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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;satootoko, post: 119730, member: 669&quot;]I do indeed! <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie1" alt=":)" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /></p><p><br /></p><p>But let me just qualify that a bit.&nbsp; I think <i>almost all</i> serious collectors concentrate their interests on coins they have the financial werewithal to acquire - whether that is merely the ability to set aside part of their pocket change without impacting their ability to feed their families, or the ability to bid strongly at major auctions.&nbsp; As that ability grows, frequently so does the collector&#039;s involvement in the hobby.</p><p><br /></p><p>In another forum a Japanese collector recently commented that in Japan he sees few young people at coin shows.&nbsp; He himself is under 50, probably under 40, but he is a doctor, and although they are not as highly compensated in Japan as in the US, they are firmly in the upper echelon of Japanese society, and generally have significant amounts of discretionary cash.</p><p><br /></p><p>From what I&#039;ve seen of my own kids (one of whom is in her late 40s) and those of my friends, today&#039;s youngsters with plenty of discretionary income are frequently the yuppified ones who are too busy with making money (and demonstrating to the world that they have it) to involve themselves in hobbies requiring study and effort.&nbsp; As they grow older, that changes, and I firmly believe that despite their current lack of numismatic interest, they are indeed the vibrant future of this hobby of ours.</p><p><br /></p><p>I suppose I&#039;m a case in point.&nbsp; As a struggling young attorney, I managed to set aside pocket change - frequently silver in the mid-late &#039;60s - but by Doug&#039;s definition I was most assuredly <i>not</i> a serious collector.&nbsp; Many years later, when I retired, I went back to those coins stuffed in the back of a cabinet and &quot;got serious&quot;.&nbsp; My interest in Modern Japanese coinage had its origin in the pocket change I had accumulated during my residence there during the Korean War at the expense of our mutual Uncle Sam, and on subsequent trips - but it took retirement&#039;s combination of free time and available funds to develop and expand on that interest.</p><p><br /></p><p>Bottom line - I&#039;m convinced that the future of our millenium-old hobby is more secure than ever. <img src="http://forums.collectors.com/i/expressions/dancing%20smiley.gif" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" />&nbsp; <img src="http://bestsmileys.com/cheering/1.gif" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" /> <img src="http://forums.collectors.com/i/expressions/dancing%20smiley.gif" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" />[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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