Times are hard on a lot of people in general, and as the cost of the necessities in my life increase at a faster rate than my income, guess which kind of expenditures get eliminated from my budget first? The after effects of NAFTA and 9/11 have put a serious damper on peoples' fun money around here. I'm afraid model aviation is low on the pecking order,[ of entertainment money] compared to vacation money, going to the movies, and other activities that couples and families can do together. The boom of park flyers is emblematic of what I have been talking about. They are a way for newbies to get their feet wet, and a way for experienced modelers to keep having tremendous fun for very little. Some of these "newbies" will naturally want to experience more from the sport, and eventually will NEED the AMA. In the meantime, there does seem to be a lack of AMA flyers under the age of 30 at many club fields, but how many young men in this day and age of keeping up with 2 cars, a $400,000 mortgage, 3 phone bills, 50 hours a week at work, an average round trip commute of over an hour, etc., etc. have much left over for this sport? Evidently not as many as when I first got into the hobby.