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Author Topic: Time Magazine Rips Hams!  (Read 28909 times)
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W2HU
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« on: January 13, 2005, 11:13:01 AM »

The December 27th issue of Time Magazine has an article on "blogs" on page 109.
Other than the unrelated association with “Stamp Collecting”, the following quote should do much to “further the cause” of Ham Radio............

“Before this year, blogs were a curiosity, a cult phenomenon, a faintly embarrassing hobby on the order of HAM RADIO and stamp collecting."

It's hard to be judged by idiots who don't know the first thing about our hobby!

             Reid  W2HU
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w3jn
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« Reply #1 on: January 13, 2005, 11:22:41 AM »

If the shoe fits.... see www.hamsexy.com

73 John
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Ott
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« Reply #2 on: January 13, 2005, 11:57:43 AM »

Quote from: W2HU
The December 27th issue of Time Magazine has an article on "blogs" on page 109.
Other than the unrelated association with “Stamp Collecting”, the following quote should do much to “further the cause” of Ham Radio............

“Before this year, blogs were a curiosity, a cult phenomenon, a faintly embarrassing hobby on the order of HAM RADIO and stamp collecting."

It's hard to be judged by idiots who don't know the first thing about our hobby!

             Reid  W2HU


Hi Reid...

Well some people in Sri Lanka feel AR is valuable and even worth protecting from worldwide BPL trash...

http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=mg18524827.000

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K6JEK
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« Reply #3 on: January 13, 2005, 07:41:24 PM »

I heard that Bob Heil wrote a letter to the editor that rips them a new one.  I have seen neither the original faintly embarrassing article nor Bob's response.

Jon
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w3jn
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« Reply #4 on: January 14, 2005, 09:43:08 AM »

The article was about blogs, and there was one sentence in the whole article that mentioned ham radio.

Raising a ruckus over something as innocuous as this I believe hurts the image of ham radio rather than helps.

73 John
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W1RKW
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« Reply #5 on: January 14, 2005, 12:01:53 PM »

I wonder how stamp collectors reacted too
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Bob
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His fear was when I turned it on for the first time life on earth would come to a stand still.
wavebourn
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« Reply #6 on: January 14, 2005, 01:40:33 PM »

John, it was just a hypnotic pattern called "Presupposition", i.e. as if everyone knows that the statement is true and no need to prove it.
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W2VW
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« Reply #7 on: January 14, 2005, 01:51:54 PM »

Quote from: W2HU
The December 27th issue of Time Magazine has an article on "blogs" on page 109.
Other than the unrelated association with “Stamp Collecting”, the following quote should do much to “further the cause” of Ham Radio............

“Before this year, blogs were a curiosity, a cult phenomenon, a faintly embarrassing hobby on the order of HAM RADIO and stamp collecting."

It's hard to be judged by idiots who don't know the first thing about our hobby!

             Reid  W2HU


The Time author is just another insecure person crying out for help. This is what happens when they can't afford an SUV. Makes for an interesting case study. Maybe there will be effective medication for this condition someday. Meanwhile, I can't see 2 cars ahead on the Parkway due to all the drivers seeking empowerment.
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Paul, K2ORC
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« Reply #8 on: January 14, 2005, 03:20:21 PM »

I read some of the posts in that thread on QRZ.com reacting to the Time article.   That was embarrassing.  Maybe some of these guys could take themselves a bit more seriously? Ay yi yi.

It doesn't bother me if someone thinks ham radio is an embarrassing pasttime --"faintly" or otherwise.  That happens to be an opinion shared by a number of people out there who see us as geeks and nerds.  We're the descendants of the guys on the Junior High School Audio Visual Squad.  They were nerds in black plastic glasses held together with tape.  They were always running down the hall pushing a projector trolley.  They wore desert boots and high-water pants.  The fly was open and the shirt was buttoned all the way to the top.  They needed a haircut and they never made it more than three feet up the rope in gym class.  But they knew how to use a slide rule while everyone else was still struggling with long division.  They could fix a TV, hi fi or radio with junkbox parts while other kids couldn't fix a mug of Ovaltine.

Screw it!  I say, if the desert boot fits, wear it with pride!
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Glenn K2KL
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« Reply #9 on: January 14, 2005, 03:29:53 PM »

I'm faintly embarrassed that I don't know what a blog is!!!  :lol:  :lol:
 

Quote from: W2HU
The December 27th issue of Time Magazine has an article on "blogs" on page 109.
Other than the unrelated association with “Stamp Collecting”, the following quote should do much to “further the cause” of Ham Radio............

“Before this year, blogs were a curiosity, a cult phenomenon, a faintly embarrassing hobby on the order of HAM RADIO and stamp collecting."

It's hard to be judged by idiots who don't know the first thing about our hobby!

             Reid  W2HU
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W1GFH
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« Reply #10 on: January 14, 2005, 06:14:47 PM »

Quote from: Paul, K2ORC
if the desert boot fits, wear it with pride!


Desert boots - those things were COOL. They go for $100/pair now!

