I just found out Wayne Green passed away recently. He was 91 years of age. You may recall I posted about an "exchange" we had a while back about his old magazine, 73. It didn't go very well and my naivete had a bit to do with that.
While I admitted I was never fond of him, I will admit he was a character. He was a guest on Art Bell's old syndicated overnight radio show "Coast to Coast" (now hosted by George Noory) before Bell "retired" and recently popped up on SiriusXM with a new show starting last week called "Dark Matter". He did have a knack for keeping ahead of the curve on computers and packet radio and the age-old philosophy of building your equipment from the ground up. He also had some outrageous opinions about the paranormal and supernatural, and about technologies that are currently in the realm of science fiction, but moving closer to science fact.
Velveeta made a commercial for their Shells N' Cheese product and it features "that guy that's got a ham radio in his basement", except the radios it features are CB radios! See for yourself:
At the end of the 15-second spot there's a radio to the lower left that looks like a Yaesu / Vertex radio (maybe an 857-D) but it's too obscure and out of focus to be sure.
Nevertheless, it's nice to see the radio hobby/art/pasttime get a bit of publicity, even if it is 11 meters...
And the record, I had my fill of Mac and Cheese growing up, and I'll be damned if I eat another bowl of it. My kids on the other hand...
Two of the last three Field Day's I have attended, one was operated under my callsign last year. The other two were at a club site I'm not a member of (don't want to give out their name) and I spent a grand total of one hour visiting, and both times I got to operate a grand total of zero minutes.
Part of the reason is that I didn't show up until close to midnight. Part of the reason being I watched my kids and the wife was working. Another that it was freaking HOT, as it usually is around this time of the year the last weekend of June.
The first of these 2 times was 3 years ago. I'd visited this site several times before. A friend of mine had a camper there and so when I would come he'd gladly take a break and let me operate. I'd stay until 3-4am operating (I'm a night owl) and would rack up many contacts/points for the club.
3 years ago, however, I showed up and either my friend closed up for the night or wasn't there at all. When I arrived, no one was around to talk to at this lakeside area, so I couldn't find out who was where. The campers that were there, I didn't want to just walk in as these were campers where people slept, and the lights were out on all of them. I felt like I was intruding and left. It took an hour to get there, and less than 15 minutes later, I was going back home.
Last year we operated from a campground and had a good time, but couldn't get the troops rallied for this year. I decided to give the previous place another try. Unfortunately I couldn't get there earlier than intended, and once again I arrived at midnight. This time, our friend's camper wasn't there, and no one there knew why. My friend and I did go in to one of the campers and PSK31 and 40m voice was in operation. But the stations didn't want to give up the radios to let others operate. Not even an offer of "come see how this works", just basically working the radios oblivious to our presence. We just stood there looking (and being) bored.
The other camper set up had the lights out...again, and the VHF (6m) station was shut off after the band died. The one station from Texas we heard abruptly yelled "YOU'RE A DUPE!!!!" when the operator made a call to him.
Once again I felt that, even though there were friendlier folks there this time around, we were in the way. I left after about 30 minutes, vowing never to return.
This club (among others) tend to forget Field Day is 24 hours, not just 10 hours active, 6 hours slow, and 8 hours active. Some people like myself can't be there until late, when you would think they would be desperate for operators. I operated one year from Oak Ridge and some of the best operating was from 2-6AM, and we got so punchy that stations were not sure if they were listening to Field Day ops, or a bunch of morning show DJs. But we kept it legal and clean...and fun. And the stations calling us were enjoying the show.
Unfortunately I don't know anyone at the Oak Ridge club anymore, and the club environment for me is a touchy subject as it is, and the only reason I went to the lake was because some friends were there, or at least they used to be.
I thought Field Day was supposed to be a welcoming committee and a public event, but several times over the years I didn't feel welcome. With people not knowing who I was (often a good thing) I was made to feel like an outsider.
Back in 1999, I oversaw a Field Day event for a club, and one thing I absolutely ensured was that anyone who showed up at any time was greeted, made to feel welcome, and that people were allowed to operate when it was possible, with no "hogging" of the radios. It was one of the most successful Field Days that club had experienced in years.
I wonder why no one else follows that plan of attack these days?
This was a domain I registered a few years ago when it became available. The original intent didn't pan out but I kept the domain name anyway.
I wanted to start up a high-altitude ballooning group using an acronym and came up with "Knoxville High-Altitude Operation System" or "Observation" instead of "Operating". Somethinglikethat...
This was actually a couple of years before UTARC's guys started up their ARHABefforts and I joined up with them instead.
Hmm, maybe now it can stand for "K4HSM's Ham (Amateur) Operator Service"?
It seems that ham operators' run-ins with the law must come in waves, as yet ANOTHER ham is in trouble with police.
