Powerline telecommunications and the ham service

Get the support of famous hams to fight against BPL

In joining the amateur radio community, broadcasters help us to fight against these "BPL" companies. But it is still too early to say if this is a good or a bad news for our hobby. Too much financial interests are in balance and to save their economy (and gain votes) political already demonstrated that they do not hesitate to hack FCC commissioners who have no concept of the technology they are supposed to be regulating. We all hope that the WP 6E's report will be in favor of spectrum users without modifying our rights to use amateur bands as we already observed in 432 MHz, 1.2 and 2.4 GHz some times ago that were partly reassigned.

I suggest an idea to ITU commissioners. The best solution to ensure our defense should be to have in our camp some statemen, lawyers and celebrities who should be licensed hams too. This is maybe a naïve proposal but the weight of these tens of famous people might weight in the balance, all the more if they are concerned by BPL interference. All use either amateur bands or more generaly the electromagnetic spectrum and can arg against any abuse and will more than probably support our community.

Here are some of them extracted from a Famous hams file that you can download : 

Statemen, politicals, lobbyists, lawyers :

- Katsutsugu Sekiya, Minister of Construction and Minister of State, alias JA5FHB

- Kiyoko Ono, member of the Cabinet of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, alias 7M3URU

- George Pataki, Governor of New York 1994-present, call reassigned

- David Funderburk, Congressman, alias K4TPJ

- William A. Wilson, ex-U.S.Ambassador to the Vatican, alias K6ARO

- Judge Roger G. Strand, District Court judge, alias K7NYD

- Sir Allan Fairhall, stateman, alias VK2KB

- George Pataki, traveler/writer having a strong lobbying attitude in favor of hams, alias WB2AQC

- Mike Ross, Congressman, alias WD5DVR

- Radivoje "Rasa" Lazarevic, Yugoslav ambassador to Brazil, alias YU1RL

Royalties :

- Prince Yousuf Al-Sabah, Kuwait, alias 9K2CS

- King Juan Carlos, King of Spain, alias EA0JC

- King Bhumiphol Adulayadej, King of Thailand, alias HS1A

- Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, Princess/Heiress to throne of Thailand, HS1D

- Francesco Cossiga, ex-President of Italy, alias I0FCG

- Argentina President Carlos Menem, alias LU1SM

- Queen Noor, Queen of Jordan, JY1NH

- Crown Prince Hassan, King Hussein's brother, JY2HT

- Prince Raad, Chairman of the Royal Jordan Radio Amateur Society, alias JY2RZ 

- Prince Talal of Egypt, alias SU1SV

Large spectrum users :

- Mike Griffin, NASA Administrator (2005), alias NR3A

- John Scott Redd, Vice Admiral, former chief of all USN forces in Persian Gulf (94-96), alias K0DQ

- General Francis "Butch" Griswold, leader of the US Strategic Command, alias K0DWC

- General Eugene E. Habiger, (ret.) commander in chief, U.S. Strategic Command, alias K6EWP

CEO of companies related to telecommunications :

- Mickey Schulhof, former Head of SONY US, alias K1OKI

- John Sculley, former CEO of Apple Computer, alias K2HEP

- Dr. Paul A. Flaherty inventor of Altavista Search Engine, alias N9FZX

- Bary R. Bertiger, VP & General Manager of Motorola's satellite systems group, alias WA7UKR

Scientists and inventors :

- Samuel F.B. Morse III, great-grandson of the inventor of Morse Code (born in 1902 !), alias W6FZZ

- Dr. Russell Alan Hulse, Nobel Prize in Physics for discovery of binary pulsars, alias WB2LAV

- Guillermo González Camarena, inventor of the color television picture tube, alias XE1GC

- The hundred of astronauts and cosmonauts who hold an ham license

- The 10% of NRAO radioastronomers who are licensed hams

TV/radio producers, directors,  journalists :

- Tony Randel, TV/movies director, alias K6BBC

- Roy Neal, TV personality/producer, appaered in ham videos, alias K6DUE

- Ernest P. Lehman, Writer, Producer, Actor, Director, alias K6DXK

- Ben Moses, TV/movie producer and director, alias W6FY

- Samuel G. "Sam" Brown,  Broadcast TV and radio news journalist often awarded, alias WA4IUM

- William F. Baker, president of WNET TV, alias W1BKR

and many others.

Individually, each of us are insignificant users. But together, with voices of so many celebrities we could speak loudly on one and same voice to protect our rights. It should be interesting to get their opinion.

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