Well, don't changes of this nature seem to be completely inevitable? I understand your angst, believe me I do. The lite philosophies preached about here have become more of a lifestyle for myself than mere methods of lightening my backpack. But good things do catch on - even those within the fanciful world of backpacking. Whether it's movements such as Ryan's pushing lightweight into mainstream, I'd say that's rather questionable. Yes, I'm sure it's not helping to slow things down, but perhaps this is his way of "teaching," just as you and I both enjoy, and he's not necessarily in it just for the money. Hmmm... Who knows?

Eric Kingston