Although not as severe as Irene Levy (KJ6CEY) acted in California, this one is just as much a black eye on ham radio as her case is.
Authorities say that Keith Mutch (KB1RBI, pictured right) of Norwich, CT used a ham radio to report over the nearby Wal-Mart radio frequency that a man with a gun was outside the store threatening to shoot people, sending police into action.
Although there are no specific details, authorities were somehow able to determine that Mutch was responsible after Wal-mart employees advised none of their employees made the transmission.
Besides making a false report, he was also charged with reckless endangerment and breach of peace. He's currently held on $5000 bond awaiting a hearing on Tuesday, June 1.
Last Saturday night, before this whole brouhaha with K8JSM stirred up a hornet's nest, I did something I wasn't sure I'd ever be doing again - participate in a SKYWARN net.
My friend Jason was recently appointed the coordinator for the area and this was to be his first real test in that role. He was used to it, though, since he and I would team up with a couple of others and run the nets years ago. When a new coordinator was named, all he would do is call Jason or another friend of mine, Tom, and get them to run the nets. So they were used to the pressure. I decided to listen in and help, because that's what friends do for one another...
The weather system that moved through had already killed 10 people in Mississippi and was bearing down on East Tennessee.
The National Weather Service (NWS) had been sending out messages warning people about the severity of the system 48 hours beforehand. The last time I recall the NWS being that cautious was when a tornado tore through Mossy Grove several years before. However, by the time it arrived around midnight Saturday night/Sunday morning, it lost most of its energy and was scattered storms.
It still managed to put an E-F2 tornado in Greenback, just southeast of where I live.
As that tornado was touching down, one local TV station was on the air broadcasting the storm's approach to Knoxville.
As I tuned in to the net, several people were checking in and reporting the usual - heavy winds, lotsa lightning, nothing happening, my bunions are killing me...the typical stuff we'd normally get.
But then, one ham who was doing an overnight paper route called in to report he was in contact with another delivery person who "saw a tornado" in Greenback.
In the past, I usually shunned this type of 3rd party reporting. I recall one such net where we spent 15 minutes scrambling to get confirmation because someone heard on a police scanner that the fire department was reporting a tornado down in Anderson County near Oak Ridge, and it set off a panic. That report ended up being discounted, but it tied up our net as we struggled to get some sort of visual confirmation from those listening, many of whom ran to their police scanners to listen for the report from the fire department.
But something was different about this report. I knew the guy reporting it and he wouldn't just throw a report out like this without some sort of credible evidence (he and Jason are close friends and I'm sure Jason lectured him about it a dozen times over). Dwight (the ham reporting) made sure to preface his report and said "I'm getting this '3rd party', but another driver just told me he saw a tornado in the Greenback community."
So, I decided I was going to run upstairs into the living room and see what the meteorologists were reporting on TV.
No sooner than I step out of the radio room do I hear one of the two meteorologists on TV exclaim: "And we've just received CONFIRMATION of a tornado in Greenback, this is by AMATEUR RADIO..."
I about had a heart attack.
My first reaction was "what weather net are they listening to?" and I scrambled back to the radio to start scanning for other nets (none were taking place other than in northern Georgia and middle Tennessee) and I quickly grabbed the mic and told Jason to "call me immediately" so that I could let him know the TV station was listening, and possibly erroneously reporting a touchdown. No sooner did I un-key the mic when another ham piped in that the TV station was listening and reporting the tornado touching down.
Well now that the cat was out of the bag, we (as in all of us on the net) had to spend 5+ minutes doing damage control, stating repeatedly that the report was 3rd party, unconfirmed, and that we were working to get visual sighting of damage or of the tornado.
Suddenly other hams start reporting that they're getting reports of ambulance and fire dispatches to homes damaged by tornados and other emergencies. The hams were using specific addresses, and that was always a big no-no when I was calling the nets.
Eventually, the TV station corrected their report, but did mention reports of emergency dispatches were being sent to the same addresses we were hearing, indicating something happened out in Greenback.
Eventually, it came to pass that there was indeed a tornado in Greenback, but the rule of thumb we always employed was not to confirm what we ourselves didn't see.
Dwight didn't do anything wrong, because he did preface that he was getting the information 3rd-hand. However, the TV station was either rushing to get the story out on the air or was not entirely hearing the report by Dwight, and assumed that the tornado was confirmed.
Technically speaking, we couldn't confirm if a tornado did touchdown (that's the NWS's job when they do damage surveys after the fact) but the last thing I want to see is SKYWARN in East Tennessee getting discredited because we're hollering "TORNADO!" when in fact it's not been confirmed, or just something we hear elsewhere.
It's been a couple years since I was involved in SKYWARN. It's gonna take a little bit of time to get used to things again. Getting things back on track is going to have to be priority one, but getting the media on track with what we do is apparently another priority entirely.
