I have to disagree with Frank to a certain extent on this. CW may not be a religion, but many adherents view it as if it were a religion, in the sense its followers are true believers. To them belief is a matter of faith not necessarily fact in the scientific sense. If history has shown us anything it is that converts are the strongest believers and those that have beliefs impressed upon them are the most rebellious. (If any doubt - check out Reformation in Wikipedia) Having already violated every bit of good advice from my father about not discussing religion in public, I will move on. I happen to be a believer. When confronted with a true believer the CW is the heart of Amateur Radio I try to nod affirmatively and say that I believe the CW is strong enough to stand on its own merits. The relative success of local ops working CW in the 10 Meter Contest over those working phone was a good example. We didn't cause the Morse requirement to be eliminated as a license requirement, that was the good and thoughtful folks at FCC; the same folks who sat on their fat **** for a year or two to act after telegraphing (no pun intended) their intent to eliminate the Mores requirement These are the same friendly folks who rejected our Petition for Reconsideration without any comment after two (or was three )days of "intense" thought. We can only hope the quick action on the Petition for Reconsideration was the dawn of a new era of quick action at FCC. Perhaps it is "Morning in America." Probably not still, we did the right thing and we should let our members know that. Moreover we need to let them know CW is still a viable and highly prized mode amongst ARRL leaders, but just that a mode. It is up to those of us who are true believers to "keep the faith" and find converts. That isn't the job of FCC or for that matter ARRL. As far as the difficulty of current tests are concerned, I suggest that we try and view the material through the eyes of someone brand new to Amateur Radio without 20, 30 or more years of Amateur Radio behind us. We all remember how foreign and sometimes bewildering the terms and concepts were through the eyes of a newcomer. Better yet, go to a VE session and watch the examinees "sweat it out." If you want a Christmas smile then check out the look on the face of someone you just passed. That will put you in the Christmas spirit and renew your faith in Amateur Radio. Happy Holidays to all!! 73, Jay, KØQB -----Original Message----- From: Frank Fallon [mailto:n2ff@optonline.net] Sent: Saturday, December 16, 2006 7:39 PM To: arrl-odv Cc: arrl-odv Subject: [arrl-odv:14945] Re: WT Docket 05-235 Joel Harrison wrote:

As I stated in my email yesterday, it is good to see the FCC finally act of WT Docket 05-235.

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Joel, I could not agree more with the statement below. The FCC has ruled: CW is Mode and NOT a religion. I for one have had the debate up to my ears for far too long! I will be interesting to see how ham radio goes in the next few years. It is, I am sure, not the end of the world. And yes, it is LONG overdue! I think it's a nice Christmas present.

For me personally, I’m glad we have the Morse issue behind us so we can move forward. The debate has burdened us for far too many years.

73 Joel W5ZN

p.s. Just so you don’t get the two mixed up, I’m not happy with what the Commission did regarding our 80 meter recon petition. That, however, is another matter to address and deal with.