I guess something like this was inevitable, given the level of idiocy on some newsgroups. Dave K1ZZ -----Original Message----- From: Sumner, Dave, K1ZZ Sent: Monday, November 08, 2004 8:31 AM To: 'mharmon@att.net' Cc: HQ Info Subject: ARRL did not endorse Senator Kerry or anyone else Michael, there is absolutely no truth to that. Please ask whoever made such an outrageous statement to retract it. For months we have been expressing our unhappiness with the administration's endorsement of Broadband over Power Lines technology. Perhaps whoever made the posting misinterpreted those efforts. However, at no time has ARRL made any statement whatsoever with regard to Senator Kerry, nor have we made any statement whatsoever with regard to President Bush's candidacy. ARRL is a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization, and cannot and does not participate in campaigns on behalf of any candidate. You may post this response if you like. 73, David Sumner, K1ZZ Chief Executive Officer, ARRL -----Original Message----- From: Michael D. Harmon [mailto:mharmon@att.net] Sent: Saturday, November 06, 2004 11:52 AM To: HQ Info Subject: ARRL Endorsement of John Kerry On one of the ham radio related newsgroups, I read a post referring to the League's endorsement of John Kerry. I truly hope this statement was made in error. I am NOT a Kerry fan, I did not vote for the man, and I believe that it is totally irresponsible for an organization such as ARRL to insert themselves into a partisan issue such as this. Of course, it's everyone's right to voice their opinion, but don't forget, it's MY dues which keep the ARRL in business. The individual who posted the message on the newsgroup stated that he was cancelling his League membership immediately. I won't be so quick to anger, but I will say for the record that as a long-time league member, I just do not believe it's appropriate for a "public service" organization to take sides in a partisan issue. It's one thing to take a stand on issues such as BPL and spectrum protection, but I believe it's totally irresponsible to take sides in a political issue such as the 2004 election. If I thought for a moment that the League had sunk to the depths of a political special-interest group, I'd drop my membership in a Newington minute. I just hope and pray that this is not the case. However, if I ever see such irresponsible behavior on the part of the League again, you can kiss my membership goodbye. Michael D. Harmon, WB0LDJ mharmon@att.net