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It's all over for Monitoring Times
On 08/05/2013 07:14 AM, D. Peter Maus wrote:
"Hils" wrote in message ... I sometimes feel an anachronism. The last time I did, I got my face slapped. He made a funny! |
It's all over for Monitoring Times
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It's all over for Monitoring Times
On Monday, August 5, 2013 11:45:23 AM UTC-5, Hils wrote:
On 2013-08-05 16:15, D. Peter Maus wrote: On 8/5/13 24:37 , wrote: This is probably the biggest problem in most advanced countries today- young people cannot do /make anything . Very disturbing, to say the least... Industry has wanted this for generations. The individual buys what she/he cannot build. Prices can rise, warranties can be revised. And the whole tenor of Customer Service can be dumbed down to "Policies" and procedures read from a computer screen. Heath, Dyna, and their like and kind in kit form are gone. Even Hafler were products built with parts and circuit designs from David Hafrler's Dyna days, and many of the manuals were reprints of Dynaco manusals with a new logo and front page. Convenience, higher wages, and lower costs of production have made kits, and a lot of DIY obsolete. Even DIY at the Home Depot is backed up by a league of installers who can drop a new cartridge for a water faucet in place for you. Codes, government permit policies, and oversight in your own home have made much of DIY repair impractical. In some developments, DIY is not permitted by CC&R's. Even painting your own home must be done by approved conractors. Often at elevated prices. And state law has facilitated much of this. Here in the Land of Lincoln, any new construction project, condominium, housing development, and subdivision MUST, by law, have a homeowner's association in place before construction may begin. And CC&R's must be approved by an oversight committee answering to the State. So, we become serf's to the contracting and construction trades. We become serfs to plumbers, electricians. Painters. And even lawn maintenance contractors. A few years ago the government here proposed banning all home electrical work: if you wanted to so much as rewire a mains plug, you'd have to hire a "qualified" electrician. There was enough of an outcry to persuade the government to drop the proposal, and many of the media tried to blame it all on the European Union, but the idea could only have come from trade associations lobbying politicians. I wonder how many politicians know how to rewire a mains plug? I wonder how many have any experience of real industry, either in management or on the factory floor? ISTM most of them come straight from economics and politics degrees or banking. And doing things for ourselves....well that becomes a case of atrophy. A thing no exercised wastes away. The last thing politicians and their corporate paymasters want is self-reliant citizens. communities........ www.wired.com |
It's all over for Monitoring Times
On Monday, August 5, 2013 11:45:23 AM UTC-5, Hils wrote:
On 2013-08-05 16:15, D. Peter Maus wrote: On 8/5/13 24:37 , wrote: This is probably the biggest problem in most advanced countries today- young people cannot do /make anything . Very disturbing, to say the least... Industry has wanted this for generations. The individual buys what she/he cannot build. Prices can rise, warranties can be revised. And the whole tenor of Customer Service can be dumbed down to "Policies" and procedures read from a computer screen. Heath, Dyna, and their like and kind in kit form are gone. Even Hafler were products built with parts and circuit designs from David Hafrler's Dyna days, and many of the manuals were reprints of Dynaco manusals with a new logo and front page. Convenience, higher wages, and lower costs of production have made kits, and a lot of DIY obsolete. Even DIY at the Home Depot is backed up by a league of installers who can drop a new cartridge for a water faucet in place for you. Codes, government permit policies, and oversight in your own home have made much of DIY repair impractical. In some developments, DIY is not permitted by CC&R's. Even painting your own home must be done by approved conractors. Often at elevated prices. And state law has facilitated much of this. Here in the Land of Lincoln, any new construction project, condominium, housing development, and subdivision MUST, by law, have a homeowner's association in place before construction may begin. And CC&R's must be approved by an oversight committee answering to the State. So, we become serf's to the contracting and construction trades. We become serfs to plumbers, electricians. Painters. And even lawn maintenance contractors. A few years ago the government here proposed banning all home electrical work: if you wanted to so much as rewire a mains plug, you'd have to hire a "qualified" electrician. There was enough of an outcry to persuade the government to drop the proposal, and many of the media tried to blame it all on the European Union, but the idea could only have come from trade