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{ "url": "https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/api/list/[email protected]/email/6JDKAQEXLFNZCKFELZ55ZAMZNZDHRMDH/", "mailinglist": "https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/api/list/[email protected]/", "message_id": "[email protected]", "message_id_hash": "6JDKAQEXLFNZCKFELZ55ZAMZNZDHRMDH", "thread": "https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/api/list/[email protected]/thread/EIAD7SE6YX6V4O5H34G2HHDBKNVTJMET/", "sender": { "address": "nate (a) natetech.com", "mailman_id": null, "emails": null }, "sender_name": "Nate Duehr", "subject": "[amsat-bb] Re: AMSAT Satellite Communications Achievement Award #500", "date": "2009-05-21T06:57:17Z", "parent": "https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/api/list/[email protected]/email/EIAD7SE6YX6V4O5H34G2HHDBKNVTJMET/", "children": [ "https://mailman.amsat.org/hyperkitty/api/list/[email protected]/email/P356I3G3Z7V635MPVNZIQA4DGE7QCYRV/" ], "votes": { "likes": 0, "dislikes": 0, "status": "neutral" }, "content": "For all who think the AMSAT awards process should be changed: \n\nI can get away with saying it, so I will -- your elected officials have\nto be nicer, I suppose. (If that's the type of officials you vote\nfor... I'll add with a grin.)\n\nI didn't see any volunteers to do the job. Or in the more modern\nvernacular: \"Step up, or step off.\" \n\nFor those so inclined, a Biblical phrase might also suffice: \"Don't\nmuzzle the ox while he's treading out the grain.\" In other words...\nBruce is doing the job. Anyone thinks they can do it better, should\ntalk to Bruce about their perfect migration plan to take it over and\nmake their AMAZING sales pitch about how they'll make things better by\nat least an order of magnitude. (In other words, you better fix ALL the\nproblems while you're at it, or it isn't worth the change.)\n\nVolunteer organizations exist because people volunteer. Not because\nthey complain about the organization or the processes the organization\nuses. If all it took was votes to run a country... or AMSAT... or\nanything... \n\nHams complain too much. I recently started seeing this when I started\nspending more time AWAY from Ham Radio and in a completely different\nhobby \"crowd\". Seriously. That group throws breakfasts that are open\nto the public, they invite people to come see what they're doing almost\nEVERY weekend (not just \"Field Day\"), etc. Yes, there are some ham\ngroups that do this... AMSAT is one of the best at trying to \"get the\nword out\" that Amateur Radio & Satellites is fun.\n\nAs President of a much smaller Ham group than AMSAT, I know the ratio is\nabout 40:1. How do I know? 400 members in my organization, 10 that\nactually do any work. MAYBE another 10 if I'm lucky and beg a lot... so\nwe'll call it 20:1. 19 \"whiners in their recliners\" and 1 person\nworking to make it better actually works, but just barely. I\nappreciate the membership dues greatly from the 19, but I value that ONE\nperson out of that 19 more than anything else in the organization. If\nthe 19 complain and none step up to fill the one's shoes, that one\npretty much gets to do things as they see fit, unless 10 of the 19 walk\naway because of it.\n\nHow many members in AMSAT? How many working on for for AMSAT? In a\nvolunteer organization, you either complain about stuff, or fix it\nyourself... there's really only two choices when it comes down to it.\n\nMore interestingly in this whole thing: Only 500 awards total?! That\nin itself was a shocker to me... maybe I don't know the history\n(timeline) of the award, or maybe it's just a sign that only 500 people\nhave ever bothered. I know I haven't... \n\nI'm an ardent fan of aerospace and everything about it (hint: The \"other\ngroup\" is the General Aviation community... you know, those\nmuch-maligned \"small planes\" that seem to magically have just started\n\"making noise\" when their airport that used to be miles from anyone, is\nsuddenly surrounded by a wave of idiots... ahem... nice homeowners who\nbuilt underneath the airport's traffic pattern? Yeah, they go BEGGING\nfor people to come out to the airport, go flying, bring the kids out,\neat some free pancakes, and see what's going on. EVERY good weather day\nin the summer there's a group somewhere within a few hour's drive doing\na fly-in, a breakfast, a public good-will event. Hams? Field Day. \nOnce a year. And a hamfest or two.)\n\nAnyway... as one of my friends would say, \"Good on you, Bruce. Don't\nlet the bastards get you down!\" (Not implying anyone in the\nconversation here is a bastard... it's just my friend's phrase. Feel\nfree to NOT do the standard Internet \"thing\" and read more into that\nthan was meant. You can't hear the funny accent or get the slap on the\nback from my friend that would go along with it, from an e-mail, trying\nto cheer you up!)\n\nThanks Bruce, and thanks to AMSAT for being there. Some of us out here\nknow EXACTLY what it's like to volunteer -- others just wish for a\nbetter life, instead of making their own. A lot of that going on in\nWashington's sales pitches these days, too. I think it's WAY cool to\ntell someone... \"Did you know I could walk out to the Jeep with you and\nsometime in the next hour or so, we could talk through a satellite to\nsomeone else doing the same thing somewhere else in the country? Free?\"\n That always boggles people's minds... if they really \"get it\" about any\nof the costs or operational issues with putting a satellite in orbit. \nEven those who don't -- still are somewhat amazed.\n\nLet's focus on THEM and not what pieces of paper with dates and numbers\nwe can put on the wall. I VHF contest to win, but if someone new shows\nup at our contest site, they're ALWAYS given some time at the rigs...\neven if it slows our \"Q rate\" down and we lose a notch in the standings,\nat least we go home knowing EVERYONE got to play, and we had fun. Isn't\nthat the point of a hobby where we drag three trailers, one for towers,\none for a communications/operating trailer, and at least one camper\ntrailer to sleep in, sometimes two... to the top of a cow-pasture\n(literally) in Eastern Colorado to call \"CQ\" once a summer?\n\nAnother ham I originally mentored, but as all things... they end up\nteaching you something too... said once... \"I'm having fun. Are you?\" \nHe's also ordering a bumper sticker, \"If it isn't fun. Stop doing it.\" \n:-) Trust me, if you do that... you'll drive those who are incapable\nof having fun, even when they have all the ingredients... crazy. \nUtterly crazy.\n\nBy the way, that new ham I mentored... was my dad. And he has more fun\nwith his gear than I've EVER had. What a great example he sets...\n\nAwards? Contests? Not his thing. Catching something rare or\ninteresting on the bands and talking to them for a few minutes... makes\nhis whole day. He has more DX logged already than I ever have, MOBILE. \nIn the bottom of the sun-spot cycle.\n\nSo, folks... if AMSAT Awards and/or how they're administered aren't FUN\nfor you -- just move on and operate. Take it a little less seriously...\nand leave folks who do a GREAT job like Bruce to do the jobs they enjoy.\n (Trust me, if he didn't enjoy doing it, he wouldn't be. It's too much\nwork and too little thanks to deal with that 20:1 ratio. Believe me...\nor volunteer to walk in his shoes. But please... only volunteer if you\nENJOY the work. Ham radio's joyless enough already as it is. For some\nof you. NOT ME!)\n\nHavin' a blast on the radio here... and I don't care about Bruce's\nmethod of picking some numbers for some wallpaper... THANKS TO MY DAD\nFOR POINTING OUT A BETTER WAY TO VIEW THE *HOBBY*.\n\n73,\n\nNate WY0X\n--\n Nate Duehr\n [email protected]\n\n", "attachments": [] }