Mike,

I don't build from plans so I'm not working a personal agenda here, and obviously I'm not speaking of the specific individual of whom you asked the question, but let me take a shot at selling you.

From the website, here's the AMA "Mission":

The Academy of Model Aeronautics is a world-class association of modelers organized for the purpose of promotion, development, education, advancement, and safeguarding of modeling activities.

The Academy provides leadership, organization, competition, communication, protection, representation, recognition, education, and scientific/technical development to modelers.

It seems to me that building from plans is the single most basic "modeling" function that one can pursue. It's the real roots of the hobby, and from what I've read here and in numerous other places in the year that I've been a member, it's a skill that is rapidly declining in participation. Given the "mission" that AMA has laid out for itself, it seems to me that building from plans is a basic function that AMA should be promoting strongly. Maintaining (and expanding) a library of plans, and making those plans available to members at a reduced cost is an excellent example of just the type of things for which our dues should be used, I believe.