I must admit at first I thought it was a case of some whacker trying to impersonate a police officer with his strobes flashing, brandishing a sidearm, wearing an earpiece and "talking into it", etc.
Then I began to read more and more about this person, and what was developing was more a case of overzealous law enforcement rather than an overzealous ham radio operator trying to impress anyone within sight, showing off that he was in emergency communications.
It also was another flagrant display by the media to quickly demonize and criminalize whomever might threaten President Obama without stepping back and fully assessing the entire situation with some form of objectivity. Even though there was nothing political about the situation, a quick rush has been made by some media to portray McVey as a right-wing extremist lunatic with fantasies of snipers and sadistic thoughts of extremist conservatism coursing through his twisted, sick, feeble mind...
Seriously, both McVey and the authorities at the airport are to blame, in my opinion, and here's why...
First, let's look at Sean. Honor student in school, bright kid, loves music, radios, and target shooting. Is this the profiling of a monster? If anything, he's a nerd. I should know, I was one. Still am.
So NOW it begins with the media. Demonize McVey as a right-wing extremist who probably is a member of some secret militia in the bible belt. More on that later.
So back to Sean. Yes, he can be over-the-top on wanting to help when help is not asked for. As I posted previously, I've dealt with folks like him in the past, wanting to be Dudley Do-right. They have the best of intentions, and their hearts are in the right place. But sometimes, instead of helping, they hinder the situation, or in some cases escalate it because law enforcement may not know what the person's intentions truly are, other than being a nuisance and getting in the way. To some degree, that's what's happened here.
If he had his strobes flashing, sidearm brandished, and was telling people to get back or was directing traffic, yeah, that could be cause for some concern with law enforcement. But if all he did was park his car, get out and watch Air Force One taxi, minding his own business, listening to the radio traffic on his scanner with an earpiece so as not to disturb others, then, other than having the sidearm, there's no serious cause for concern?
Regarding the sidearm, although I support the right to have a gun, and believe strongly in the 2nd amendment, even if it is legal what Sean did, showing up at an area where the President of the United States was (or is) is not what I consider the smartest move to make. That alone is probably what triggered the officers at the airport into action. Bad move on Sean's part.
And speaking of the police, I'll just go on record as saying, again my opinion, the police acted appropriately...to a point.
There was a time years ago when I was the ARES emergency coordinator for Knox County here in Tennessee. Big responsibility. I dealt with overreacting hams and those just waiting ever-so-impatiently for the next big emergency. Not unlike McVey, really. I've also dealt with law enforcement and government officials who didn't care for ham operators. One official whose name I won't mention (because I don't remember his name) thought they were the scourge of communications "experts" everywhere, and despite my reminding him I was a ham and trying to inform him the positives of recent events such as a tornado taking out all other reliable communications in one remote area of East Tennessee except for ham radio, he refused to be swayed otherwise. He let one bad encounter ruin it for the whole hobby in his mind, and I had better things to do than to persuade him otherwise.
The Airport Police stopped McVey and questioned him, but even though he was legally allowed to carry the weapon (both as a sidearm and concealed) they continued to pursue the issue and find some sort of excuse to make an example out of McVey. When they finally pulled said excuse out of some book they probably had to blow the dust off in order to open, that gave them Carte Blanche to rifle through his car under the guise of "probable cause". And lo, what do they find but formulas and calculations for bullet trajectories...clearly they have a dangerous man on their hands. Look again at that mugshot above...
I tend to think the arresting officers probably knew he was a ham and had it in their mind that, just like the county official I referenced, this kid was part of a hobby they detested, and felt they needed to make an example to all hams as to what would happen if any hams got in their way. Yeah, it's probably a bit much for a conspiracy theory, but considering what craziness has come from this whole situation so far, you never know, really.
The airport police claimed they ran his driver's license number through the database and it came back invalid. I find it deliciously odd that only after he was detained, booked, photographed, and charged, that they then magically found that they entered his information into the computer incorrectly...
So this charge of "going armed to the terror of the public", has anyone ever even heard of such a charge? Then, in order to make an example out of McVey, they set bond at $100,000? For a misdemeanor? Then they say that, even if he posted bond he might still remain in jail??? Is that even legal?
The airport police chief even said he did nothing wrong "individually"...
Taken individually, none of things McVey did was against the law, including carrying the gun, Airport Police Chief Jeff Augram said. It was the combination of McVey’s behavior and the things he had that drew the charge, Augram said.
So if I understand correctly, he didn't do anything wrong, but because of his behavior and his ham radios and scanners, he got arrested?
