[Fists] A Modest Proposal

[John - N5DWI]

*A Modest Proposal*

(With apologies to Jonathan Swift, 1667 – 1745)


Many amateurs are justifiably proud of their achievement of passing the 
5, 13, or 20 WPM Morse code examinations conducted by the FCC, or later, 
by volunteer examiners.

Even if they are too gentlemanly, or too ladylike, to say so, some 
amateurs consider the fact of having passed those examinations as a sort 
of badge of honor, marking them as somehow “a cut above” those who 
haven't done so, the so-called “no-coders.”

They decry the sad state of affairs of the loss of this cherished mode 
of operation (which hasn't gone away).

They moan that the entrance examinations of the hobby are being watered 
down to the point that anyone with a body temperature over about 40 can 
now qualify.

They complain that it's not fair that **THEY** had to go through all 
this effort and newcomers do not.

For redress they ply the ARRL AND FCC with requests or demands to DO 
SOMETHING !!!

Well, folks –- it just ain't gonna happen.



MY PROPOSAL

For those to whom it matters, and I'm one of them, the real proof of our 
Morse skill, can be heard by all every time we fire up the rig. But 
some, again including myself, would like a little more than that. We 
would like a document, a license, a certificate, something to point to 
attesting our skill.


Since the FCC license will no longer attest to that skill, we can and 
should take matters into our own hands.

I propose someone, for example, ARRL, or CQ Magazine, with a certain 
amount of credibility, organize a fee based certification program. This 
program:

   1.

      would administer Morse examinations by volunteers,

   2.

      would issue certificates immediately upon passing,

   3.

      would maintain an online database for ease of verification,

   4.

      optionally, would examine both sending and receiving,

   5.

      optionally, would NOT use multiple choice examinations,

   6.

      optionally, would test for X number of minutes of solid copy.

Websites such as QRZ.COM, on their call sign lookup feature, could post 
the speed, the name and call sign of the examiner, date and serial 
number of the certificate, along with all the other currently carried 
information.

And all that, after any necessary and proper amendments, would be well 
and good; BUT, once again:

The best proof of our skill will always be ON THE AIR, regardless of 
how, when or why we acquired that skill.

That's the way it looks from here.

vy 73 de john, N5DWI

(Donning asbestos suit.)