1989 - Palomar Amateur Radio Club

IH16 'fir
JUST SAY NO TO NO CODE LICENSES
I'm not seeing much objection to having the NO CODE license shoved down
our throats. I wonder how many of us have let their ARRL Division Director
know how they feel about the proposal to degrade the quality of the member­
~-qhip in our. once elite hobby. The Directors names and addresses are listed
Mn the front of QST. A copy of your letter should go to ARRL Headquarters,
225 Main St., Newington, CT 06111. It seemed open and shut when the FCC
proposed the No Code license several years ago, but we let the Commission
and the ARRL know how we felt about it and we triumphed by sheer weight of
numbers - we won by (a) noes so to speak.
WE CAN DO IT AGAIN! But we have to get off the dime and get rid of the
attitude that it's a fait accompli and go to work to let them know how we
feel about it. It's our hobby, darn it, let's do it! Write your Division
Director and the ARRL and make it clear how you feel. It needs to be
talked up on the air too, so let's go to work.
Bob Ferrero, W6RJ, and Jim Rafferty, N6RJ, President and VP of HRO have
written to all ARRL Division Directors and told them how they feel. They
said in part:
"Actually is a No Code license necessary? Our members are GROWING
at 3.3X per year; that is very controlled healthy growth. A No
Code license is NOT going to attract thousands of teenagers.
Today's youth is fascinated by the "high-technology" of the computer
field, not ham radio. We all must accept the fact that our
hobby has changed. The people attracted to ham radio today are
the sailboater, the engineer types, SWL'ers and the retirees. Our
hobby has simply matured, and as we see it there is no turning
back. Please don't get caught up in the "HYPE" that our hobby is
dying off, and we're going to lose all of our frequencies, and the
end is near. An influx of 100,000 new "hams" (dreamer) will in
all likelihood not sway the FCC one way or the another.
We are fearful that "selling-out" to those who are unwilling to
take the time to learn the code would be a mistake. You would
remove the one basic thing that has always held the amateur radio
operator apart from the rest of the community, the knowledge of
the Morse code. Please, don't be fooled into making a mistake
that could change our hobby in a negative way forever."
(Following is a replay of a SCOPE editorial - written on a computer.)
NO CODE LICENSE DRUM AGAIN BEING BEATEN .
Seeing what's on the packet bulletin boards and reading QST, we again
note the hoopla for a "no-code" license so that we can have more "sharp"
young computor-oriented people in amateur radio and thus save it from a
fate worse than death or some such.
It's an old story. If you can't get enough folks in who meet the current
standards, lower the standards and let in those who don't presently measure
up.. After nearly 30 years as a military professional, I can person~lly
testify to what happens when this line of reasoning is followed. The caliber
of the service is diluted, lowered, if you will, by lowering the standards.
I'm proud to be a member of an elite radio fraternity - the Amateur Service.
The five word per minute code test doesn't take a mental giant to
pass it, merely someone with the dedication and self discipline to do the
job. Lots of sub-teens do it - and they aren't even Cal Tech graduates!
So lets let the "sharp" folks in - after they pass Element lA, the five wpm
---code test. Let it continue to keep out the "sharp" folks who do not have
,he self-discipline to get it done! de K6HAV
IT BOILS DOWN TO THIS:
IF YOU DON'T WANT A NO CODE LICENSE, WRITE AND TELL THE ARRL SO.
Scope - August '89 Remember the PICNIC, Sunday, August 20th Page 7