@Richie C. posted:I have four young grandchildren, two of whom are into trains and two of whom could care less despite all being exposed to the hobby in the same way - I don't fret about it - different strokes for different folks.
We live in a different world today where, at least here in the northeast, it's rare for kids to even see a real train in their day-to-day lives and they have so many more choices on how to spend their activity time than we ever did.
How many of us can be absolutely sure that, if we grew up today instead of decades ago, that we would have the same interest in trains and model railroads ?
I couldn't be sure, but then again by the time I was really aware of things, early 1970's, trains weren't a big thing in my life either. Sure, I saw the local shortline (that is still chugging along and actually flourishing) and did take the old DLW MU's into NYC (the green monsters we called them, wicker seats and all), but it was well past when railroads were king, it was already well into the era of the automobile and the plane. I am not entirely sure that people get into trains because they are exposed to them, little kids love steam locomotives, even now when Steam has been gone for 60+ years. Obviously seeing trains can fire the imagination, but kids even today more than a few kids gravitate towards trains if they are exposed even just to model trains *shrug*.
Obviously it is a debate point that cannot be proved either way, kind of like trying to prove God exists vs He doesn't (well, okay, Gene Shepherd's father may have won the debate, that "beer proves the existence of God, nothing that good happens by chance' *lol* [on the other hand I have drank beer that I would swear came from another place, nuff said *grin*).
