From: Dave Heil on Thurs, Oct 13 2005 8:19 am

wrote:
Dee Flint wrote:

Movies and novels, etc often take artistic license with the facts in order
to produce more impact. That is true of both dramas and comedies. So any
one who relies on such items for their history is going to be using a far
amount of misinformation. Even the news media takes artistic license by the
selection of what facts and speculation to report since they are going for
ratings.

Dee D. Flint, N8UZE

Dee, excellent, excellent post.

That must be why some in this group constantly quote british comedy as
if it were somehow relevant to matters at hand. They get their history
from Monty Python. Telling is their admiration for the contribution(s)
that the ARS made in WWII. Quitepuzzling, since the ARS was shut down
by the US government at the time.

Many radio amateurs made their war contributions as radio operators.

As did all the PCTAs in here, valiantly fighting the brave
fight with a morse key in each holster.

It would be fun to read of their stories, tales of heroism,
etc., while working for the OSS deep behind the lines and
sending intel back to Hq. I can compare them to those I
heard back in the 1950s from Signalmen who were actually
there! :-)

Many became electronics and radio instructors.

Right...and how MANY is "many?" More than five?

Was the MIT Radiation Lab built up on a base of amateurs?

Were there NO electronics professionals anywhere in the U.S.
electronics industry at that time?

What do you think Bell Labs in NJ had? A little shack
just working on telephones?

What about the second-highest priority of manufacture in
World War 2, right behind the Manhattan Project? That was
quartz crystal unit manufacture...a million a month in the
last three years of WW2.

Many were involved in radio design and manufacture.

Riiiight...all hams knew everything there was to know about
radar, microwaves, sonobuoys, VHF and UHF radio relay, and
primitive television used in the first guided bombs?

Locate Lewyt Vacuum Cleaner Comapny and find out their
history...they built lots of BIG HF transmitters during
WW2! Really. BC-339s with 1 KW RF out in HF and BC-340s
with 10 KW RF out in HF. Said so on lots of nameplates.

Many became involved with Civil Defense
and WERS (War Emergency Radio Service).

Again, how MANY is "many?" Were there any AIR ATTACKS on the
United States then? [exactly one case of a Japanese
submarine firing a couple rounds on California, hitting very
little] [Hawaii wasn't a state back then, remember]

My father-in-law was an "air raid warden" in his neighborhood
some 900+ miles inland from the east coast, about 2000 miles
inland from the west coast. About all that was accomplished
with those air raid drills was conservation of electricity
by turning off all non-essential lights.

Tell us all about CD and WERS, old timer. I'm sure the kids
in here will glory in your stories. I was a kid myself back
then and thought it real exciting to hear all those stories
of military life.

There is a large amount of
documentation of the efforts of radio amateurs during the Second World
War. Have you read any of it?

Lots and lots of it available from the ARRL. Too bad they don't
mention all the NON-amateur contributions in radio...or even
that the major communications mode of the U.S. military back in
WW2 was by TTY, not morse code...as it continued into the post-
War Two period. Western Electric Company made lots and lots of
NON-morse communications equipment...they of the Bell conglomerate
and not at all being amateur about what they did.

But...the ARRL is the "only true" source of "radio history" isn't
it? Always "telling the truth" and omitting nothing, right?

Tell us your stories, old timer. They are always such a treat
on how you saved the country for democracy during WW2.

Then you can insert the "PCTA truth" of how "all" radio ops
"must know morse code" in order to be "good radio ops" and how
anyone that doesn't love, honor, cherish and obey the morse
creed is "hating all hams" of today. [which is what it will all
boil down to...as usual]

Have Jimmie Noserve tell us all about Washington Army Radio
[WAR callsign] at Fort Detrick and how ACAN operated. He will
know because he thinks he was THERE or something. Have Dudly
tell us about the Montezuma halls and the beaches of Tripoli
as he valiantly fought side by side with other ham heroes in
the African campaign of '43. Wonderful stories and tales!

Above all else, stress that anyone who doesn't like/love
morsemanship of 60 years ago now HATES ALL HAMS and "dishonors"
them ALL by not parroting the holy ham history output of ARRL
about World War Two.