associations lobbying politicians. I wonder how many politicians know how to rewire a mains plug? I wonder how many have any experience of real industry, either in management or on the factory floor? ISTM most of them come straight from economics and politics degrees or banking. And doing things for ourselves....well that becomes a case of atrophy. A thing no exercised wastes away. The last thing politicians and their corporate paymasters want is self-reliant citizens. One time that married Irish woman wayyyyy over yonder across the big pond, she hired old Tony to work on her bathroom. Tony was an old guy who mostly hung out in the pubs. He tried soldering a water pipe leak to her bath tub. She finally wound up calling Broughs plumbing to come over and do the job right. |
It's all over for Monitoring Times
On 8/5/13 11:45 , Hils wrote:
On 2013-08-05 16:15, D. Peter Maus wrote: On 8/5/13 24:37 , wrote: This is probably the biggest problem in most advanced countries today- young people cannot do /make anything . Very disturbing, to say the least... Industry has wanted this for generations. The individual buys what she/he cannot build. Prices can rise, warranties can be revised. And the whole tenor of Customer Service can be dumbed down to "Policies" and procedures read from a computer screen. Heath, Dyna, and their like and kind in kit form are gone. Even Hafler were products built with parts and circuit designs from David Hafrler's Dyna days, and many of the manuals were reprints of Dynaco manusals with a new logo and front page. Convenience, higher wages, and lower costs of production have made kits, and a lot of DIY obsolete. Even DIY at the Home Depot is backed up by a league of installers who can drop a new cartridge for a water faucet in place for you. Codes, government permit policies, and oversight in your own home have made much of DIY repair impractical. In some developments, DIY is not permitted by CC&R's. Even painting your own home must be done by approved conractors. Often at elevated prices. And state law has facilitated much of this. Here in the Land of Lincoln, any new construction project, condominium, housing development, and subdivision MUST, by law, have a homeowner's association in place before construction may begin. And CC&R's must be approved by an oversight committee answering to the State. So, we become serf's to the contracting and construction trades. We become serfs to plumbers, electricians. Painters. And even lawn maintenance contractors. A few years ago the government here proposed banning all home electrical work: if you wanted to so much as rewire a mains plug, you'd have to hire a "qualified" electrician. There was enough of an outcry to persuade the government to drop the proposal, and many of the media tried to blame it all on the European Union, but the idea could only have come from trade associations lobbying politicians. I wonder how many politicians know how to rewire a mains plug? I wonder how many have any experience of real industry, either in management or on the factory floor? ISTM most of them come straight from economics and politics degrees or banking. And doing things for ourselves....well that becomes a case of atrophy. A thing no exercised wastes away. The last thing politicians and their corporate paymasters want is self-reliant citizens. The last thing I would have ever believed in the US, is a political motive for something like this assinine proposal. But, the more I run into this kind of crap, and the more I become convinced that what's behind this, is a political motive. And very much in line with your observation. In the end, it doesn't much matter what we speculate is behind it. In the end, it's the resultant inability for the citizen to rely on his/her self that benefits the power structure. If trade unions drive the point, and the bill passes, the power structure still benefits. Opportunism is as much an evil as direct pursuit of an abuse. |
It's all over for Monitoring Times
On Monday, August 5, 2013 4:30:32 PM UTC-5, D. Peter Maus wrote:
On 8/5/13 11:45 , Hils wrote: On 2013-08-05 16:15, D. Peter Maus wrote: On 8/5/13 24:37 , wrote: This is probably the biggest problem in most advanced countries today- young people cannot do /make anything . Very disturbing, to say the least... Industry has wanted this for generations. The individual buys what she/he cannot build. Prices can rise, warranties can be revised. And the whole tenor of Customer Service can be dumbed down to "Policies" and procedures read from a computer screen. Heath, Dyna, and their like and kind in kit form are gone. Even Hafler were products built with parts and circuit designs from David Hafrler's Dyna days, and many of the manuals were reprints of Dynaco manusals with a new logo and front page. Convenience, higher wages, and lower costs of production have made kits, and a lot of DIY obsolete. Even DIY at the Home Depot is backed up by a league of installers who can drop a new cartridge for a water faucet in place for you. Codes, government permit policies, and oversight in your own