I I'm a disabled veteran on a fixed income and 50 bucks a year means a lot more to me in necessities than a glossy magazine whose content is available free on the internet. I'd cough up 20 a year to advance the agenda however. While we're at it ARRL needs a military/veteran discount program.
i've kept my membership over 50 years = for most as a life member - pretty expensive when I got it, but now I recognize a bargain. So you don't like QST - too mny adds! The more ads the better = they pay for its publication. Every adv page makes another text page possible. And the content: not every article interests me - but there are plenty from which there's something to learn about the science of radio - some basic, some advanced. Amateur Radio is much more than just getting a rig and talking - it's an opportunity - possibly the best possible - to learn the science of radio communication and have fun doing it - and lots more, The fact is that ARRL has made A.R. as it is today possible. As for the organization today, is it perfect? Far from it. The new general manager appears to be improving their economi1cs - we'll all have to see. The current board of directors haven;t been serving the membership properly (I could say a lot on this subject, but at the moment can't. Blame the members - they are the ones who voted them onto the board. Some want to do right by the members - some, frankly, are a disgrace to the hobby. Just like what we voted into jobs in Washington. But we need ARRL -- K3TX F2-save 1. save 2. save selected text 3. merge another doc 4. erase a file F3-Features 1. Find & Replace 2. Check spelling doesn't work 3. remove this record 4. change form design 5. set bookmark 6. find bookmark 7. dial this number F4-Print 1. print this record 2. print records 3. print selected text only F5-Edit select text cut out selected text cut out selected text copy selected text to clipboard move selected text to cliboard paste from clipboard insert a black line erase this line erase this word F1-help F2-save 1. save 2. save selected text 3. merge another doc 4. erase a file F3-Features 1. Find & Replace 2. Check spelling doesn't work 3. remove this record 4. change form design 5. set bookmark 6. find bookmark 7. dial this number F4-Print 1. print this record 2. print records 3. print selected text only F5-Edit select text cut out selected text cut out selected text copy selected text to clipboard move selected text to cliboard paste from clipboard insert a black line erase this line erase this word qst
Is the ARRL worth supporting at $49/year? Yes, without question or pause. In fact, it's a bargain in the extreme. Remember that Amateur Radio's use of spectrum and ability to raise an antenna almost anywhere is a privilege, not a guaranteed right. The ARRL is an advocate - by far the best advocate - for amateur radio in the USA, and perhaps worldwide. They have been an unwavering champion of our spectrum and ability to raise an antenna for many decades. In fact, the ARRL has been so successful at this task that we, the Amateur community have come to regard what we do as a right. But its not. A remarkable job, ARRL, and Bravo! So what would happen without the ARRL? Very simply, our spectrum and ability to raise an antenna would erode. Slowly at first, then more rapidly as the businesses and politicians who understand how valuable spectrum is begin to realize that the Champion of U.S. Amateur Radio is gone. I work in that business and know exactly how hard spectrum re-allocations are pursued and how fast they can happen without a defender. If we are lucky, we may still have CB radio, after the dust settles. The ARRL is not just a magazine subscription, though QST and their other publications are excellent - pretty much the best there is. Bob Allison alone is worth his weight in gold for his complete and unbiased equipment reviews. LOTW set the example for a secure and fair online logbook with electronic QSLing that is picking up the slack now that world-wide snail mail is becoming ever more problematic. And the ARRL is accessible to all members. Got a problem? Call 'em up. You may need to ask around a bit to find just the person needed to answer your questions - but they WILL answer. They are all amateur radio operators. They love the hobby. And they ARE us. Anyone who doubts the above needs to call or just plain walk into ARRL headquarters in Newington, CT. I was there recently while on vacation, and dropped in. They not only give personalized tours, but maintain a magnificent set of operating stations for any member to use, in addition to sending out daily bulletins and code practice sessions. On that occasion, I ran into Tom Gallagher (NY2RF), the new CEO and had a brief discussion with him regarding ARRL services and how they might be improved. And he spent the time to listen and take notes. Remarkable. Next stop, Bob Allison, with whom I discussed test methods and procedures. His process definitions, integrity and expertise are on par or better than than I've seen at major aerospace and communications firms during audits. And to quote Bob... "It's my dream job". Retired from a broadcasting career to join the ARRL team, Bob clearly means it. Then I dropped by the office of Sean Kutzko (KX9X) to discuss some publication issues that were on my mind. Again he took the time to listen and discuss the issues, with some possible solutions tabled, all in a friendly and involved manner. Next I went over to the ancient brick Hiram Percy Maxim station house in front of ARRL. Lovingly maintained and stocked with equipment familiar to any amateur from any age (they also