Amateur radio operator clashes with code enforcement - The Marietta Daily Journal

Stories like this give John Q. Public the image of an amateur radio antenna being a huge tower and a ham op as an uncaring neighbor. No wonder there are so many restrictions. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of ops like me are hiding wires in trees and praying not to get caught. Thanks for nothing.

 

With all this in mind, we in the ham community simply must do what we must to live with these restrictions. I agree fully that such restrictions on ham antennas often go way too far and are no so much to relieve "eyesores", but a way to exert control over others--a form of "King on the hill" thing. The wimps and wussies amongst us wouldn't dare challenge their neighbors in a one-on-one basic, but they can quote rules and regulations against a myriad of "infractions" ranging from the silly to the sublime. Now. If we CAN'T get relief from such restrictions, then the obvious thing to do is M O V E! Yes, MOVE! I've heard all the arguments about how "we can't find a house without HOA's and covenants" and, "Any house without HOA's is a slum". Both are simply not true. IF these statements ARE true where YOU live, then I'm sorry; I would not consider living in such a town or county, and it speaks ill of the calibre of your city/area! You'd think there were NO houses built prior to 1990, and that those that were are now slums! It is simply NOT so. Yeah, if your city now is one big dump, I'd consider leaving----fast as I can!

WE've argued this and argued this and ARGUED this till we've fully beat that poor horse to a bloody pulp. We have to realize that the "sheep" amongst us may like it this way. 2) we are a minority. (3 The rest (non-hams) could not care less about your old dumb radios 4( They may (probably) think your old antennas are "ugly" and might fall onto their house. And the Answer still IS..........................................MOVE! I fully agree that nobody should be able to come onto MY property and tell me what I can have, what I can park in the yard,, what color I can choose for siding. But I don't have such restrictions, nobody IS going to come in my yard and dictate to me, nor am I about to join an HOA--even if it is proposed! That's the best solution of all!

j

 

I think part of the problem is the gross disinformation and ignorance that most county Building and Planning people have in regards to Amateur Radio towers. When I applied for my tower permit, they tried to use standards for a Wireless Communications Facility, for example, the 1/2" icing requirement for a Class I (Amateur, CB) tower when those are considered exempt by TIA-222G. I had to go through the hassle of proving it, but it was just one in a long list of things I had to research and educate those people down in the county building. And the permit wasn't cheap either, around $1200. And believe me, considering the hassle and expense I had of getting my permit, I know why a lot of hams don't want to bother with the permit process. Unfortunately, that perpetuates the problem even more. As fewer and fewer hams apply for permits, you get more and more people in the Building and Planning departments that ask: "You want to apply for a what?".

John K7KB

 

I don't want to be combative, but you seem to be misinformed.

The FCC passed a ruling a couple of months ago that essentially said that if someone was stupid enough to move someplace without first checking to see if the area was covered by some type of covenant, or if the person moved into a area that had covenants - it was their own stupid fault for moving there in the first place, and the FCC is not going to represent them.

Two scenerios comes to mind -
First - if you want to build a radio or cell tower and want to get around the covenant rules, you just say you are going to use the tower for amateur radio and build the tower and attach one small antenna and then hang what you please on the tower.
This is fraud.

Second scenerio - You are a ham - or so you say.
You move into a place that does not allow amateur radio and then you try to force yourself upon those people who made the rules.

If you look at the statistics - there are 370,050 technician licenses today, there are 15,886 Novice, 167,921 Generals, and 58,805 Advanced, 133,189 Amateur Extra and 1 Tech Plus licenses out there.

Let's go a little further -
The only stopping place is Amateur Extra....
If a person is a Novice Class License holder - they are not a real ham.
Most of them could have gotten a upgrade just by filling out a piece of paper.
Most of the Technician class License Holders are not HAMS - they get a license for one reason or another and they buy a walkie talkie and they talk a couple of times and then they shut the walkie talkie off and in 10 or 20 years they let the license run out.
If they were hams - they would move up to General.

The Generals - usually are the ones who got what they wanted, a quiet place to talk on the HF / away from the 11 meters, and can do most everything except be a Volunteer Examiner that can give tests to people who wishes to be a Amateur Extra - since you have to have a VE that is a Amateur Extra to give the exams.

