"Jerry" wrote in message
...

"John" wrote in message
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an_old_friend wrote:
K4YZ wrote:

wrote:

From: "K4YZ" on Thurs 8 Sep 2005 23:39

I've noted that the usual rhetoric from the "Ham Radio Will Never
Get Through When Anything Fails" crowd, specifically from the
patriarch
of the Feeble Five, Lennie "No Guts" Anderson, has waned in the face
of
MAJOR media stories in all facets of "the press" that have lauded
Amateur Radio.

"Patriarch?!?" Not I, never having met in-person any of
those against the mighty warrior of "seven hostile actions,"
Dudly the Unconquerable...aka Dudly the Unhumbleable.

In other words, you're ducking. Amateur Radio is doing exactly
what you said it can't won't do.


It is "ducking" to disclaim a title conferred by your enemy

and ARs is still not providing vital coms

cut excess hot air suggesting perhaps it be redirected to NO to help
dry the place out

And YOU are the one who always claims that Amateur Radio isn't the
"force" that it's own PR folks claim simply because there's not "major
media" coverage corroborating it.

Whelp...I consider Fox News, CNN, The Wall Street Journal, MSN,
etc, to be those "major media" resources.


I have been watching the news I don't see any coverage indacating that
the ARs is preforming a vital service. It is providing the H&W traffic,
important but nothing life saving

cuting more hot air, with the same suggestion as before

Than it is the news coverage that has missed the boat. I have listened
(BTW first rule for an emergency net, listen, don't transmit, unless your
help is needed) to the SATERN net (14.265) and heard relays of quite a
number of life saving messages - e.g. someone at such and such an address
needs to be rescued. Sounds like life saving to me.
John

And I also have been hearing MARS passing life-saving traffic. Uh, MARS
is.............er, what? HAMS! And I've also heard the SAtern net doing
the same. "Mrs. X is out of insulin, critical need at such 'n such place".
"Be careful wading around there, we saw some water moccasins swimming
there". (Have you ever SEEN a cotton mouth, Mr Anderson)

It is not just H & W traffic; the ham volunteers are in place to
facilitate communications whatever the message.
They were onscene almost immediately doing what they have always done; a
part in the total scheme of things. How MUCH ham radio does is immaterial,
or WHAT traffic they pass is not important. They ARE there doing what they
can just as I would if I were called. This bickering, snipping, arguing
about the "uselessness" of ham radio is stupid and those that who armchair
quarterback from 1000 miles away don't know what they are talking about
just as I don't know what is going on in NO. But I CAN monitor what is
happening and I know that the military, CAP, church relief organizations,
Red Cross, AND Amateur Radio are doing whatever they can to contribute to
the effort.

The thread began pre-Katrina and was basically about how Amateur Radio was
"useless" or irrelevant to disasters--even how the wonderfully "organized"
CBers could provide "communications into and out of a stricken
area---along with the usually attacks and accusations.

The bottom line is, hams ARE providing a service. Some of it is Health and
Welfare traffic, some of it is vital communications concerning threats to
life and property. I'm sitting here LISTENING to it, dammit! So let's quit
yelling at each other and get back to work whether it be wading thru
several feet of water, looking for victims, passing the most mundane of
messages, OR opening our wallets to donate money or supplies.
]
Jerry


Bravo Jerry....well put. I assure you there are very few folks here that
share the view of 'an old friend'.

Dan/W4NTI