What are you actually basing this off? What have you seen that we're all missing that says community isn't growing and the players that are here aren't active?
Moonstar, where are you getting this idea that the game is failing?
I've noticed lots of good servers online over the past week. Anyway, lots of people are probably starting school soon so it should be expected to cool down a little.
I've been a player since around V7, I'm just basing my opinion off of my experience with how active (players actually trying to be creative and not making a load of stuffty RP servers that ban 1/4th of their players) the game was. You know, the original DM servers and the original, quality CityRPG servers, the Cops 'N Robbers, the challenges, the everything.
All I see now are just poorly built DM servers, Death-runs, Kart servers (not even those anymore, really), FamilyRP servers, Knife TDM servers, Mafia Madness (occasionally), and*very* rarely, a CityRP, but it's usually junk and poorly built, no creativity at all.
And yes, before anyone says it, I have tried really hard to contribute to the lack of original servers on the server list. I was building a death-match and Facechild was helping me out with it until we both went on a marathon of playing minecraft and I forgot all about it. By the time I got back to it a couple weeks later, I had lost motivation because I was pretty much building it myself at that point because Facechild had exams to do. Then I tried to build a little more and I finally just called it quits. I had gotten really far with the progress, but then my hard-drive failed recently and destroyed the save. I do have an earlier version on my older laptop that carries the important parts, but I think at this point, it'd be better for me to start a new one.
Anyway, I'm not saying my opinions here are fact. I'm just telling you how I see the game now compared to what it used to be, and I feel the game was better back then than it is now. I just wish someone could bring the game to life again. :C