"robert casey" wrote in message
nk.net...
Oh, someone will file a petition for reconsideration, and the FCC will
shoot it down. It's done. History.

The next flame wars may well involve the continuation of making the ARS a
"classless" service.

People will attack "extra" class and even "general" class; why should those
old geezers have HF band segments reserved for them just because they passed
a more difficult knowledge test? It is a form of "prejudice". After all,
dyslexics cannot take a written test because the letters in the questions
appear backwards and the ADD kids are too stoned on Ritalin to study the
material properly. What about the people who are truly mentally retarded?
What about people with Down's syndrome? Only the old geezers want to have a
written test and who are they but a bunch of luddites?

ARRL will eventually petition the FCC to have only one license class. One
should only need to pass element 2. We should eliminate elements 3 and 4.
After all, Colpitts oscillators are yesterday's technology. Someone will
form a lobbying group: NCI will become NKI (No Knowledge International). It
will be led by patronizing extra-class license holders who feel guilty about
their technical skills and who wish to pass the torch to less knowledgable
individuals, some of whom will electrocute themselves as they change the
3-500Z tubes in their newly acquired, used, HF linears.

Somehow, I would have thought the "knowledge" and "code" filters a bit more
humane, but Darwinism works too :-)

There will be a call for comments. In 7-8 years, there will be an R&O and
the bands will be knowledge-free.

But not without an interminable flame war on RRAP first.