[MIham] WEAVER'S WORDS -- HAMFEST SEASON BEGINS

Fri Jan 6 07:57:33 EST 2006

 (SEND ANY E-MAIL REPLIES TO k8je at arrl.org, ONLY.  THE ARRL WEB
 DISTRIBUTION SERVICE IS ONE-WAY.)

 - Grassroots Legislative Action
 - New Year, Same Fingers and Synapses
 - Servicemen Equals Service Personnel
 - A Guide for Assisting Visually Challenged Candidates
 - Hamfest, Symposia, etc.

 GRASSROOTS LEGISLATIVE ACTION

 On January 4, State Legislative Action Coordinators Val Rose, N8EXV
 (MI) and Jim Ashman, W8AHS (OH), Vice Director Gary Johnston, KI4LA and
 I met in Lima, OH to explore ways to strengthen the ARRL Board of
 Directors' Legislative Action Program -- the Grassroots political
 action program in this Division.  As one result of this meeting you
 will see a renewed effort to recruit more local Legislative Action
 Contacts.  These are the people who meet with Congressional and Senate
 aides, and our Representatives and Senators in their home offices. 
 These are the people who take the story about our legislative needs to
 the legislators themselves.

 There is one misunderstanding I'd like to get rid of.  This is the idea
 that we have no need to be involved in political action.  A spin-off is
 the misconception that we can avoid becoming involved in the results of
 political action by others.

 What is political action?  Political action is the way things get done
 in this world.  This is true whether we are talking about governing a
 village of 50 people, a state legislature or our Federal government in
 all its megalithic size.  It even involves how we as individuals
 interact with our friends and neighbors.  Political action is how one
 person interfaces with another.  It is interpersonal relations.

 Political action goes on with our input and involvement, or it goes on
 without our input and involvement.  With our input and involvement, we
 can help determine the results.  Without our input and involvement, all
 we can do is to shut up, sit back and take whatever is handed out to
 us.  If we do nothing, all we can do is to sit back take it.  We can
 like the results or lump them.

 Still think you can stay away from politics and political action?

 Are you married?  You are in as politically-charged a situation as
 there is.  Marriage is compromise.  It is give and take.  It is
 politics in the pure sense.  Not married?  Work for someone else? 
 Politics.  Live as a member of a family?  Politics.  Live in a
 neighborhood or an apartment building?  Politics.

 Politics is nothing more and nothing less than the manner in which one
 individual works with another or with a group.  Every-day-living
 politics involves how we deal with our neighbor over raking leaves or
 cutting the grass, over where junk cars can be stored, over where we
 park our vehicles, whether we keep our property in reasonable condition
 and more.

 Amateur Radio political action involves our on-air contacts, how we
 approach our neighbor over putting up a tower, how we work with City
 Council to obtain an acceptable ordinance that covers towers, how we
 approach Congress to get Spectrum Protection legislation passed.

 Whether we operate QRP or QRO, VHF/UHF or HF, SSB or CW or digital, or
 ATV/SSTV, we as individual amateurs are susceptible to the political
 actions of others.  If we want to have anything to say in what happens
 to us, we need to join together.

 ARRL cannot endorse candidates or parties . . . and we won't.  ARRL
 cannot contribute to candidates or parties . . . and we won't.  What
 ARRL can do and will do is to work to educate our legislators to the
 legitimate legislative needs of Amateur Radio.  Here is where you can
 come in.

 Will you help?  Please contact your State Legislative Action
 Coordinator or me to learn what you can do.  In Michigan, contact Val
 Rose, N8EXV at arrl.net, in Ohio it is Jim Ashman, W8ASH at arrl.net and in
 Kentucky write Gregory Baize, Sr. at KG4VJC at arrl.net.

