From: "Alun L. Palmer" on Sat 6 Aug 2005 16:06
wrote in
From: "Bill Sohl" on Fri 5 Aug 2005 13:50
wrote in message
Phil Kane wrote:
On 4 Aug 2005 15:22:35 -0700, wrote:
What is most strange to me is that there is so little
mention of the Against side on establishing an "ex-officio"
(i.e., not by federal regulation) radiotelegraphy award or
certificate of merit by a NEW group to demonstrate the
alleged efficacy of morsemanship skills. I can see only two
commenters hinting at that. Now if morsemanship is so darn
good, so superb, so attractive to all who try it, then it
would be natural to assume at least one new group to spring
into existance pushing for morsemanship. All that appears
in the comments Against are the tired old cliches and
morsemyths which have been seen by me for a half century.
Those old warhorse maxims just haven't done the job to
attract enough. Those who have made it through the federal
tests rationalize that "it is still good" but they are just
whistling in the graveyard...they are in the MINORITY now
and they are (as they should be) very uncomfortable.
dit rid
Len, I think, although I am not 100% sure, that the ARRL already does do
Morse proficiency certificates, or maybe I am mixed up and it is only the
RSGB that does that?
The League does or did, but that is irrelevant since the ARRL was
first organized in 1914. The year 1914 cannot possibly be
considered "new" by anyone, save for our resident Worshipper of
the Past, the redoubtable Nun of the Above. [the Radio Club of
America, still an organization, was formed 5 years prior in 1909]
I haven't noted what year the Radio Society of Great Britain was
formed other than the RSGB publishing EXCELLENT handbooks plus
having some excellent commentary by Pat Hawker in his very long-
running column in their membership magazine. In the past three
decades there has been MORE actual pioneering in radio by the
radio amateurs in the UK and Europe than in North America. Two
specific cases: The polyphase audio quadrature network permitting
generation/decoding of SSB without high-tolerance R-C components;
The innovation of Peter Martinez' (G3PLX) PSK31 and its trials in
the UK and Yurp well before that mode was published in the USA.
I have noticed that a lot of the PCTA don't actually operate CW (present
company excepted).
Actually, that would be irrelevant. WT Docket 05-235 affects ONLY
those who wish to ENTER U.S. amateur radio through licensing OR
those who want to "upgrade" to a "higher" class U.S. amateur radio
license. The ONLY effect on those U.S. radio amateurs ALREADY
licensed as amateur extras is EMOTIONAL.
The FCC is NOT chartered to act as an emotional sustenance
provider for whining crybabies who want to be Elitists in the
OLD way of doing the HOBBY of amateur radio.
There are a lot of people who take the view that they
had to do it, so others should have to. Naturally, that group aren't much
interested in CW certificates, 'cos they probably wouldn't be able to get
one!
No, no, Alun...these Mighty Macho Morsemen WILL absolutely pass
each and every morse code test ever devised/done/contemplated
and lots of them have implied that in here! :-)
"...look upon my works, ye mighty, and despair!" - Tennyson
fax you