OK Guys. Let me lay it out for you so it is perfectly clear.

"Blue Box Thief" said that ham radio is ending because the internet
and cell phones have reduced it to an old guy's hobby, and it
contributes nothing of value to the advancement of knowledge or
humanity. He also said there is virtually no interest in ham radio by
the current generation of kids and young adults.

I responded with the following points:

1. The internet cannot be relied upon in an emergency.

2. Cellular telephones cannot be relied upon in an emergency.

3. The telephone system itself cannot be relied upon in an emergency.

4. Packet radio is losing favor for passing messages, but WinLink 2000
is taking its place.

5. APRS is not a waste of spectrum, and is very important for use in
tracking emergency vehicles.

6. Ham radio is still very important to the government as evidenced by
the millions of dollars being pumped into it by Homeland Security.

7. Young people ARE getting into ham radio as evidenced by the number
in our area currently testing for a license.

8. Interest in ham radio is dependent upon how much work the local
hams are willing to expend on young people.

9. Ham radio will continue to be important for emergency
communications until satellite communications are fully developed.

Please point out to me which of the above are theories or involve
ranting.

Dick - W6CCD

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