have a rotary spark gap transmitter), Dan Wall was manning the office that day and he very patiently walked me through the setup and operation of Studio 1, their contest station. To say the least, I had stage fright, operating from this position, under the W1AW call sign, at the premiere operating studio. There was an instant pile-up on 20M when I called CQ. And Dan was there, every step of the way, with kind encouragement and deft antenna adjustments. Later in the week, I cam back with a friend who had recently passed his exams . and he operated too, and received the same patient support I did. Even more, really. Because Bob Famiglio (K3RF), Vice Director of the Atlantic Division dropped to check on the station in and spent some time providing patient advice to the newbie. Bob is a lawyer, is clearly not in his role for profit and like Tom Gallagher, Bob Allison and Dan Wall - actually CAREs deeply about our shared passion. I can't think of any other organization that provides such patient, detailed technical and moral support to its members, at every level, from the secretary at the door to the CEO, and spans the globe to boot, for $49. Gee, my Auto Club membership is way more expensive and I get a lot less out of it. But... can the ARRL improve both its products and services? Yes. Yes. Yes. And both Tom and Bob are working hard on ideas and ways to do this right now. Maybe the best thing we can do in our own self-interest is to help them - with ideas, offers of support and membership, and by drafting others to our cause. Perhaps the most pressing problems is how to increase interest in the hobby (and ARRL) by recent generations, where social networking, web services and radio appear to be fusing into one. As a bright (and much younger) man pointed out to me on field day, the most powerful radio we have is in our pockets - smartphones. We need to clearly show our potential successors to this great hobby why and how there is more to Amateur Radio than a smart phone offers, and where the hobby can lead - including to well paying careers in engineering and related technology services. Or there will be no more hobby, in a few years. So... ARRL? Cheap at nearly any price. Just on the basis of ONE of its key missions - to guarantee our legal ability to operate - and I will never be in favor of losing "rights". Imagine what it would be like for us if the ARRL was gone. It would not leave a hole in Amateur Radio, it would leave a crater. Sooo... a $49 subscription? Not hardly. An organization of caring, accessible experts, champions and lobbyists, plus publications and online services? You bet. Best Regards, Brian Clebowicz - K6BRN
Considering the ARRLs repeated mailings to my house attempting to get me to join and how I was getting two mailings a week for months after I got my license, I don't believe they will be getting my support. If they have enough money to waste on spamming my mailbox they aren't being efficient or morally responsible. They might do good things somewhere, other than testing administration, but they need to show my $50 is going toward something worthwhile. After this fiasco that is the Amateur Radio Parity Act I see they aren't really helping the amateur service like they should be.
And how some consider our backseat to corporations a privilege and not a right is beyond me. We the People own the natural resources, the airwaves being one of them. Regulation is understandable, but to say we have no right to any part of them is complete sheepish subservient thinking.
You couldn't be more wrong. The building could best be described as sad. HQ really hasn't been updated all that significantly in the past 50 years. Bad fluorescent lighting, ancient army surplus desks, Heathkit number pad "security" locks. It is in no way modern, and certainly isn't plush.
Wow. Just wow. In your first paragraph you list all of things that you know the ARRL is doing for you as a ham. You then go on to denigrate them and list all of the things you could do without them. And yes, you could probably do all 7 of those things for a while. I'll try to avoid arguing about some of them, such as your comparison of eHam's product reviews to, say, the 7 page review of the IC-7300 in this month's QST. What would happen at the next Regional or World Administrative conference, when the commercial interests start to put more pressure on taking our frequencies from us without the ARRL ? Not only have we kept our frequencies, but we have gained several NEW allotments, including one in the VLF frequencies. Have you ever operated on the WARC bands ? How do you think we got them ? Now I've been licensed for some 56 years, and have seen the good and the bad of the League. I appreciate that when I send an email asking a technical question, or a regulatory interpretation, I get a prompt and accurate response. I like the fact that my Division Director visits my local club each year to keep us informed. I use LOTW, and like sending and receiving QSL cards through the bureau. Your problem is that you see the ARRL as a magazine. It's a lot more than that. Take a trip up to Newington. Tour the various offices and talk to the folks there. Drop into the lab, see what goes on there. Go across the parking lot to the W1AW station. Operate from one of the "studios". All of these services cost money. Look, nobody who works there is getting rich on our $49 yearly dues. The place is far from luxurious. I'm sorry that you feel $49 is too much to support the ARRL. I'm retired. I live on my pension and Social Security. And I'm an ARRL Diamond Club member, because I think it's that important.