The ADvanced are usually morons that got their Advanced license and then thought that it made them special because they had to pass X amount of words per a minute of code and when the code requirement was dropped, they got mad because they did it and they wanted to segregate themselves from everyone else - so they never bothered to study and take the test to upgrade to Amateur Extra - and there they shall sit in limbo until they die.

The new Amateur Extra's - also known as the Extra Lights - because they did not have to pass code, is judged poorly mearly on the fact that their license issue date was after the code requirement was dropped.

When in fact there is no place on my license that says I am sub par from anyone that did have to pass the code requirement or written tests.

So we have a whole new generation of hams here - me included, that feels as if the world owes us something.
The problem is the CB radio crowd from the 1980's has already ruined Amateur Radio - just listen to 75 / 160 meters - there isn't many real hams left up there anymore.. Just people cussing and swearing and acting like they were still on the CB radio.

No one wants to do public service anymore.
No one wants to be a VE anymore
The people that are VE's aren't always Amateur Extra's - hence they are having a hard time finding enough people - or so they say - to have a VE test session.. Hence the people who wants to become hams - has to travel to take the test and get their license.

BOO HOO!

I drove 120 miles one way to get two of my licenses, that was two seperate occassions, not in one trip.
The Technician License I drove 50 miles one way.

When no one has VE test sessions and all they want to do is drink coffee and eat doughnuts in the clubs - this is what happens.

The same holds true with antenna's.
If you want to become a ham, you need to find yourself a house in the country with lot's of land, that has no covenants where you can do as you please.
You don't just move in and say I am a HAM and you owe this to me because I have this piece of paper that says I have a license and it gives me permission to do as I please. It just don't work that way anymore.

There are more hams licensed this month then ever before in the history of amateur radio and the numbers just keeps getting bigger and bigger, but we are not producing real hams. We have the cell phone people who thinks all you need to talk is a walkie talkie and a local repeater.
We have no Elmers - because all that was learned by the old hams - was not passed down, because the newer hams came from the CB radio and they already know it all. WE have old hams that does not want to associate with the new hams. We have clubs that doesn't even welcome new members, all they want is their dues and someone to do their physical labor. And we have people that will not join a club for that very same reason.
Our clubs has been dummified to the point of where all they do is read the minutes of the old meeting, ask if there is any new buisness and adjurne to the break room for coffee and doughnuts and does not put on any programs to teach the new hams because they already did this stuff when they were new hams and they don't feel that they need to do it again - because they already got what they wanted - education, but they don't want to pass it on to others.

This simpleton doesn't want to operate HAM radio with a long wire antenna and a tuner, he wants to put up beam antenna's and be a super station.
His neighbors doesn't want to look at his monstrosities and feels offended that he would dare think that he could infringe upon their rights to a nice neighborhood.

If you want to change your neighbors opinions of amateur radio, you do not force feed them information and demand that they allow you to do as you please.
YOU do public service, where you do good deeds and you present Amateur Radio in a positive light.
This whole post gives the Amateur Radio Community a black eye.

This guy has never done anything for me, and as far as I know he never did anything for anyone else except himself.
All he wants to do is put up antenna's and operate for himself.
This isn't what our license is all about.

Send this guy my email if you want and see if he would confront me, I'm sure that he wouldn't want me to represent him in court because the first thing I would ask is where is your RACES Badge, where is your club member cards, how many public service events a year do you do?
Boy Scouts, School Hamboree, Field Days etc....

This is the same reason why the FCC said - we give up, you people are not real HAMS - you are just out for yourselves. Why should we help you - when you are not willing to help others. Did you become a VE, did you advance your license to Amateur Extra, did you refer people to the VE test sessions, did you open your shack to potential hams, did you open your shack to new hams, what did you do for your local community?

NOTHING!

If you did - QST Magazine would have more then 125,000 subscribers and would be twice as thick and would be brimming with articles to help new hams and not just advertisements for radios, walkie talkies and amplifiers!

 

Ex-AB3NK certainly seems to have a chip on his shoulder.

I was going to ask him for back up information, then looked him up and all became clear.

I suppose everyone must have some time. After all, that's what QRZ offers: A worldwide podium where all can rant, and the audience can decide.

73

 

Do You Think????

 

Interesting...

I just did the trick where you highlight the call and then let Chrome do a 'Google Search' on it.

Was very entertaining...

 

Not too much these days I'm afraid...

At my age, if I think too much, my brain overheats and my hair falls out. At this stage I'm more interested in keeping the hair!

73 Gary