I bought my first airplane/radio/engine in 1972. Since then, I've lived in several different states and have seen many folks come and go in this hobby. One thing I have observed in that time is that there is a small percentage of folks who are going to do it on their own no matter what anyone says. This can be due to any number of reasons. Then I joined RCU along about 2002 or so. There is an absolute wealth of information available here that is free to anyone who cares to look. However, one thing I have never understood is the number of people here who are obviously good guys and great flyers but are so quick to make anyone who dares to attempt to do it on their own some kind of second rate citizen lower than Osama bin Laden. How many guys who had the nerve to say they were going to attempt to learn to fly on their own have we driven from the hobby before they even got started by insisting they could not do it without and instructor. Instead, why don't we encourage them and give them any help they ask for to bring them into the fold? We, as a hobby, need them. Would it be better if they started with an instructor. Surely. Should we initially suggest they get an instructor. Certainly. But when it becomes clear that that is not going to happen, why don't we then give them all the advice and encouragement we can and assure them that thay can do it on their own rather than insisting that they are fools, cheap, stupid, and irresponsible to even think they could do it? Some of them can and will make it. And some of the posts I have read here bad-mouthing those who insist on doing it without an instructor would discourage the most determined. Why do we do that? It's no skin off our noses. Is it just that we can't handle someone having an opinion different from ours? We need these people in the hobby regardless of how they learn it. Lets encourage and help them.