Subject: Vanity Call fee going up in August
From: "Dee D. Flint"
Date: 7/10/2004 7:19 AM Central Standard Time
Message-id:
"me" wrote in message
news:FJQHc.62140$Oq2.29491@attbi_s52...
Personally, I believe Amateur Radio Licenses should cost $75 per year for
regulatory fees and the Commission should elimanate testing. I also
believe
that is how it will eventually be in the near future.
73,
Me
Doubtful that testing would be eliminated. International treaties require
that there is proof the operators meet minimum qualifications.
Since the FCC has given testing responsibility to the amateur community, the
FCC simply issues the license so they don't have any vested interest in
eliminating testing. And of course they issue the regulations and enforce
those regulations like they do for all communications services.
Besides testing is needed to attempt to insure that the licensees will have
learned the basics of operating. Hams have such a wide range of privileges
and frequencies that some basic knowledge truly is a necessity. We already
have enough lids slip through so let's not make it worse.
Dee,
I was going to dismiss the troll's post simply on the basis that it was
written by someone who doesn't have the gonads to sign his/her name to thier
public comments (read that: coward) but then I got to thinking that there might
be something to it.
You know, of course, that I work in healthcare as an ER nurse...And you
would be absolutely shocked at the number of people who come to the ER in
distress because they claim they can't "afford" thier medicines...Of course
they either wreak of cigarette smoke, metabolized alcohol, or both...but they
can't "afford" medicine.
So...ballpark the number of Amatuers at 650K...At $75/license that is over
$48M a year for the General Treasury coffers. Of course for that I'd expect a
lot stricter policing of the bands by Riley & Co for it, but hey, let's do
it...
I am willing to bet that most of the idiots who are discipline problems on
the bands are smokers, too. That $75 would be a whole lot of cigarettes, even
at present day prices. And there is one ultimate truism...Smokers will forego
food, debts and common sense in order to buy more cigarettes (as will
alcoholics for more alcohol...). I am willing to bet the scufflaws on 75 and
20 meters would go away in short order after the extra money for enforcement
nails them to the wall.
My license is worth $75/year to me. I'd pony up the cash. And I can
promise you you will never see my name in one of Riley's "letters" on the ARRL
website!
73
Steve, K4YZ