i participate on both sides of the arguement. I am a high school boys coach, so i dont do any scholastic refereeing. I am part of an association, so i mostly do aau and rec league stuff. I attend the trainings and everything so im able to maintain my certifications. With that being said i can also agree with the fact that the refereeing hasnt been up to par in more cases than not. As an official i hold them to a higher level and expect more. No more than would be expected of myself however. The shortage has really hindered the quality. The money is good, when youre getting sufficient work. The problem in my area stems from the assigners. They tend to schedule the same people regularly. Some get 3-4 games a week, where others get 3-4 a month, if that. It becomes more of a waste of time if your not getting the work. So people chose not to do it anymore. At the end of the day there are good refs with good intentions, but on the other hand there are bad refs. i have seen a lot more bad refs of late