mpackard@uok.UUCP (12/08/84)
[ eat me ] I've said this before and you all are probably tired of hearing it, but if the word CB is mentioned then the majority of the Amateur Radio public will sneer and jeer. This may be quite appropriate but it doesn't sit well when you hear it again and again. I only consider CB as a radio and not a mentality. Doctors do the same thing as Hams by sneering and jeering at chiropractors (sp?) and thinking that they are better than them. When in truth both of them can be justified. It's common to think of yourself as being better than the rest because you had to study more or had a tougher exam. I used to think I was better because to learn how to fix a radar took 37 weeks and to learn how to operate it took maybe a fourth of that. So me and my co-workers would sneer and jeer. It made us look bad, it makes you look bad and is considered unprofessional. When CB was proposed, the Hams formed an action commitee to ensure that CB is where it is in the spectrum and to ensure that it would fail. I think if the Hams welcomed the CB'ers to a UHF or even VHF spectrum they would themselves prosper. I always think of the radio's that are used on 10 meters now, and probably why 10 meters is such a success is due to being able to buy a CB radio, easily convert it enjoy. By welcoming the CB'ers to UHF we could expand 10 meters and also get new radios for UHF and build up that band. God knows there aren't enough Hams up there to attract a manufacturer.