 NEW YEAR, SAME FINGERS AND SYNAPSES

 This may be a new year, but I obviously was using the same old
 brain-to-fingers synapses when I typed the Happy New Year issue of this
 newsletter.  I misidentified one of the ARDFers in my comments about
 this fascinating part of Amateur Radio.  I referred to Brian DeYoung of
 Alexandria, KY as K4MIS.  Brian in real life is K4BRI.  On the other
 hand, K4MIS is former Kentucky SM Bill Uschan, of Lexington, KY.  Sorry
 for the confusion.

 SERVICEMEN EQUALS SERVICE PERSONNEL

 A couple of members asked if I really meant the free dues program I
 announced in the last issue was for active-duty ServiceMEN, only, or if
 ServiceWOMEN would also be eligible.  Most definitely the program
 applies to Service Personnel; to Servicewomen as well as Servicemen. 
 It was conceived in this way and will be conducted in this way.

 A GUIDE FOR ASSISTING VISUALLY-CHALLENGED CANDIDATES

 The word had to reach me by gong from a block away from my QTH, on east
 several miles to Bill Moore, W8KVU in Hamilton, OH and then back to me.
 Regardless, I finally learned about a very useful web article by
 Division ham and neighbor, John B. Buhrlage N8XR.  The article is: 
 Getting Your Amateur Radio License A Guide For Assisting Visually
 Challenged Candidates.  John, or Bryan as he is better known locally,
 is visually challenged; therefore, has experienced the usefulness of
 the tips he has included in the article.

 The article should prove useful in helping Elmers and VEs assist
 sight-impaired people prepare to obtain Amateur Radio licenses.  The
 article is at http://www.arrl.org/news/features/2005/12/16/2/ on the
 ARRL web site.

 Kudos to author N8XR.

 HAMFESTS, SYMPOSIA, ETC.

 14 Jan - 20th Annual SW Ohio Digital Symposium, Middletown, OH. 
 Interested in digital communication?  Learn about the mode or become
 updated on it, etc.  NO flea market.  K8JE plans to attend. 
 http://www.swohdigi.org/.

 14 Jan - ARAY Swap-N-Shop Amateur Radio an And Youth Club, Flushing,
 MI, http://www.arayclub.org.

 15 Jan - Hazel Park Amateur Radio Club, Hazel Park, MI,
 http://www.qsl.net/w8hp.

 15 Jan - Scarfest, Sunday Creek Amateur Radio Federation, Nelsonville,
 OH, http://www.scarfclub.org.

 29 Jan - Tusco Amateur Radio Club, Strasburg, OH,
 http://noard.com/tuscoarc.htm.  K8JE plans to attend.

 4 Feb - H.A.R.A. Swap and Shop, Hiawatha Amateur Radio Association,
 Negaunee, MI, http://www.qsl.net/k8lod/.

 5 Feb - WINTERFEST, Northern Ohio Amateur Radio Society, Lorain,
 OH,http://www.NOARS.net.

 11 Feb - Annual Swap-n-Shop, Cherryland Amateur Radio Club, Traverse
 City, MI, http://www.carc.tc.

 12 Feb - Mansfield Mid*Winter Hamfest and Computer Show, Mansfield, OH,
 InterCity Amateur Radio Club, http://www.iarc.ws.  K8JE plans to
 attend.

 19 Feb - Livonia Amateur Radio Club,  http://www.larc.mi.org, Livonia,
 MI.

 If you would like for KI4LA or me to attend your hamfest/swap or
 meeting, please send the invitation to KI4LA at arrl.org or
 K8JE at arrl.org.

 73, CUL, please let me know if you have any comments, suggestions or
 constructive criticisms.

 Jim

 Jim Weaver, K8JE, Director
 5065 Bethany Rd., Mason, OH 45040
 E-mail: k8je at arrl.org; Tel:  513-459-0142
 ARRL Great Lakes Division
 ARRL, the Reason Amateur Radio is!
 Members, the Reason ARRL is!

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 ARRL Great Lakes Division
 Director: James Weaver, K8JE
 k8je at arrl.org
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