In the mouths of those who predict the impending demise of bowling centers, I once considered stuffing a bowling pin or two, not to harm but to shut them up, with impediments to subsequent vocal expression not even Demosthenes could handle.

For me, bowling establishments were very special places, and this incessant rabble about their imminent disappearance except as centers for "sociable outings," virtual reality games and "cosmic" extravaganzas had become depressing.

There will always be bona fide bowling houses, I insisted, and I backed up this affirmation with concrete examples of "old guard" establishments that still maintained 35-week scratch leagues playing on challenge-oriented lane conditions.

Flash Forward to 1999

These days, however, I have begun to doubt that traditional bowling centers will always be extant. Moreover, today, I'm beginning to wonder whether this matters any longer for most bowling proprietors.

Which then leads to the question, "Should they care?"

Just the other day, I looked around in my center and realized that most everyone in it was bowling because it was inexpensive, easy and fun. This is not to say these people did not like to score well... only that, ever so gradually, scores are becoming more and more insignificant as merriment and frolic play an ever-increasing role in the bowling process.

How did this come about? Well, Hollywood made no small contribution. In several recent movies and TV series, bowling centers were prominently featured. Hurrah, you say. Attention from Hollywood usually signifies a robust industry in lieu of one that is floundering. Not, however, when the depiction is persistently negative. Keep in mind: That which destiny would destroy, it first makes ludicrous and inane.

Furthermore, this is the time for those affiliated with the sport to be characterized as bumbling, bookless buffoons, says Hollywood. For instance, according to the entertainment media's outlook, bowling participants are "dese," "dose," and "dem" guys who would be well cast in "Godfather IV." And though attention from filmmakers seems like a plus for the bowling business, somewhat like a sign that bowling is flourishing, actually it depicts the opposite. The moment the movies give notice of an industry by means of distasteful whimsy and distortion, it's all over. Suddenly, your place seems overrun by the very "freaks" and "morons" portrayed in their films.

Too often, social progress is characterized as a battle between the old and the new. This, also, is not correct. Instead, it is actually a selection process based on profound judgments as to what is right and what is wrong. Even more, social progress bespeaks of identifying what really exists and what does not. Hollywood would well serve the nation if it stopped "pandering" the public and began "telling it like it really is."

But the real decline of sport bowling over the last 35 years lies more with the conduct and behavior of the bowling proprietors and their association (BPAA) than with any other faction or major integer in the industry. Indeed, it's no secret that the BPAA wrested primary control of the industry many years ago. Using the argument that "Those with the greatest capital investment should have the greatest say," they mandated, for the most part, the course and direction of the industry for more than three decades. The present plight of sport bowling is testimony to the inadequacy of their rule and policies.

For this reason, I argue that if sport bowling is to rebound from its present, depressive state - and if proprietors are really concerned about reviving it - the BPAA should once again, totally and without qualification, turn over the helm of regulation and rule to the ABC and the WIBC. These two sanctioning bodies speak for the millions of bowlers who still stand with us. No other organization speaks for them. If their voice is not restored in the not too distant future, I'm afraid it may be too late to save this great sport.

Furthermore, to be healthy, an organization needs open and accurate communication among its members. Local as well as national association officials and managers often tend to distort facts and practice deception. Even more, they often try to protect their superiors from hearing about failed policies and newfound problems.

Effective leadership is really about understanding the problem, understanding the people involved with the problem, and then decisively and promptly dealing with the problem. In this regard, it is incumbent upon ABC and WIBC to streamline their bureaucracies and quickly put the foot to the pedal.