home have made much of DIY repair impractical. In some developments, DIY is not permitted by CC&R's. Even painting your own home must be done by approved conractors. Often at elevated prices. And state law has facilitated much of this. Here in the Land of Lincoln, any new construction project, condominium, housing development, and subdivision MUST, by law, have a homeowner's association in place before construction may begin. And CC&R's must be approved by an oversight committee answering to the State. So, we become serf's to the contracting and construction trades. We become serfs to plumbers, electricians. Painters. And even lawn maintenance contractors. A few years ago the government here proposed banning all home electrical work: if you wanted to so much as rewire a mains plug, you'd have to hire a "qualified" electrician. There was enough of an outcry to persuade the government to drop the proposal, and many of the media tried to blame it all on the European Union, but the idea could only have come from trade associations lobbying politicians. I wonder how many politicians know how to rewire a mains plug? I wonder how many have any experience of real industry, either in management or on the factory floor? ISTM most of them come straight from economics and politics degrees or banking. And doing things for ourselves....well that becomes a case of atrophy. A thing no exercised wastes away. The last thing politicians and their corporate paymasters want is self-reliant citizens. The last thing I would have ever believed in the US, is a political motive for something like this assinine proposal. But, the more I run into this kind of crap, and the more I become convinced that what's behind this, is a political motive. And very much in line with your observation. In the end, it doesn't much matter what we speculate is behind it. In the end, it's the resultant inability for the citizen to rely on his/her self that benefits the power structure. If trade unions drive the point, and the bill passes, the power structure still benefits. Opportunism is as much an evil as direct pursuit of an abuse. ''Theater'', T'IS. |
It's all over for Monitoring Times
On 08/05/2013 03:03 PM, DhiaDuit wrote:
On Monday, August 5, 2013 4:30:32 PM UTC-5, D. Peter Maus wrote: On 8/5/13 11:45 , Hils wrote: On 2013-08-05 16:15, D. Peter Maus wrote: On 8/5/13 24:37 , wrote: ''Theater'', T'IS. http://www.elecraft.com/elecraft_products_page.htm http://www.electronickits.com/kit/complete/complete.htm http://www.jameco.com/webapp/wcs/sto...jameco_page=54 etc. I bet there are way more kits today than there were during the Eico Heath days. They just aren't for shortwave radios very much, although the Elecraft radios are the best in the world and totally suitable for serious SWL. |
It's all over for Monitoring Times
On Monday, August 5, 2013 2:09:04 AM UTC-4, Geoffrey S. Mendelson wrote:
wrote: This is probably the biggest problem in most advanced countries today- young people cannot do /make anything . Very disturbing, to say the least... It's not just young people. Once the Apollo program was canceled NASA, and the entire aerospace industry started to fold. By the 1980's there no longer existed in the US the capability of putting another man on the moon. Now, the US has no capability of launching a person into orbit and have to rely on the Soviets ^H^H^H^H^H Russian Federation to do so. There still is the capability of using a missile to launch a satellite, but the trick of using the space shuttle to catch one, and bring it back for repair is done. Along with this decline the 1959 rush to get everyone in the US a college education, along with the cheap student loans, subsidized tution and government funded expansion of colleges and universities is gone. The only thing that is left is the much more competivie admission polices and the restuctured college boards. Around the turn of the century, the tests were "re-normed" to lower the standards (raise the scores by 100 points on each test). That did not do very well, so an essay was added. The thing about essays is that they are all scored by people and are very culture dependent. So a mathematical genius with communications issues will fail misserably, along with a child who has had a different education than what they are looking for. But don't lose hope, things have changed. Children no longer live in isolation with only newspapers to find out what has happened. As my parents learned about the world via radio, I learned via television, my children learn through the internet. My oldest son does not live with me, he's married and off with his own family, so I don't keep track of him. He is a "world class" (i.e. published) expert in data visualization, something did not exist on the TTY that I had in my bedroom (with modem) in high school. His brothers have high speed internet, cellular phones, pocket devices (both have iPods touch, one has an android phone, the other an android tablet), and see the world a lot differently than we did. When I was a teenager, you could feed a family of 6 at the