[CW] What it Means.

[W2AGN]

Someone wondered, in simple terms, what that "lobbying" thing meant.

OK, Buzz Jones, of the Acme Power Company wants to put BPL in all through 
his town. For this, he  needs FCC approval. Now, the FCC bureaucrats are 
mostly POLITICALLY appointed types. (The Field Workers, etc, are civil 
service, but the decisions are made by the bureaucrats.) So he goes to 
Joe Fed of the FCC. Meanwhile, the Power company uses their lobby to 
contact "Honest" John Smith, the Congressman from Podunk. They suggest 
that he could get a lot of votes from all those happy web surfers using 
BPL. All he needs to do is put a little pressure on the FCC. Honest John 
calls Joe Fed. The suggestion is made that if he likes his little cushy 
Federal job, he better push for BPL.

Meanwhile, the ARRL....... Poor Ed of the ARRL is doing tests and 
demonstrations for Joe Fed. Joe Fed nods and looks interested. But poor 
Ed and the ARRL can't say to Honest John that "hey, you pressure the FCC 
to vote against BPL, and you'll have the vote of 300,000 League members." 
That's because such POLITICAL lobbying is unlawful for the ARRL.

All they can do is have poor, tired, hard working Ed demonstrate that it 
will wipe of HF over the whole area. Joe Fed knows this, but rather keep 
his job, and keep Honest John happy.


Guess which way the vote goes?
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+-++-++-++-++-+   John L. Sielke
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