[Johnson] FCC NPRM

[Kenneth]

CW is indeed a reliable method of communication.  What other mode can you
communicate to someone on the other side of the planet on 1 watt, which I
have done many times?  In fact when I do CW I never use more then 5 watts.
Having said this CW has become a gate keeper used to keep the riff-raff out
of the Service. I am sorry to say the riff-raff is already here and most of
this riff-raff is old hams that have had their tickets for decades.  It is
up to us to make sure the traditions of the hobby are infused into new Hams
however they joint our ranks. All of this, well I had to walk 200 miles to
the FCC office in the dead of winter through a blizzard, and the FCC
engineers where Lord Valdimort and his Death Eaters make for an interesting
story but has little to do with the present. Then I get hit over the head
with Hams who lament the fact hardly anyone builds their own equipment any
more. I answer this by saying yes I can build the equipment you used to
build, and building tube type transmitters is still fun but constructing a
home brew version of an FT 1000D Yaesu....right. 

                    Ken de W7ITC