Oh, I just have to respond here. I do agree in as much as I think the attainment of high level should be a reward for those who invest a long, long time playing. In my current campaign (which has slowed down this year due to that darned RL thing), my players have taken three years to achieve 7th level. The rapid advancement paradigm of the new edition is the one thing about it I don't like. As other posters have pointed out, this can be metered by careful DMing, my definition of which amounts to high PC mortality.