I'm so seriously tempted to head over the mountain 90 miles away to the Asheville Regional Airport/Hair Care/Tire Change & 30-min Lube/Discount Cigarette Outlet/Fireworks Warehouse (tm) and take my handheld Yaesu FT-530, Radio Shack scanner, a listing of frequencies for the airport, a bottle of water over 16oz, and a picket sign that states:
I AM A HAM RADIO OPERATOR, SUPPORTER OF THE 2ND AMENDMENT, AND A SCANNER ENTHUSIAST. THAT MAKES ME A TERROR THREAT TO THE PUBLIC
and just stand there in front of the Airport's Police Station/Mobile Home. Wonder what will happen...hmmm...maybe individually, with the radios, the sign, and the water, I'm in the clear, but put them together...
I myself probably did more research than the media in finding out about who McVey really was. Why was he in North Carolina? His mom lives there. He even posted this fact online last year. Only now is the media catching on. Why did he have all these radios? He's a ham. Looking at his Ohio license plate would have answered that question immediately. Why did he have a gun? He was licensed to.
Almost immediately the media were trying to put this kid in the electric chair without so much as a peep of fact, just innuendo. After all, here was some lunatic from out of town with rifle formulas, police scanners, and carrying a gun wanting to see the President...
Only after the media starts doing their JOB does the truth come to light. He's just a harmless kid with a fascination for radios who wanted to see Air Force One.
In the end, I think that McVey will not serve any more time other than what he served after being arrested. He'll probably get a lecture from the judge but nothing more...
If anything, McVey has a golden opportunity to sell his story to one of the news channels (probably Larry King Live) or a magazine publication. I'd love to talk to him for a TWIAR exclusive, but we can't afford what he'd probably be asking.
Still, I wonder two things: What effect it will have on McVey's civic-minded activities (will he continue to be an overzealous and anxious kid filled with piss and vinegar and wanting to save the world?) and what effect this whole incident will have on ham radio.
God forbid this incident inspires the feds into trying to micromanage ham radio more than they already do, or even worse levy restrictions on civil agencies like RACES, ARES, and SKYWARN. Hopefully the Obama administration won't launch their media dogs into a smear campaign of ham radio, either. The last thing amateur radio needs to be is a foul talking point on the news channels.
He was the guest speaker and gave an example recording showing how he can use two radios simultaneously to make contacts during contests. While tuning with one radio, he's making a contact on another. I don't know what he did for writing down the contacts...
It's good to know that there's some economic boost around here. Even if it's "ancient technology". Wonder if he's hiring?
On the way home from visiting family, I talked to my daughters (ages 8 and 6) and asked them "so, would you like to learn how to be a ham operator?" and enthusiastically, both answered "yes" repeatedly until I told them I got it.
It made me feel good to know they were both interested. Already, I'm thinking about those applications to the ARRL for scholarships in 10 years...better keep my membership current!!!
It's not too terribly surprising, really, at least for the older of the two. Lauren's been listening to me talk on the radio during Field Day (the above picture was taken when she was two), launch balloons, and even read off a weather warning during a recent SKYWARN net.
I'm glad this is one thing that runs in the family. Not just my wife and I, but my wife's youngest sister also had her license at age 13. Supposedly my father-in-law had one but he was more into CB than ham radio, mainly because he didn't like power limitations...
Some friends of ours from Bristol, TN have a son who go his ticket about a year or so ago. He's active in their SKYWARN group and likes it thus far.
So now I have at least one who's looking to get ticketed soon, my other one, Amber, I'm not so sure of, at least not yet. Granted, if she got her license it would be big news around here since she's 6 (7 in a couple of weeks) and to have both of them licensed might turn a few heads. Question is, how do I teach them, and how will they administer the exam?
I'll probably start online and look over the sample questions, then talk with them about what this means, or what that indicates, or how something works, etc. Then we'll see if they're still interested. Between Brownie Scouts, school and the possibility I may become a soccer mom before too long, I don't know if I'll keep their attention long enough to get their ham tickets.
I know that the VEs can administer an oral exam, which they'll have to do for Amber since she's not reading at that level yet, and probably give one to Lauren. Even though she's an excellent reader, she sometimes has issues with the comprehension, and I don't want her to just memorize the questions and answers, I want them to understand why something works this way or that.
Like all things around here, time will tell if I succeed or not. If I do, George will have the exclusive on that story...
Every year around Field Day, the media inundates the masses with amateur radio articles about this great event, and every year, many of them take the simple way out of concocting an original thought and throw a meager story in the back of the "Lifestyles" section with the words "Ham it up" in the title (i.e. "Area amateurs will 'ham it up'...", or simply go lazy and headline "Ham it up" in 72 pt font with a subtitle explaining what they mean, and dashing the hopes of some who might think it was a pork barbecue session.
And it's not just Field Day. Hamfests also tend to bring the phrase back into the limelight as well.
It's not that it's obscene, or derogatory, or condescending. It's just cliched and unoriginal.
I would encourage anyone who's arranging PR for their club or group to encourage their media contact to refrain from using this phrase in their story. No headline, subtitle, placement in the main article, not even in the captions of any photos.
