On Mar 11, 8:29?am, "KH6HZ" wrote:
wrote:
Perhaps this was the same VE team that tested the 4 1/2 year old?

I doubt it.

Yes, I realize that. Unfortunately there is no emoticon for
"tongue-in-cheek".

How about this one:

;-^


His proposed "cure" for that "problem" was to
propose that no one under the age of 14 years
be allowed to earn a US amateur radio license.

Why would one suggest a "cure" for a non-existant "problem"?

I can think of a couple of reasons:

1) Doesn't like children, or doesn't want to deal with them.

2) Doesn't want amateur radio to be "G-rated".

3) Thinks radio should be an adults-only activity.
(There's a quote to this effect).

4) Wants to cut off a source of new amateurs

5) Wants to spite those amateurs who were
licensed at an early age. (I earned my Novice
at age 13, Technician and Advanced at 14, and Extra at 16. The only
reason I took me to 16 to get
the Extra was the old 2 year experience rule.)

6) Is jealous of the accomplishments of young
amateurs

7) Believes that young people learn Morse Code
more easily, and are more likely to become
skilled in its use and actually use it as radio
amateurs. Cutting off the supply of young, Morse-
Code-skilled amateurs at the source is one way to
fight the *use* of the mode.

How's that?

As for "bitter old geezers", there's never been any
sort of age requirement, maximum or minimum, for
any class of US amateur radio license.

However, should there be periodic retesting, such as with driver's licenses?

Possibly. The problem is that such retesting would
place a burden both on the licensees and the VE
system.

It would be a shame, for instance, if a geezer's amplifer malfunctioned,
arc'd over to his oxygen bottle, and an explosion resulted.

Yes, that would be a shame.

Ex-KG6IRO, who lived less than 25 miles from AF6AY
and was recently sentenced to seven years in prison
for radio-related crimes, is well past retirement age.
So is the unlicensed person in Florida (Flippo?) who
is still behind bars IIRC.

Seems to happen a lot, unfortunately.

Actually it's quite rare. But it's certainly a lot
more common
than such violations by young amateurs.

Just think how embittered you would be if you had to wait 80 years to get
your ham ticket.

Heck, I'd be embittered if I'd had to wait until I was
14 years old!

AF6AY did not have to wait 80 years, however. When *he* was young,
there was no age requirement. He wants to impose a requirement
that *he* did not have to deal with.

He has always been eligible to get an amateur radio license. He could
have earned an amateur
radio license whenever he wanted. He *chose*
to wait all those years.

73 de Jim, N2EY