mack@mlokai.DEC (11/12/85)
Aw, c'mon... Granted most of the League's books are dry as dust, and granted QST isn't very strong on technical articles, but bear in mind that we technical folk are probably in the minority, and the League is trying to represent ALL hams, not just those who consider themselves "the enlightened few". Myself, I do a lot of tinkering and rarely operate, while my wife (KT1E, formerly WA1YAJ) does most of the opererating and hasn't plugged in a soldering iron for years (well, at least the three years since we were married)! We make an effective team. Who is the better ham? Who can say? Also bear in mind that the League's main role is not as a publisher, but as our lobby in Washington. The legislators recognize them as the repre- sentative of their membership. I don't work for the League, so I don't really know, but I would expect that a lot of their income from publishing gets pumped into their lobbying efforts. Without an effective lobby in Washington, the commercial interests would have pushed us out well beyond UHF long ago. Maybe you'd feel comfortable out there, but my wife wouldn't. I don't work for the league. At the moment I'm not even a member. (I let my membership lapse a few months ago, in the midst of moving, and haven't gotten around to renewing yet... probably this month.) But like it or not, they are our voice in Washington, and if that is the only thing they do with the money put in as membership, it is worth it. Ralph (WA1ZCH)