3500 stores to 2000 in 2013 to 866 as of September 13, 2018
10)
On October 15, 2018, Lampert stepped down as CEO of Sears Holdings, while remaining Chairman of the Board, as part of Sears Holdings bankruptcy actions. On December 6, 2018 Lampert, through his company ESL Investments, offered to buy all of Sears for $4.6 billion dollars in cash and stock.[18] The offer would be financed by $950 million in added debt,[18] but no additional cash.[19] Five hundred stores remain in operation; the remainder are in liquidation
Does this sound familiar at all?