Recently, someone made the following comment in a usenet message:

"If you can't pass the code no license for you."
{the name and callsign of the author of this comment have been deleted to protect his privacy)

Here's the response sent to that person by Jim, WK2K, one of NCI's Directors.  We think it speaks volumes and hope that it will stimulate some open-minded thought and serve as an example of the way long-time hams can and should learn to accept modernization and change with dignity and grace.

I was licensed in 1960 (when you HAD to upgrade from Novice to General in less than a year to stay on the air).  I was heavily involved in CW and phone traffic nets at that time. I currently hold an extra. The only working HF equipment I now have is a 1940s style single 6L6 vacuum tube CW rig. This is just to let you know my perspective on the hobby.

Changes to the licensing structure to streamline the licensing structure are inevitable. A growing number of countries are proposing elimination of Morse testing for HF access. The armed services and the merchant marine have abandoned the use of CW; Morse will always be with us for recreational uses, but it is not even now the "centerpiece" of the hobby. VHF FM and HF SSB are the modes of choice. The Novice HF CW segments are largely wasted on unoccupied frequencies, and even the ARRL supports "refarming" those frequencies to phone use in their comments on current licensing structure. A few years back when I ran for ARRL Atlantic division director, there was an internal  ARRL focus group that took a look at the Morse issue, and recommended a nocode or reduced code entry level license for HF and expanded phone bands.

If you subscribe to CQ magazine, check out the September 1999 page 31 article, "Math's Notes", written by WA2NDM. No Code International is not the only group grappling with the complex issues of modernizing the hobby in a sensible way.

Elimination of the code testing requirement for entry level licenses has successfully brought new growth into the hobby at VHF frequencies, and will also keep the hobby alive into the 21st century as that is expanded to HF frequencies as well.

Like you, I felt that CW was essential to the use of ANY frequencies when the codeless tech class was created a number of years back. I since have been an instructor for newcomers to the hobby for a local radio club. Our new codeless hams have been very helpful to us in our club public service events, and have been exemplary members of the amateur community. Many have gone up the licensing ladder.

The dire predictions of ham radio turning into another CB band due to codeless operators did not materialize. There are some real enforcement problems that the FCC is thankfully finally addressing after many years of absence from the scene; sadly, many of the violators are coded licensees, proving that code does not confer moral superiority. Things are getting better now - if just one police car is out on the road in town, everyone seems to drive a little better. But code testing has nothing to do with this problem.

I agree that technical and procedural standards need to be maintained. I do not support a "dumbing down" of the requirements. But I believe that the technically inclined people we WANT to attract to the hobby are driven away by  the over emphasized Morse requirement for entry level HF access.

Ham radio has many aspects that I have not yet had the opportunity to enjoy, even after almost 40 years. It is my hope that newcomers will discover CW and the joy of building simple equipment. Maybe someday I will be able to afford to try out SSTV or moonbounce.

You probably feel somewhat "cheated" that you had to take a CW test for your license, and changes will result in new  hams not jumping that hurdle. I can relate to that, as I once believed that way. I now believe that retesting for RF safety items now on the test might be a good idea for older hams, to keep them current. The test for commercial broadcast engineering FCC license no longer belabors copper oxide rectifiers; it has been updated to include current material.

Perhaps you would get a different perspective if you made a presentation on ham radio to your local scout troop or start a school ham radio club, be a volunteer examiner, teach a licensing class, or "Elmer" a new codeless tech by inviting him over to your station to try out HF operation.

Keep your mind open and give it a chance. Thanks for writing.

73,
Jim WK2K