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Response to Time Article
Emery W McClendon (KB9IBW)
on
January 22, 2005
View comments about this article!
It has been said in a widely read and highly circulated magazine that Amateur radio “is a faintly embarrassing hobby.” That magazine also compared our hobby to stamp collecting. Both hobbies are dear to those that are involved in them, and I want to address the problem of an internationally read magazine making a statement like this about our great hobby.
First of it is a mystery to me why someone on the level of the author would say a thing like this about such a hobby as Amateur Radio. With all of the public service events, weather tracking and emergency services that our hobby participates in we are hardly an embarrassing hobby. Also there are people involved in Ham Radio from all walks of life that enjoy the hobby, and that have made innovations to our society that have improved our lifestyles.
I want to challenge amateur's to step up to the plate and show the world that this evaluation is dead wrong about our hobby by uniting to support our troops and veterans during Amateur Radio Military Appreciation Day on May 28, 2005.
This is a golden opportunity to show what we can do as amateur's for those that serve our Country. By uniting and setting up events in communities around the world we will become the largest military support voice in our nations history. This will show others what a great hobby we have and at the same time allow the people from our communities to express thanks and support in a live interactive event that is very popular. America supports it military people, and we could show the world in a very unique way that we provide a service like no other to let those that serve in our Armed Services know that we support them.
Visit www.freewebs.com/kb9ibw and find out how you and your local amateur radio club can get involved. It is a great service; it will promote amateur radio, and give our hobby the media attention it deserves to show that we are a great bunch of people with a viable hobby.
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Response to Time Article
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by GHOSTRIDERHF on January 22, 2005
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Dude --
Why on earth would you tie your post to the TIME magazine article --
holy cow my man -- we have just spent the last two weeks listening to the rants and ravings of the nonarticulate and slightly altered folks out there calling for the total overthrow of that magazine becuase of one simply line that was said and you go and bring it up again ...
Talk about beating a dead horse...
anyway -- hope youre wearing your asbestos underwear cause i think you just bought that dead horse to life for the 30th time... and its starting to stink ...
you said "and give our hobby the media attention it deserves" --
Will we ever be able to do anything at all simply as a ham radio operator and not demand media attention for doing it...???
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Response to Time Article
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by KG4YJR on January 22, 2005
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I thought I had stepped out of a "Time" machine this morning and it was three weeks ago. You know there are web ratings for websites and how much traffic and page hits they get. They can solicit higher advertising revenue with the stats they get when more visitors hit the website so get ready for 90% of the so called articles for the rest of 2005 to be "Let's destroy Time magazine!".
73
Dave
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by K1CJS on January 22, 2005
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This one got sick and died even faster than that other debate a few months ago--what was it now??.....
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by K4RAF on January 22, 2005
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The demands, the grudges & the bitterness.
Viable? More like miserable?
Just let it go...
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by W5HTW on January 22, 2005
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Suppose we turned out en masse for Military Day? Who would know? Non-hams? Very, very darned few, if any. The only folks who would know are the ones who participate. Even if we wrote letters to all the papers in the country, still only a tiny percentage of people would read them. Not throwing cold water on the Military Day at all, but we are the only ones who would know.
On a second point, the ARRL said, a couple of years ago, (and I wish I could find it again!) that about 1700 hams participate in emergency communications and public events annually (and probably many of them are the same hams repeatedly, as they live in tornado, flood or hurricane prone areas.) That's a pretty small percentage of around 700,000 licensed hams. Of course, about half those 700,000 have moved on to cell phones and the internet, as they only got licensed to keep in touch with "spousy." Or they are in HOAs that prohibit operations, or they found ham radio very boring and quit.
So we are not, except in our own eyes, the highly visible heros of the planet. We do good, yes, but the occasion to do so is quite rare, and at the very best results in a 15 second sound bite on a hit and miss TV news. And Joe Jim John Bob watching the news either doesn't think of us at all when he sees that, or he thinks "CBer" and that's the end of that. He switches to the baseball scores.
We are mostly important to ourselves. I don't mind that, of course, as I like my hobby, and like it even more now that I am retired. I've never, though, considered myself a hero, sung or unsung, and couldn't care less, even if I broke my back trying, what Time Magazine says about my hobby. I suspect, too, the number of people who are affected by the 15 seconds of ham radio on TV twice a year, are about equal to the number of non-hams affected by the Time article. Something approaching zero.
Ed
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by AC7WL on January 22, 2005
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Could not care less about the Time article, but the previous comment about getting licensed to keep in contact with "spousey" somewhat touched a cord... I tried convincing the YL to get licensed (we are on our way to Guam and thought it might be an easy way to keep in touch while out and about on a rather small island) to no avail. Given the lack of activity on the local repeaters and many more at spots I have visited I really can't say I see anything wrong with getting licensed to keep in contact with the wife. I have driven over 7,000 miles over the last two months listening to 146.52, making calls, and hearing nothing back, so if the band is getting used, so be it. I find it amusing that folks decry the use of VHF/UHF to keep in contact with family while a large portion of the band goes unused. These same folks complain about the lack of activity on the bands and how we are in danger of losing them to commercial interests. I have a CB in the truck for exactly the same reason, you won't get help on VHF/UHF on the freeway, but a CB has saved my rear on at least two occasions (heavy snow and inclement weather).
