[ARC5] dying hobby?

[Hubert Miller]

>Uh? Hue, Which NG are you referring to as having their own communications network (Perhaps the Air Guard?).  As a retired Army Guard soldier who ran a BN Commo section I can comment with some
degree of reality that our communications capability here in California back around the turn of the century was quite primitive.  Mostly Viet Nam era FM stuff and some SSB/RATT gear which was pretty much
sent to the scrap yard after the first middle east broo haw haw was over.  I've been out of that loop for quite some time now so maybe things have improved.  As to ham radio's role in the grand scheme I think in
many cases it's not the organized groups in the hobby that come to the fore when it hits the fan, it's the amorphous nature of the ham population that makes an impact when fires and earthquakes arrive.  Repeaters
run out of electrical power, and the reliance on Cell systems goes up in smoke too as their power and interconnect resources evaporate as well.  It's often a few old coots that just happen to be at the right
place at the right time that take up the communications role.  But this type of operation is purely fortuitous (true meaning of the word is Random and not Fortunate).  While there are many instances where
organized or planned ham response systems are cited in the after action reports,  it's also true that with this graying ham population without a massive injection of younger folks into the body of the hobby
that relying on the ad hoc nature of the emergency response will find less success in future emergencies.

But to stay with the seed posting that started this conversation  I will miss Fair Radio as I missed the passing of Sam's Surplus, R and W, and the dozens of
surplus emporiums that fed my ham radio with great junk these past 60+ years.

>Cheers es 73  Bob Miller, KE6F

I have only been in the local NG armory for other commercial events, such as the gem show. I early on noticed the building has what looks like a B&W terminated broadband
dipole up on the roof, oriented to the North. I am south of Portland Oregon, right on the Pacific coast. I also saw that their vehicles parked in the lot have some kind of antenna.
So, maybe. I don't know if they really ever use the gear. Some of the local ham radio people have been pushing into GMRS. I don't have any idea how popular GMRS is with
the non-ham citizens. I guess the old 27 MHz CB band is pretty much real gone dead, maybe only a few logging operations out here still use it. I actually in recent history heard
on some late night radio talk show ads for Uniden CBs, which amazed me.
I have to admit, i am not well prepared at all. Maybe thinking about these emails will help jog me on.
-Hue Miller

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