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John Holotko
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« Reply #11 on: January 16, 2005, 10:10:50 PM »

Quote from: W2HU
The December 27th issue of Time Magazine has an article on "blogs" on page 109.
Other than the unrelated association with “Stamp Collecting”, the following quote should do much to “further the cause” of Ham Radio............

“Before this year, blogs were a curiosity, a cult phenomenon, a faintly embarrassing hobby on the order of HAM RADIO and stamp collecting."

It's hard to be judged by idiots who don't know the first thing about our hobby!

             Reid  W2HU


Is it really a rip against ham radio ?? I am not so sure. I think the author of the statement might be saying that, prior to catching on, bloggers were viewed as strange fringe geeks or nerds, much as hams or stamp collectors are traditionalkly viewd by the mainstream as eccentric, strange, geeky, or nerdy types.  Now that blogging has become very main stream the masses no longer see it as a embarrasing, oddball, geeky venture.

Most hobbies and interests that the masses don;t understand are often viewed as strange, odd, or embarrasing by the masses.  Perhaps that's al;l the writer was trying to say. In that context it may not be such a rip against hams as merely an unfortunate statement of reality/.
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Steve - WB3HUZ
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« Reply #12 on: January 16, 2005, 10:52:50 PM »

Quote from: W1RKW
I wonder how stamp collectors reacted too



They replied, but rather philately.
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k4kyv
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Don
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« Reply #13 on: January 17, 2005, 01:59:53 AM »

Quote from: w3jn
The article was about blogs, and there was one sentence in the whole article that mentioned ham radio.

Raising a ruckus over something as innocuous as this I believe hurts the image of ham radio rather than helps.

73 John


Hams shouldn't be so thin-skinned.  Log onto HamSexy and enjoy a little laugh at yourself.  It  relieves tension.

Ham reaction to the blog article reminds me of certain ethnic groups that tend  to raise a ruckus over the most innocuous references to race and ethnic origin, imagining a genocidal racist hiding in every shadow.  Some of the comments posted on QRZ made me feel more than faintly embarrassed.
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Don, K4KYV                                       AMI#5
Licensed since 1959 and not happy to be back on AM...    Never got off AM in the first place.

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« Reply #14 on: January 17, 2005, 11:35:53 AM »

I quit subscribing to Time a long time ago.  Same slant as Communist News Network.  Only weekly I get now is "US News & World report." Even it is written and edited by Gen X'rs or lesser with little concept of relative / comparative History.... or Geography, or Religion ...or anything much of import other than latest celebs, sound bites, snafus, etc.

"Time" might as well have mentioned NASCAR as being an embarassing hobby or sport too. That's how I interpreted it.  Paranoid?  Naw.. just been around long enough to be able to read the code.
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« Reply #15 on: January 17, 2005, 12:38:33 PM »

Most any serious technical hobby is usually considered eccentric/geekish by the mainstream. Think about it. To be "normal" and accepted requires being like the hi hi FB dull majority - screw that.  Mainstream likes gardening and cooking and small home businesses. Growing food, eating food and making money.  The American dream...  :lol:

The Ham Radio Hobby - you should see the looks I get from out-of-town passing gawkers when they see the antennas/towers and I'm up there hanging off one of them. They all say the same thing:  "You couldn't get ME up there for any price .. and,  man, you're really INTO this CB stuff aren't you? But, I know what they're really thinking. This guy is a nutcase.

That Time Magazine article comment is just a reflection of all this. Who cares. The media are dummies anyway when it comes to getting the techno story straight most of the time. In fact, I'm kinda glad that Mainstream Joe isn't into ham radio. Can you imagine if there was a surge of public participation like what happened to CB in the late 70's? Total bedlam on the bands. I like it the way it is with mostly dedicated guys and few curiousity seekers.

The geeky image is a good filter. Everyone here knows what really goes on inside and how much fun we all have.

T
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km1r
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« Reply #16 on: January 17, 2005, 12:48:10 PM »

Tom is right:

Its quality, not quantity.  Ham radio is "our secret". Two great comments I have gotten were:


"Do you know my brother-in-law, the "Red Raider 35" on channel 15?"

and

"Can't you just use your phone to call around the world?"

with the vast unwashed asking questions like this, maybe TIME did us a favor!

Keep smiling...

Mike
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W1RKW
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« Reply #17 on: January 17, 2005, 03:14:50 PM »

Quote from: km1r



"Can't you just use your phone to call around the world?"



I've heard this and never really understood this idea.  

Sure we have phones, cell phones and the internet but they are completely different animals when compared to the amateur radio service. Yes, I can use a cell phone to call the otherside of the world but why would I want to do that? One I'd have to pay for the call and the other person on the other end my not necessarily be pleased to talk to some unknown person and possibly have to pay for the call too even if they are on a landline. Besides where's the sport in that?

On the other hand with a HF rig the world is open to people who are willing to talk and share the same interest.  And it's sporting to work through noise and a pileup.

So a phone and the internet filter out the gunk.  Sounds pretty boring to me.  Plus when was the last time someone homebrewed a cellphone and put it on the air?

Regarding the Time magazine article.  The reference to ham radio was a single sentence in an article whose subject was about internet "blogs".  By the time a reader gets to the end of the article the reference to ham radio and stamp collecting is already forgotten. Kind of like a fart that doesn't linger.

