Conversely, we are lifetime members and haven't gotten any such solicitations - nor have we gotten any "swipe & save" card nor an offer for one. Not a big deal for us, really, but it does seem that lifetime members should get a card...
As far as being hard up for money, we've being getting solicitations from many other organizations to re-up, months before our membership expires. And magazines have been doing that for years. Not sure if it means anything or not, though of course the economy is still pretty bad.