C W Burfle posted:While it may impact the health of the TCA and the show itself, changing the Eastern Division's York train show is not going to have any impact on the future of toy train collecting / operating.
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Exactly... When a similar thread about York's proposed changes was created months ago, I stated the same thing... namely, "When did it become York's mission statement to save the hobby?" Rather York will be what it will be.
Think of a diagram with "toy train swap meet" on one side, and "industry trade show" on the other side. Then imagine a pendulum swinging back and forth. York started with the pendulum all the way on "swap meet", and over the years the pendulum has moved along the diagram -- but never quite completely -- to "trade show". It's become a blend of both, and that's fine. Everybody wins.
If I were a betting man, I'd say the pendulum will move back to "swap meet" territory long before York dies. Toy train enthusiasts will always want to get together, because the social element is very compelling. Accomodating public attendance is largely a move to help dealers defray costs of attending. The worst that could happen is dealers won't see the expected surge in sales they're hoping for, and York will return to purely a swap meet environment as dealers begin dropping out. None of these things happen overnight though.
For gosh sakes, people... Nobody here is whining or ranting about anything. 
Give it a break, please. We're simply making some observations about the look-and-feel of York as we knew it and experienced it -- some of us for the past few decades -- and how it's changed.
We're all at different places on our journey in this hobby. So rather than criticize folks for asking questions and commenting, just sit back and enjoy the ride and where you happen to be on the journey.
David
