WA4D.Radio

“Only the PARANOID Survive” Intel Founder: Andy Grove

“Ham Radio is a frivolous hobby, a waste of time and money and occasionally fun”

WA4D Quote 1984

Today’s (May 20, 2020) NY Times has an excellent piece about Bill Gates by Timothy Egan. Gates is arguably the most significant innovator of our life time. You won’t hear this article discussed on Ham radio.

Ham radio operators are largely sub-literate as a group. Elderly white men, most are not college graduates. who have little of substance to say beyond the most meaningless discourse and blather– they are ignorant of the people and technologies that will change human civilization in the next century. Tune the bands. Any band– ever hear a general discussion about the fascinating world of Quantum computing? Of AI? VR? Machine Learning? Of course not. Hams are largely stuck in the analog past– How do I know this you ask? Laughs! Just listen! Further they are often completely disconnected from the app culture of youth and professionals. Few have their own web site and consider their QRZ web page to be their digital presence. Ham radio is a communication platform with no value. The radios and various modes work– it’s the human input that is valueless. (Yes yes hams claim all manner of “public service”– with no metrics only boasts from Newington)

Very few ham radio operators will ever see the Gates piece below. They don’t pay for high end subscription media of any type. The good news is, the Gates piece is behind a pay wall. Because quality journalism costs money to produce. Even if the piece were free– there is no credible evidence there would be interest by most hams.