I was amazed at the people who got their shorts all twisted up over this on QRZ and EHam.

I enjoy being a techno geek and being labeled as a techno geek. Don't bother me none.
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Bob
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His fear was when I turned it on for the first time life on earth would come to a stand still.
WD8BIL
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« Reply #18 on: January 17, 2005, 03:27:29 PM »

Chances are the writer confused CB with Ham Radio anyway.
Another fine example of journalistic accuracy !
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Ed KB1HVS
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« Reply #19 on: January 17, 2005, 04:14:45 PM »

Quote from: WD8BIL
Chances are the writer confused CB with Ham Radio anyway.
Another fine example of journalistic accuracy !



  Bud. I am blind as a bat (really) What is that in your avatar? Ed p.s. I can see JJs cameltoe....

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K8SWL
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« Reply #20 on: January 17, 2005, 05:50:09 PM »

In my particular case, Shortwave listening is one step higher than amateur radio on my hobby list. I take more heat for Shortwave listening than amateur radio. Friends and family ask why? followed by you can lsten to the BBC (or whatever station ) on the internet. Or the local station carries BBC programming etc. They are right, I can lsten to the BBC on the internet. Quite good audio quality, no selective fading, phase distortion etc, however, the thrill of hearing the signals crackle through the noise fascinates me as much today as it did 43 years ago when I first listened. I could care less what mainstream America thinks of how I spend my hobby/quality time.

There, I feel better.
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k4kyv
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Don
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« Reply #21 on: January 17, 2005, 10:16:46 PM »

Quote from: WD8BIL
Chances are the writer confused CB with Ham Radio anyway.
Another fine example of journalistic accuracy !


Check out the HamSexy site.  Listen to 3878 kHz.  You will see and hear first hand the CB legacy.  Once upon a time, the typical ham got into radio via SWL'ing.  Ham radio was considered a technical, somewhat intellectual hobby and amateur operators were looked upon as having above average intelligence, even if they were often a little eccentric.  Amateur radio was frequently at the cutting edge of communication technology.

For the  last 30 years or so, beginning with the CB boom, it has been CB, not SWL'ing that introduces the majority of hams to the hobby.  The wannabe cops, the guys with 5 ht's on their belt and the silly hats, and the rest of the hamsexy types look just like stereotypes right from 11m.  The average Joe Blow public thinks CB and ham radio are the same thing.

We gained some fine amateur operators from 11m, but they certainly brought plenty of slobs along with them.
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Don, K4KYV                                       AMI#5
Licensed since 1959 and not happy to be back on AM...    Never got off AM in the first place.

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John Holotko
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« Reply #22 on: January 17, 2005, 10:23:58 PM »

Quote from: K1JJ
Most any serious technical hobby is usually considered eccentric/geekish by the mainstream. Think about it. To be "normal" and accepted requires being like the hi hi FB dull majority - screw that.  Mainstream likes gardening and cooking and small home businesses. Growing food, eating food and making money.  The American dream...  :lol:

The Ham Radio Hobby - you should see the looks I get from out-of-town passing gawkers when they see the antennas/towers and I'm up there hanging off one of them. They all say the same thing:  "You couldn't get ME up there for any price .. and,  man, you're really INTO this CB stuff aren't you? But, I know what they're really thinking. This guy is a nutcase.

That Time Magazine article comment is just a reflection of all this. Who cares. The media are dummies anyway when it comes to getting the techno story straight most of the time. In fact, I'm kinda glad that Mainstream Joe isn't into ham radio. Can you imagine if there was a surge of public participation like what happened to CB in the late 70's? Total bedlam on the bands. I like it the way it is with mostly dedicated guys and few curiousity seekers.

The geeky image is a good filter. Everyone here knows what really goes on inside and how much fun we all have.

T


Actually I never had anyone I've met from the day to day mainstream rip ham radio or tell me they think it's weird or off the wall. The two most common comments I hear nowadays are, "Is that one of those radios where you can reach around the world with" or, "I didn't know people were still doing that anymore".  Ham radio has lost some of it's appeal and intrigue in todays "modern world"., But I have never heard anyone really say that they think hams are strange, or weirdos, or crazy.  Matter of fact the people that I generally hear knocking and criticizing  hams and ham radio tend to be hams themselves more than anyoine else.
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w3jn
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« Reply #23 on: January 18, 2005, 07:19:43 AM »

If anyone believes that ham radio is NOT a "faintly embarrassing" hobby, just check out the bubbleheads at Dayton (or any other hamfest for that matter).

As Don said, it IS healthy to laugh at ourselves.  It IS healthy to accept criticism.  And it IS healthy to accept an outside observer's perception of the hobby.

Guess this thread didn't go the direction its originator intended!

73 John
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« Reply #24 on: January 18, 2005, 07:38:17 AM »

Quote from: w3jn
If anyone believes that ham radio is NOT a "faintly embarrassing" hobby, just check out the bubbleheads at Dayton (or any other hamfest for that matter).



73 John


I never noticed any odd looking people at Dayton.
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