ORIGINAL: gow589
J_R,
Excelent list of programs, service, events, products, etc..
But I think there is more intagable benifits such as:
1. Having an organization self regulated of this size warts off further government regulations
2. Getting large groups together of special interest promote development of the hobby as a whole in numerouse ways
3. I would atribute much of the development of the model airplane and it's diversity to the organzed interest gathered by the AMA.
4. Many other benifits not easily put in words.
All of which benifits from "Organized modeling"
Before WWII, Germany pushed their youth to learn about aviation. Thus was one of the reasons Germany had so many inovative aircraft in WWII. This some times makes me think of the AMA and organized modeling.
The AMA has a rich and storied history. The problem is that todays potential members are looking for personal benefits now, not history. The AMA must find a way to appeal to todays newbie, without having to rely on what was done in the past.