I've been here since 2002 and as a voice of one... I'm not happy with the direction RR is taking lately. It's all about the big bucks and cover your butt. And... as soon as a thread goes against something RR is doing... it gets closed like a hot potato. But... it's not for me to decide and I know the usual answer... "if I don't like it... the highway is over there". Going now to delete my thread notification subscriptions and log off. It's been fun... I'm headin' for the highway... :-(
Philosophically I know where you are coming from, but it is the same old story about the old days being so good and perfect. There is nothing wrong with picking up your marbles and going home, but in this case if you do then sooner rather than later you will need something from here and pay the price of being mad at yourself.
I am doing the same thing with a newspaper subscription, back in the 90's it cost about $8 a month and for that you could even chew out the poor guy for not getting it on the porch. Now they have raised the price of a yearly subs. to $225; and that is the only way to get it, unless you go to 7-11 and pay $1 a copy. No stealing from the corner boxes, either--they are long gone and painted over by vandals. Of course, that is a direct result of craigslist, etc. Who wants to sit on the porch reading a kindle or beloved I-pad? Now I am trying to justify paying that much because of 2 things--Grocery coupons & the pleasure of reading a real paper while having the first coffee of the morning--but I am thinking when it runs out thats'it
I have often thought that if I would have had access to computers (Like we all have now) in 1960 when I started high school, I would have been a rocket scientist or something. I have always been good at turning out prolific amounts of pap, but the hatred I had (have) for putting the pap on paper is astounding.
The teachers' would bust your balls for erasing or typing over or white-out. How many times did I type a whole sheet only to screw it up near the bottom.?
If not for computers, etc. I never would have been able to survive my long career that required lots of pap output
So about all I can say is remember all of everyone's decisions are double-edged swords, so just pay your money, take your chances, and keep on truckin---