For the most part most of them do not belong to either the national nor their state associations and do not attend major industry events where this kind of information is routinely shared.

My next suggestion which maybe of bigger help is to find and join or attend a couple REIA meetings or groups, they are often your best source for contacts and to get a real time pulse of what is going on in your market area.

There are a lot of people with great advice and experience on this site so you should be able to learn a lot.There are a lot local meet ups that you can attend that will help you learn and network.

There is a REIA group that meets in Branson and one in Overland Park Kansas - both would be good groups to join - maybe not to attend the monthly meetings, but to attend the weekend workshops they offer from time to time - well worth the cost of the event and a day spent in either city for a full day of networking and learning.In Kansas City  - there is a full day training workshop coming up on the 17th of September and the 22nd of October at MAREI

It is free to attend if you pre-register and $10 if you just show up at the door. 

I am also interested in attending REI meetings in order to network as I presume it would be a great way to gain valuable information and key networking opportunities with some local buyers and investors as well as other wholesalers in my market.

And I much appreciate the meetup information - I don't think I would've come across it otherwise, and I'm planning to attend.

You can get the majority of these questions answered at one meeting and there's usually no cost to attend.

Did all these "investors" just attend a Real Estate seminar and get all hot to trot to buying into the miserable life of a landlord?

My suggestion to you would be find a local real estate investors club and start to attend.