[CW] Dumb down not justified - excuse the abortion, I accidentally hit `send' for `spell check'

[n3drk]

With the ongoing thread i would like to add that some people are gifted and
some are not when learning morse code. Just like anything else. I would have
liked to play the guitar but couldnt since i lacked what it took. My present
speed is about 23 wpm and i would like to go to 35 wpm but that would take a
lot of hard work. And that is what it is. Hard Work. I am not going to
complain that i had no one to help me. Instead im going to listen, listen,
and do more listening until i GET it. Do like Ron, KA4INM stated and listen
to W1AW code practice. It helps but the losers would rather complain and
sing the "Poor Me, i cant learn the code". Get motivated and do it or find
another hobby.

Since i could not learn the guitar did they change the lesson plan for me?
NO WAY. I found another hobby, Amateur Radio. Been a ham for the past 35
years.

I emailed my section director and sent a letter to the President of the ARRL
stating if the league does support the no code for future license decisions,
i would NO LONGER renew my membership. My goal is to make the dxcc honor
roll and if the league does support no code then dxcc honor roll in my
opinion wont mean a thing to me.

Write your section directors and the persons on the board of directors and
let them know how you feel.

john

*************************************************
France has neither winter, nor summer, nor morals.
France is miserable because it is filled with
Frenchmen, and Frenchmen are miserable
because they live in France. - Mark Twain
************************************************
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ronald KA4INM Youvan" <ka4inm@tampabay.rr.com>
To: "cw" <cw@mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Sunday, July 06, 2003 8:11 PM
Subject: Re: [CW] Dumb down not justified - excuse the abortion, I
accidentally hit `send' for `spell check'


>   You said: "we are better off WITHOUT those who chose to "give up."
> I don't think it was necessarily a choice, I don't think I had a choice.
> I tried to learn cw for 20+ years without success. I don't think any
> book has been of any help to me, in fact I think they were part
> of my problem, I learned the Morse code visually instead by melody.
>    I have a friend that built a receiver (in the 20's) and listening
> to it he learned the Morse code.  I took 5 two hour classes in a
> friend's kitchen and got my novice license. (Without the numbers
> or punctuation!)
>    Until I joined a local HAM club that had code classes to HELP ME I
> tried and struggled for over 20 years to learn to become a competent
> cw operator.  I went from 2 or 3 wpm to 12 or 13 wpm in 13 weeks,
> several of my class mates that started at 0 passed their 20 wpm test,
> several never took the written test, they just didn't care to become
> HAMs. I guess those are your kind of HAMs.
>
> As I said: "Some folks had no trouble learning cw, the rest failed . . ."
>    It is hard for some folks, that had no trouble learning cw to realize
> everyone can not learn the skills of Morse code in one year, with no help,
> and no idea how or where to acquire these skills.
>    If "Natural Selection" means only those that had no trouble or had
> some kind of help learning cw, belong in HAM Radio, it is a sorry society
> indeed, I had no idea.
>
>    HAM Radio failed it's self horribly when thousands of military radio
> operators left the service after the war to became HAMs, with the attitude
> "learning the skills of Morse code in one year, with no help, and no idea
> how or where to acquire these skills" is a proper "write of passage" that
> everyone must pass through, even though they learned Morse code over
> 6 to 16 (or more) weeks of 7 hours/5 days a week of `commercial
> operator quality' training, AND failed to set up code classes for ALL
> prospective HAMs, other than one limited enrollment class a year, at
> one time of the day.
>
>    I do not believe challenges are not that much help if you can't figure
> out how or where to learn the skills of Morse code.
>   Challenges can surely make you a better operator, but when you don't
> understand the first "Q" signal or any abbreviations or numbers, not being
> able to copy solid sure makes it hard to figure out what you just copied
> or if you copied it correctly.  This is one of the wonderful things about
> the ARRL code practice sessions, gud signal and copy that you can look up.
>    I think every HAM should belong to a local HAM club, and those with
> teaching skills should teach anyone willing to take the classes (FREE
> classes) everything they know.  It will make the hobby better and give our
> government (where ever you live) a valuable resource.
>    Did you ever see the movie "Independence Day"?  Ham Radio saved the
> earth from the uglies! (it's on our FOX affiliate here tonight at 7 pm
EST)
>
>    Ron 73
>
> > You have made a point in favor of that which you argue against. I
started
> > out as a crystal-controlled Novice in February 1958 (Age 14). I made
MANY
> > contacts in that "unusable" 40M CW band with my old Globe Chief and
> > Knight R100A (later replaced with an NC-183D). Sure it was sometimes
> > difficult, but to some, the challenge made it fun, not an excuse to give
> > up. I passed my General in September of the same year.
> >
> > I firmly believe, although I am called an old curmudgeon and misanthrope
> > for saying so, that we are better off WITHOUT those who chose to "give
> > up."  I believe Darwin had a similar theory, he called it "Natural
> > Selection."
> >
> > Unfortunately, challenges are considered "politically incorrect" these
> > days. Anything that prevents the laziest, or, dare I say, dumbest person
> > to get what he wants is frowned upon, and probably overturned in the
> > courts at the behest of the ACLU. Illiterates graduate from High School
> > (and College, too, if they can play Basketball). It is sad to see the
> > same movement "giving away" a hobby and pursuit I have enjoyed for 44+
> > years.
> -- 
>         73 (= Best Regards) de: Ron ka4inm@tampabay.rr.com
>      100% Slack. since July, 1997 (still free!) SENT D&T are UTC
>         Visit my HAM Web SITE at: http://www.qsl.net/ka4inm
>
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