I agree, to a point. Carbon, Aluminum, and Titanium and weight weenies all have their places in cycling. We who like to ride C&V bikes sometimes ride them too, and can be very weight conscious. Just because a bike is made of steel (whether lugged, fillet brazed, or welded) can still be surprisingly light weight. There are probably a lot of bikes floating right around here on our little forum that easily weight less than 20 lbs. But, that doesn't discount those plastic wonder bikes that weigh 14-15 pounds. There are plenty nowadays, that though they lack the same handcrafted mystique of our some of our older steel rides (not always though), they still have a plenty good ride. They wouldn't sell if people didn't enjoy riding them, plain and simple. Sure, there's only a limited lifespan of those bikes, but steel has the same. There are many horror stories of steel spontaneously exploding, maybe not as many as carbon, but they are out there.
To me, Richard Schwinn is just advertising. It's a tough economy and everybody is trying to push their products. Steel has a hard time gaining any of its former footing in light of the onslaught of carbon manufacturers, especially since steel bikes are sometimes more expensive than carbon bikes, and almost always less available.
There will always be die-hard advocates of each type of material. Pick your place, in this sport it's hard to tell most people something they just don't want to hear.
-Gene-