[Elecraft] Sad day for amateur radio

[Thomas Beltran]

> so there are probably
> some 20 WPM Extras out there who can't stand to be in the room with me,
> either.) 

I took my extra in 1978, in Fargo, ND, if I can recall correctly, the code
speed was actually 21 wpm.  However, I may be one of the weird ones, but I
don't look down on any hams, whether they took a code test or not.  I just
don't think it was difficult to mean anything at all - maybe if it had been
at 60 or 70 wpm.  In other words, just because I sat down and successfully
wrote out a string of characters at 21 wpm just doesn't make me any better
than anyone else.  Personally, I'd like to see the code included, if nothing
more than to honor tradition.  But I won't hold something against a
newcomer, just because he or she did not have the opportunity to take a code
test.  

Also, everything is relative - I also took and passed California's three-day
bar exam on the first try.  So adding code, more and tougher questions, or
whatever - it would still be a walk-in-the-park by comparison to other
tests.  If you really want something worth bragging about (and I think some
people do), I think the test should be at least three days, where one is
required to draw up plans and build a transceiver. Tom W6EIJ