I really do not understand the original post. If a person really cares about their hobby, I would think that the cost of an ARRL membership would be considered a bargain. With all the COMMERCIAL frequency hogs out there, we must protect our spectrum. The ARRL speaks for all of us on this matter. THIS alone is worth the price !
Thank you everyone for your constructive thoughts, and thanks Jim, I think you are right, maybe $14.99 every 6 months would be ok. The ARRL is the biggest organization that represents us well very, I just wish they would come out with a modern format that would grab more than 20% of group that they represent. I understand some folks want a print magazine, and they could pay for that option. I would much rather have a deluxe digital version of the ARRL letter every month that I would really look forward to... When I was an ARRL member, I had the digital version on my tablet and it was terrible. The zoom didn't work right and when I closed the app it would never go back to where I left off. I lost interest quickly. I hope the ARRL would use their brains and issue a pdf file to members and I could open it in kindle or whatever app I prefer, and I could also open it on my computer at work and browse it here and there and forward it to other people just like I do other newsletters and my church bulletin. Yes, it would get shared and pirated just like any other great product, but if they found a modern format that works and make the advertisers pay for most of it, it would be worth it and everyone in the entire radio community would end up reading it, and it would be the greatest thing ever... All the advertisers would put internet links in their ads and everyone who is reading it on a tablet or phone or computer would be able to click a link and it would take us to their web site or article. Ok. If I am selling ad space, do you want only 20% of the ham radio community to see it in a magazine and hope they go find a computer some day to look into your product, or would you like to advertise in a new pdf format where 95% of your target group is going to see your ad and click on a live link taking them all directly to your web site? It just bums me out when someone has a great thing and has no idea how to market it. -- Aaron
Dan (KM4NOW): Welcome to the hobby. Seriously. But if not for the ARRL, you may not have had the means to join it. For example, did you test at an FCC central office? Probably not. Its likely that you went to a handy, nearby session manned by Volunteer Examiners - VEC. Thank you, ARRL. I'm not sure why you consider the Parity Act struggle a fiasco. The ARRL is NOT a heavily funded lobbying organization. They have very limited financial resources. And they make them count, every time, hanging on with tenacity over whatever time it takes to get their point made and adjudicated. Because time is what they have the most of, compared to commercial interests that are much better funded. And the Amateur Parity Act is making progress... so ... what would you do differently? With limited funding? On spamming your mailbox... that really is annoying, but is better than the phone sales calls I'm bombarded with constantly. So here is your opportunity to make a difference. Think through and suggest a better, less expensive and less annoying way to attract members and get them involved in the hobby to a deeper level. Then talk to the ARRL about it. In fact, call Sean Kutzko (at 1-860-594-0200 and ask for him) and discuss it. As long as you are civil, he will be, too. And he listens. Regarding corporations and spectrum. Well, you actually voted to give them a lot of spectrum. With you wallet. Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile... you probably pay one of them for cellphone service. And your government knows and supports you in this. And if you change your mind, it is your right to vote the politicians who you disagree with out of office. Or drop cellphone service. And wired phone service. And cable/internet service. Because they all use lots of spectrum for their various air links. Its not a dominance game - its the greatest good for the greatest number. And you get a vote. Best Regards, Brian Clebowicz - K6BRN
Don't be a member for something you don't want. Join for what the League DOES. They are the ONLY National Organization at the worldwide table. They have your back with the Federal Communications Commission and Congress. The Volunteer Examiner Corp and the Official Observer Corp are the best in the Nation. "If you can find a better car" 73
