On 23 Jan 2007 22:36:44 -0800, "
wrote:



On Jan 22, 2:370m, "Bob Brock" wrote:
"KH6HZ" wrote in ...
"KC4UAI" wrote:


From the same perspective, I think that all hams should be required to
re-test on a regular basis to keep their ham license.
fterall, that is
what they do with driver's licenses isn't it?

Can you drive your ham rig on he streets and
kill or main others by losing control?

That "license comparison" subject was done to
death in here years ago. It is presuming that a
hobby radio license "is the same as" vehicular
operation...it is far from that.

The FCC decides. In the case of the Commercial
Radiotelephone licenses (three classes merged
into one General class) they were made lifetime.
NO renewals needed. Ever. [sometime around
the 1980s? I'd have to look in my licenses folder
elsewhere to get the exact date]

The state of the radio art is constantly changing.
While not very rapidly in US amateur radio, most
of the other radio services have changed drastically.
So many changes that the COLEMs would be hard
pressed to keep up, certainly so the FCC if they
still had to make up the tests. Can the VEC QPC
keep up with slowly-changing amateur radio
technology? That's doubtful since there has been
little change in the written test content for over a
decade.

LA

I wasn't being serious Len. I didn't read here years ago and would be
surprised if someone seriously suggested periodic retesting. In my
stated, they don't require a written test to renew drivers licenses
unless the person has been convicted of a moving violation since the
last renewal.