local burger joint for the cost of a one minute phone call between New York and LA. We all have unlimited cellular plans with international calling in 26 countries and they use text voice chat everyday to communicate with people around the world. The only continent they don't regularly communicate with is Antartica. Making things is a problem, yes, they have no interest in what we called "shop". I had wood, metal, ceramic, and auto in high school, I did not have electrical shop so I went into computers instead of becoming a ham radio operator, something I did in my 40's. We shall see what happens as 3d printers are coming down in price, and I think all the stuff they used to make from Legos, paper and scotch tape will in a few years be made on them. Eventually they will design things on the computer, print them out in plastic on their 3d printer and have them made in metal if needed. Geoff. -- Geoffrey S. Mendelson, N3OWJ/4X1GM/KBUH7245/KBUW5379 I don't see how a cancellation of just one space program could have caused the future generation not try building/constructing/inventing new gadjets . Oh, btw the Russians may lose Baikonur Cosmodrome in 2014... That is very difficult to comprehend, considering it has been operating (non-stop) all the way since 1957! |
It's all over for Monitoring Times
On Monday, August 5, 2013 5:52:27 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Monday, August 5, 2013 2:09:04 AM UTC-4, Geoffrey S. Mendelson wrote: wrote: This is probably the biggest problem in most advanced countries today- young people cannot do /make anything . Very disturbing, to say the least... It's not just young people. Once the Apollo program was canceled NASA, and the entire aerospace industry started to fold. By the 1980's there no longer existed in the US the capability of putting another man on the moon. Now, the US has no capability of launching a person into orbit and have to rely on the Soviets ^H^H^H^H^H Russian Federation to do so. There still is the capability of using a missile to launch a satellite, but the trick of using the space shuttle to catch one, and bring it back for repair is done. Along with this decline the 1959 rush to get everyone in the US a college education, along with the cheap student loans, subsidized tution and government funded expansion of colleges and universities is gone. The only thing that is left is the much more competivie admission polices and the restuctured college boards. Around the turn of the century, the tests were "re-normed" to lower the standards (raise the scores by 100 points on each test). That did not do very well, so an essay was added. The thing about essays is that they are all scored by people and are very culture dependent. So a mathematical genius with communications issues will fail misserably, along with a child who has had a different education than what they are looking for. But don't lose hope, things have changed. Children no longer live in isolation with only newspapers to find out what has happened. As my parents learned about the world via radio, I learned via television, my children learn through the internet. My oldest son does not live with me, he's married and off with his own family, so I don't keep track of him. He is a "world class" (i.e. published) expert in data visualization, something did not exist on the TTY that I had in my bedroom (with modem) in high school. His brothers have high speed internet, cellular phones, pocket devices (both have iPods touch, one has an android phone, the other an android tablet), and see the world a lot differently than we did. When I was a teenager, you could feed a family of 6 at the local burger joint for the cost of a one minute phone call between New York and LA. We all have unlimited cellular plans with international calling in 26 countries and they use text voice chat everyday to communicate with people around the world. The only continent they don't regularly communicate with is Antartica. Making things is a problem, yes, they have no interest in what we called "shop". I had wood, metal, ceramic, and auto in high school, I did not have electrical shop so I went into computers instead of becoming a ham radio operator, something I did in my 40's. We shall see what happens as 3d printers are coming down in price, and I think all the stuff they used to make from Legos, paper and scotch tape will in a few years be made on them. Eventually they will design things on the computer, print them out in plastic on their 3d printer and have them made in metal if needed. Geoff. -- Geoffrey S. Mendelson, N3OWJ/4X1GM/KBUH7245/KBUW5379 I don't see how a cancellation of just one space program could have caused the future generation not try building/constructing/inventing new gadjets . Oh, btw the Russians may lose Baikonur Cosmodrome in 2014... That is very difficult to comprehend, considering it has been operating (non-stop) all the way since 1957! Russia is fixin to start charging America three times as much money to send Astronauts into space. |
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