GarthB wrote1. I did not mock LL umpires. I tried to make the point that if you love doing LL then you owe it to yourself and LL to become the best umpire you can.
Fair enough.
2. My experience is that if one is good enough to do something, they usually do. Coulda woulda shoulda is meaningless.
This is silly. As a college student, I was good enough to achieve a bachelor's degree in English, American History, and given enough motivation, probably Math. I chose not to.
3. No one will become the best umpire they can be by working nothing but LL. That's a fact.
It's a fact that doesn't mean anything without an agreed measurement of umpire quality, but possibly true. I submit that no one will become the best umpire they can be by working nothing but any single level of baseball, including MLB.
4. Like it or not, experience will make one a better umpire.
Agreed again. But the regulars on this board don't really follow an ecumenical path. For example, I could assert that working some softball would be an experience that helps you become the best umpire you can be. (I've seen a rising fastball, for example. If any overhand pitcher ever throws one, I'll be able to track it and call it correctly.🙂 ) We all pick our spheres.
As a LL umpire, I've worked 8U to 16U (probably JV HS level) ball. At district and state tournaments, I've seen quite a high quality of play and managed games under pressure. I've worked with umpires better than myself and learned from them, and I've taken all of the local (association-level) training available.
I have a number of ways I could improve, but the only experience I think I desire right now is managing games with professional coaches who know how to work the game against umpires. LL volunteer managers don't really present much of a challenge.