Really? That's not my take from this discussion. I would say that it's lost "some" of its value--as has pretty much everything in the airline world. (For example, even if I were to pay for an international F ticket, I wouldn't get Dom and caviar any more.) If it had lost "a lot of" its value, you wouldn't see all the folks on this board laying out cash for the double EQM promotion or going on MRs before the end of the year.

And to offer additional perspective on the "things aren't what they used to be" concept...keep in mind that everything in this world is relative. I have been Platinum on CO for 5+ years, but have begun to bail on them because to me the best perk--free domestic upgrades--aren't happening nearly as much as they used to. I was finding that lately my experience as a 1P on UA has trumped Plat on CO, so this year I reversed much of my flying and in 2006 will be 1K on UA, but only Gold on CO.