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by N2NZJ on January 22, 2005
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PSE LET THE DEAD HORSE ( RIP ). the time MAG. issue HAS BEEN DRAGGED OVER THE COALS AT LEAST 30 or more times. I said this BEFORE as others also STATED .lets DROP IT LIKE A HOT TUBE. OK 73 TOM
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by WT4M on January 22, 2005
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Ed, thanks for saving me a lot of time trying to find the words. I think you're right on the mark.
I am active duty military, and think that Military Appreciation Day is a wonderful idea. But, as Amateurs, let's do it because it's the right thing to do, to show our appreciation, not to tout to the media of how pious and worthy of praise we are.
Very few of the people I know, or work with, have any idea what it means to be an Amateur. If they are curious, I will tell them. If interested, I'll help them. Other than that I really don't care what the general public knows about my hobby, or if someone I have never met makes an off-handed remark.
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by WT4M on January 22, 2005
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Ed, thanks for saving me a lot of time trying to find the words. I think you're right on the mark.
I am active duty military, and think that Military Appreciation Day is a wonderful idea. But, as Amateurs, let's do it because it's the right thing to do, to show our appreciation, not to tout to the media of how pious and worthy of praise we are.
Very few of the people I know, or work with, have any idea what it means to be an Amateur. If they are curious, I will tell them. If interested, I'll help them. Other than that I really don't care what the general public knows about my hobby, or if someone I have never met makes an off-handed remark.
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by WA6BFH on January 22, 2005
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First I think that we must realize that the public will never truly understand what Amateur Radio is all about! Many within our ranks do not understand the complex qualities imposed by such physical facts as ‘the Inverse Square Law’ etc. How many Ham’s do you know that will easily grasp the idea that every time I double my communications path, I have lost 6 dB’s of signal?
Beyond such specific points they do not understand our motivation. Of course WE think Ham radio is cool but, the lay public has other interests such as sports, beer, and pretzels. For them our hobby is one big mystery! They have a hard enough time appreciating a love for golf. My guess is with that example; a lot of people would say to themselves, ‘well, it is a sport, so I guess some guys must like it.’ How many people within the lay public do you think can see a fascination in working some Dxpedition island, or packing most of your station up to a mountaintop for a VHF/UHF contest?
I agree with those who said, ‘lets do this event for its own value, and not worry if the public GETS IT or not. If they do FINE, if they don’t, OH WELL! Of course I would like to have the public share our appreciation of this great hobby but, until a larger percentage of Ham’s are folks such as John Kraus, Edwin Armstrong, and Philo T. Farnsworth -- it just ai’nt gonna happen!
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by GHOSTRIDERHF on January 22, 2005
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WA6BFH..
"Many within our ranks do not understand the complex qualities imposed by such physical facts as ‘the Inverse Square Law’ etc"
Dude -- many of our ranks have trouble with trying to understand why they need to let go of the mic button when they finish speaking let alone complex physics ... LOL
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Response to Time Article
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by KB7LYM on January 22, 2005
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The same old brown stuff. Apparently you did not get enough of it last time. Its like Politicians sitting around an oval table and in front of each a LARGE HEAP OF DUNG. And then they start.... rolling little balls and put them in the center of the table. When on the end ( thanks the Lord ) all is gone and only the BIG PILE of little balls is left over... some who enjoys picking lint from his or her navel grabs a hand of dung again and start rolling once more. Big Piles, Little Balls ete etc etc .......
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by W6TH on January 22, 2005
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Response to Time Article:
Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me.
.: W6TH
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by GHOSTRIDERHF on January 23, 2005
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Unless your HOA requires only the use of specific types of sticks or stones to be allowed...
LOL
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Response to Time Article
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by KE4ZHN on January 23, 2005
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How many times are we going to beat this subject to death? After reading all this drivel about the Time article, Im afraid that Lev is right!
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by N8AUC on January 24, 2005
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" Fan dipoles. Nope. How 'bout a Guinness instead?"
BRILLIANT!
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Response to Time Article
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by G0RTN on January 24, 2005
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A sense of perspective, a vallium or a joint would all be useful to a lot of radio hams right now.
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by K4JSR on January 24, 2005
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The only joint I have is arthritic as heck!
73, Cal K4JSR
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RE: Response to Time Article
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by K4JSR on January 24, 2005
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Oh yeah, and some no code guy accused me of creaking CW with it!
73, Cal K4JSR
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Response to Time Article
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by WA2JJH on January 25, 2005
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Using a K.K.K. like handle instead of a legit FCC cALL IS NOT A GOOD WAY TO MAKE FRIENDS OR BE CREDIBLE!
Back to the radio and LIFE in general!.
I AM HITTING EJECT-DO NOT BOTHER TO RESPOND.
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