>    'Ham radio operators not needed' says Massachusetts Governor
>
>    It appears as if Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney does not know
>    the role radio amateurs play in emergencies or maybe he just does
>    not care.
>
>    At least that's what hams in New England are saying after Romney
>    dismissed the role of Amateur Radio operators in emergency
>    communications during a recent televised 'town meeting.' Burt
>    Hicks, WB6MQV, has more:
>
>    The program was WCVB television's 'When Disaster Strikes: Segment
>    Two.' It featured public safety and volunteer organization
>    officials from across Massachusetts among its guests and in the
>    audience.
>
>    According to reports, Governor Romney seemed to get agitated when
>    host and moderator Natalie Jacobson asked questions about
>    communications interoperability, and communication without
>    commercial power. Based on his answers, Romney ! was next asked by
>    Jacobson if in the end it all came down to depen ding on ham radio
>    to which the governor replied - quote: "No, we don't need to deal
>    with ham radio operators..."
>
>    Embarrassed public safety officials later tried to put in a good
>    word for Amateur Radio. The National Weather Service Warning
>    Coordination Meteorologist Glenn Field was prepared to state the
>    importance of Amateur Radio. Salvation Army Colonel Fred Van
>    Brunt beat him to the punch talking about his organization's
>    quest to improve its communications capabilities and how Amateur
>    Radio has been an important aspect of this.
>
>    But it was after the TV show ended that hams in the state went on
>    the offensive. Eastern Massachusetts ARRL Section Emergency
>    Coordinator Rob Macedo, KD1CY made public that he had submitted a
>    letter to the Governor's Office, ARRL Section Manager Mike
>    Neilsen, W1MPN, sent a section-wide email to all Eastern
>    Massachusetts ARRL members describing the incident along with
>    actions he a! nd his staff were taking to mitigate the situation.
>
>    Neilsen wrote that the Governors attitude about ham radio sets an
>    unfortunate tone within the state's executive branch. Neilsen
>    added that as former military officer, he sees this as a failure
>    in leadership. Neilsen said that he intended to address the
>    Governor's comments as an urgent matter at a meeting with Don
>    Carlton from the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency.
>
>    Meantime, Tom Kinahan, N1CPE wrote that Governor Romney's comment
>    has made a public relations problem in his role as Massachusetts
>    State RACES Officer. Kinahan asks where it leaves the RACES
>    program when the Governor has said that he "certainly doesn't
>    need to rely on ham radio."
>
>    Burt Hick, WB6MQV
>    Amateur Radio Newsline
>
>    While Governor Romney has yet to issue a formal apology to the
>    ham radio community a representative from the Governor's office
>    has reached out to the Amateur R! adio community in the wake of the
>    perceived "snubbing."
>
>    Ac cording to Eastern Massachusetts Section Emergency Coordinator
>    Rob Macedo, KD1CY, Pam Hickman from the Governor's Office of
>    External Relations telephoned has him. The message delivered was
>    that the Governor's would like to the make the situation right.
>    Macedo told Hickman that he and the local ARES leadership want to
>    visit with Romney so that they might describe Amateur Radio and
>    its benefits to the community. No word on if or when that meeting
>    might take place.
>
>    The television program can be viewed at
>    http://www.thebostonchannel.com/video/5334306/detail.html.
>
>
>    Thomas C Musolf
>    N8NJY
>    In GOD We TRUST
>    [log in to unmask]
>
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>
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