Most of you have heard by now of the on again off again lead ban in New York State. See the Courier Dispatch for more details. Though we have won this one for the time being (it comes up again in the New York Legislature in April), we can expect some form of lead figure ban in most states in the next few years. Many manufacturers, among them several of our advertisers, have made the decision to go to all Pewter figures now. The cost increase will be moderate as the major cost of a figure is in the labor and not the metal. The cost of fighting these bans is quite high for an industry that caters to hobbyists where many of the suppliers are cottage industries. It cost some $50,000 just to defeat the ban in NY. Multiply that times the 50 States or by the 10 or 15 States with the largest wargaming population and you can see the money we are talking about. This affects Fantasy, Role Players, Figure Collectors and Toy Soldier Collectors as much as it does we Historical Miniature Garners. Therefore GAMA (The Game Manufacturers Association) has set up the GAMA Mini Defense Fund, Box 413, Pine Plains, NY 12567. Send in a few bucks to help defend our hobby, you will be put on a mailing list to be kept apprised of the situation. Please also communicate with your State Assemblymen and State Senators especially riiht now in New York State and tell them how you feel about a ban on lead figures, as they are for adults and cause no harm to children. This is important to our hobby. Pitch in! Many thanks for your kind letters in appreciation of the new look of the Courier. There will be more changes as we go along and your advice is also welcome. Please answer the questions posed in the back page on under Volley Fire. Your answers will help make The Courier the magazine you want it to be. Finally, I could use some Sapper's Reports. Come on, there is no self respecting wargamer who doesn't have a great terrain or gaming idea. Pass it on! Back to Table of Contents -- Courier #60 To Courier List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1993 by The Courier Publishing Company. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com