Well, I wasn't saying it was a child's hobby either. But the more and younger kids that we get into the hobby, the more chance of its success later. Like all things it goes through cycles though. We're seeing an upward trend in the industry after a bit of a dearth in the late 90s. I know what's true for me and modelers I know in person and maybe most people here: we were into models at a young age, but lacked the patience and skill, took a break, and came back to it as adults. I would think the percentage of modelers who started as complete 100% n00bs as adults is a lot smaller. Maybe that's just me.
I've had a couple of people say it's a childish hobby--I just ignore them. Their loss.