"JJ" wrote in message
...
The best thing that could happen to Amateur Radio would be for K1MAN to
be taken off the air.


For sure! Baxter has not mellowed a bit. I remember when he got his kicks
knocking the fine, friendly gentlemen who ran the Sunday morning Bermuda Net
off their traditional frequency with his one-way high-powered blather. Then
Baxter went and declared a national emergency for the country of Bermuda!
What a nut. How long must we endure Baxter's abuse of amateur radio? AK

--------- Tony's letter to the Bermuda Government Telecom Officer --------

Antony Sxxxx, VP9--
Hamilton, Bermuda
August 21st. 1989

Mr. E. Pitman,

Governement Telecommunications Officer,
Department of Telecommunications,
Hamilton.

Dear Ted,

I am faxing a transcript of the broadcast put out by K1MAN last week.

When you have read this I would like to have a meeting with you, maybe we
could have lunch and discuss it then, to fill you in on what actually
happened.

Your support with this would be appreciated. I have been to the American
Consulate and will be writing a formal letter of complaint this week,
requesting a public apology from K1MAN. He is advocating that I should lose
my license for NOT passing third party traffic when the "world needed to
know" and he had declared an emergency. He was doing this under the
authority of the "FCC" according to him. I reminded him that we were not a
State of the United States of America and that we were governed by the
Department of Telecommunications and also the British arrangements for third
party traffic. He could declare whatever he wanted to but until we had
clearance, we would not pass it

No emergency had been declared and as far as we were concerned it was an
unofficial net standing by in case we were needed should an emergency be
declared. He did not like being informed that we were handling the situation
ourselves very efficiently, without his help.

Please telephone me when it is convenient and I will explain more, or as I
said, maybe we could have lunch.

Yours sincerely,
Antony Sxxxx VP9--

----------------------------------

This is a response to the editorial broadcast by K1MAN after Hurricane Dean.

STATEMENT -
KlMAN stated "IARN activated for Hurricane Dean as it neared Bermuda,
Sunday August 6th. 1989 at 11.30 UTC. IARN Headquarters in Belgrade
Lakes etc. received a call from Tony Sxxxxx, VP9--, requesting assistance
from IARN on 14.275mHz. Tony wants to activate 14 . 275mHz. . .etc. "


FACT - At 11.15 UTC, VP9-- & VP9__ activated the Bermuda net.

A broadcast was in progress and VP9-- decided to telephone KlMAN.

The conversation was "Glen Baxter" and the response was "Tony Sxxxx VP9-- in
Bermuda. We want 14.275mHz cleared due to the impending Hurricane"

Response from Glen Baxter, "No problem" and the telephone conversation
finished.

FACT - At no time was a request made for IARN to assist or to activate.

FACT - KlMAN checked in to the Bermuda net at 11.45 UTC and he was
informed, (as were many others who had checked in) of the current situation
in Bermuda.

STATEMENT -
"Associated Press and therefore the entire world, was, de facto, cut off
from the world of public information dissemination.......... up to the
minute detail report, now assured that ham radio and IARN had a well
established and well maintained link to Bermuda"

FACT - Glen Baxter was not on a well maintained link to Bermuda. He checked
in and was given information the same as many other hams. The so called
emergency was K1MAN generated and not an emergency in Bermuda. The reports
of lack of readiness at 20.00 UTC were absolute poppycock. All of this
information had been issued by the Bermuda Hams between the hours of 11.15
UTC and 13.00 UTC that Bermuda had been well prepared.

STATEMENT
by Glen Baxter ".....festival the previous Thursday which included a soccer
match between teams on either end of the Island."

FACT - Again, poppycock. K1MAN had been informed that the Cup Match was a
cricket game between St. Georges and Somerset, had been played, the result
was a draw and everyone had a good time. The match was on Thursday and
Friday when the storm was hundreds of miles away. This Information had been
given hours earlier.

FACT - IARU had generated an emergency, no one else. Totally uncalled for
"here is the important news we gathered for Associated Press." IARN were
more interested in promoting themselves and Glen Baxter in particular and
when he found that he was not wanted on the net and did not have control of
it he resorted to terminological inexactitudes to achieve his ends.

FACT - Glen Baxter relayed conversations he had with VP9-- to Associated
Press without the consent or knowledge of VP9-- at the time. This is in
contravention of International Law.

As an American citizen he has no right to assume Governmental authority and
issue edicts to hams in other countries. At no time can he advocate publicly
that licenses should be revoked and should he have any complaints then these
should be directed through the Department of Telecommunications in Bermuda.
His pontificating on people's attitudes and his declarations of emergencies
allows him to promote himself and his organization in such a way that his
approach does sound plausible. As they say you can fool some of the people
some of the time but not all of the people all of the time and K1MAN does
not fool any Bermuda Ham. His trip to Moscow paid for by the Young Communist
League leaves one to suspect his motives and his reporting.