Texas HAMS Alert - SB 43 Pending in Texas Senate

I'll be sure to let my state MVD, county and city law enforcement, and HOA know about this. Boy have they got a lesson to learn!

 

Can we chew gum?

 

Sarcasm in Amateur Radio? LOL That is Funny Stuff. There will be Special Mobile Ham Radio Operator driving schools opening all over Texas pretty darn soon I can see them now. LOL I'm sure the ARRL will promote it & that will be followed by a New Contest Weekend where Mobile Operators will compete against each other showing their skills at controlling a moving vehicle at highway speeds while operating under Emergency Conditions. Maybe a Special Event Station as well for those doing County Hunting & Net check ins for important nets like Southcars & Midcars. LOL I know they are already in the design stages of the Awards as I type this. I know I am Excited about it all & here in Florida they are working on a similar new Law so that will fire up the folks at the ARRL for sure because it will be another chance for some Special clauses for the Technician Class Hams who participate. {:>)

Clayton
W4KVW

 

I have spoken to my Senator today and drafted a paper to address this Issue. I am an official in a district that was very hard hit by Hurricane Harvey and have cited examples of the impotance Amateur Radio Operators played when our comms were down and the fact we (hams) did this on a voluntary basis.

 

Importance or Impotence?

 

Importance. typo...

 

So am I reading this correct. Barney Fife can sit out there on the interstate an write a ticket to every trucker because he is not a ham but has a two way radio. Pretty good cash cow.

 

DANG auto connect!!!

 

I like how they intentionally struck out the exemption for amateur radio operators. They also struck out the specific phrase that implied that this bill was just for texting while driving. The person that wrote it was aiming to make the roads safer by outlawing texting while driving. It is kind of like the open container law. You can be cited for an open container even if the open container is a soda or water bottle. Go ahead with the argument that no law enforcement officer will stoop so low as to write a ticket for an open water bottle. If the person that is stopped for a violation is being difficult then it is Google the traffic codes for a ticket writing party. "I didn't call for back up because I felt threatened by you sir. I called for backup because I have already ran out of ink in three pens writing these citations and need to borrow a pen."

 

What lame brain idiot initiated or is behind this bill is what i want to know! You know how many drivers this affects? Its thousands of drivers in the state who still have 2 way radios! Not to mention a trucker with a CB!

 

-That would not be the focus of such exemption. The core of this part of the argument is that, while the use of a cell phone does have a proven effect on driving, use of a two way radio has no, or a minimum, effect on driving a vehicle. Cell phones are a fairly recent addition to the equation versus the two radio having been used for 70 years. In those years prior to the cell phone, there was NO demonstrable affect on driving--even when CB radios were installed in cars by the thousands. WHERE was all this "distracted driving" then minus the presence of a two way/amateur radio?

 

Our society is enchanted with majority rule over individual rights. If the majority don't like what you do you can kiss what you do goodbye. It's coming...get ready. And it will apply to the food you eat, the music you listen to, and the car you drive...among other things.

 

If it is distracted driving then shouldn't the law also cover the radio receiver in the vehicle as it can distract from emergency vehicles approaching? What about CHILDREN? They are distracting. "Are we there yet?" "How much further." "She's touching me!" For that matter talk about distracted driving, how about pretty women or handsome men? They can be distracting. 16 year old Tommy on his first date with 16 year old Jenny is surely distracted by what Jenny is texting and who she is texting. So to keep distracted driving to a minimum they should outlaw everyone driving.

 

I think they are working on this...self driving cars. It's going to make the Indy 500 boring.

 

So the argument WRT the broadcast receiver is, it is not distracting enough to materially affect one's driving. DRIVING can be distracting if you let it. It then goes to driver responsibility and making correct decisions while driving. An effective parent can certainly correct disruptive children in the car. Looking at attractive girls in a bikini IS distracting, but, again, it comes down to responsibility and a driver's attention to the most important tasks while controlling the car. Looking at attractive people outside the car is certainly MORE distracting than picking up a mike inside the car. Or listening to Rush Limbaugh while driving. These things can be done while driving because there is ONE flow of info incoming. With the mike (transmitting), again, there is ONE flow of info OUTgoing. The mind can handle this plus driving the car. A cell phone envelopes the operator/driver in real time (here & now) and requires that the driver become instantly involved in THAT activity alone. IOW, the mind of the driver abandons the task of driving and unintentionally concentrates more on the conversation.

There ARE people that would like to ban everything--so long as THEY are in control!