Monthly Section News Summaries
Monthly Summary for October 2009
QST DE KA9QPN--Full Section News with photos at
http://www.arrl.org/sections/?sect=IL
From the top...
**The start of contest season has prompted a message from HQ. The short
version: be courteous, be tolerant (of those on both side of the fence:
contesters and non-contesters alike...and all modes within their bandplan!)
and 'play nice'. Most of the contests these days have been in place for a
while. Should be no surprises here. We share the spectrum. Any harm to one of
our pastimes diminishes them all, be it contesting, experimentation, traffic
handling, EmComm or whatever. (National Rifle Association members have
understood this for years. It's the 'we're all in this together' mentality
that keeps them generally marching in the same direction and mostly
successful in their efforts.) We are all in this wonderful kaleidoscope of a
Service together. Let's enjoy it and be tolerant of each other's pursuits.
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**If I didn't know better--and I really don't--I'd offer the opinion that the
current EmComm/Pecuniary Interest fracas was instigated by the rise of
'cram-to-order' hams. The fear expressed both by this writer and elsewhere is
that these operators would only provide a captive group for the agency
sponsoring the license class. The minefield ensues when it's a business
sponsoring the creation of the new hams. In the opinion of some, it's a quick
slide from emergency communications to a stealth business band operation.
(Insert long discussion here on how the general ham community would never
know such a thing was going on if some of the digital voice or data modes
were used. Or if it was done on 222, 900, or 1.2G? How many of us can or do
casually listen to every possible mode on every band? And: NO. That's not an
excuse to restrict the digital mode which you don't like/don't
understand/can't afford.) I'm unhappy with the 'cram-to-order' concept as
implemented. Sure, it increases our numbers (which is why I was initially
glad to see this phenomenon). However, as I've said before, these folks are
beholden only to their patron agency. By and large, they add nothing to the
general Amateur Radio community by operating outside of their agency's
domain. They generally do not advance the art by experimentation, nor foster
goodwill via casual communications, nor participate in clubs. They usually
buy no equipment to entice manufacturers to offer more and better products to
the general ham community. None of the current solutions in play (from doing
nothing to Petitions for Rule Making) offer a good solution to this elephant
in the room, although the FCC appears to like the 'do nothing' option.
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Get informed...
**A bill to help combat Amateur Radio antenna height restrictions has been
introduced into the Illinois General Assembly. It is SB 5655, introduced by
State Senator Pam Roach (R-Auburn). This is not the State PRB-1 which we have
been advocating, but is better than the nothing currently in place.
Hopefully, this does not befoul the more comprehensive legislation on which
W9FX and K9DUE have been laboring.
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**NWS SKYWARN Recognition Day is coming, and there are some big changes due to
the current H1N1 concern. There will be no Open House at NWS/Romeoville this
year, and the operators for the on-air event will be limited to pre-scheduled
participants. Full details are available on the NWS Chicago web site. Very
unfortunate about the Open House. Those of us who missed the one earlier this
year were looking forward to a second chance.
===================================================================
**Speaking of H1N1, several ARES/RACES groups have notified me of
participation in local vaccine distributions. Please be aware of possible
opportunities for public service.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Around the Section...
**The current issue of the Bolingbrook ARS 'CQ BARS' Newsletter reprints an
article from the National Institute of Science and Technology's 'Tech Beat'
newsletter. The article urges caution in portable electric generator use,
specifically distance from dwellings. NIST is currently studying the problem.
Preliminary data suggests that fifteen feet might not be sufficient.
=============================================================
**The Chicago Suburban RA will be operating special event stations signing W9C
from 0000Z 22 November through 0000Z 7 December to commemorate the club's
eighty-fifth anniversary. Details at www.csraham.com.
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**The Fox River RL 'ArcOver' newsletter (among others) carried excellent
details on the Amateur Radio support for the recent Chicago Marathon. Still
wondering what happened to the article on the League web page which vaporized
as soon as it was posted.
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**Finally, Roger Bonuchi AC9Y sends the following account: 'Our Plainfield
Radio League / Plainfield EMA hosted Jamboree-on-the-Air (JOTA) held October
18th was a success. We had 46 kids and their parents come by and take part.
Our JOTA here in Plainfield has been hosted by PRL/PEMA members for 6 years.
We've typically gotten a good turnout and good weather. This year we also
held a touch-a-truck outside the garage. The JOTA "stages" for the kids to
attend and learn are: - A demo of Morse code and a chance to send their own
name in Morse on a practice code key. - Viewing the video Amateur Radio Today
with Walter Cronkite. Highlights Amateur radio in emergency response. - An
opportunity to sit with an amateur radio operator in front of a live HF radio
and talk to other kids around the world. This was a difficult event for me
this year due to my work schedule. I had worked all night Saturday into
Sunday morning. JOTA setup was planned to start at 11:00. I had slept for
about an hour when I drove over to the garage. I drove up and was happy to
see that Heidi and Brent were already setting up the wire dipole antenna and
others had set the trucks up in the parking lot for the touch-a-truck event.
We truly do have a "team" here at Plainfield EMA! I send out a special "Thank
you" to the following members for their help in setup and support of JOTA
2009: Kelly McCann, Stacey Stofko, Brent Oots, John Fleming (PRL), Donna
Vojensky, Heidi Kelly, Donna Madia' (no callsigns given-Ed.).
Page last modified: 10:48 AM, 17 Nov 2009 ET
Page author: ka9qpn@arrl.org
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