[BC] Public Service Communications

[DHultsman5@aol.com]

In a message dated 10/21/05 1:42:28 P.M. Central Daylight Time,  
looey323 at yahoo.com writes:

.
Harold Hallikainen <harold at hallikainen.com>  wrote:

> Its not the lack of spectrum, it's the lack of a unified  coordination.
>
> In a disaster Public Safety people show up from  all over the place to
> help
> but their radios are not programmed  to operate on the allocated
> interoperability channels. >
>  The other issue in public safety is interference, the FCC did a lousy  job
> or allocating frequencies in the 800 Mhz band and we now have  severe
> interference between Nextel, Public Safety and Cell  phones.



*******************
 
I am really pi**ed off after hearing senator McCain and that other senator  
bad mouthing TV stations not wanting to give up channel 50-60 as the reason 
they  did not have interoperatable radios as recommended after 911.
 
TV stations and the NAB have nothing to do with it,   The main  reason we 
don't have interoperatable public radio systems is local police,  sheriff, state 
troopers and fire departments want their own channels and don;'t  want to 
share anything.  They all have their fifdoms and between them and  APCO they get 
what they want.  And you and I pay for it.
 
By now the technology for a walkie-talkie  (trademarked   Lafayette Radio)  
should be like our cellular phones.  All the  frequencies in memory.  This can 
be activated by programming or  downloaded.   Any walkie talkie could operate 
within a range of bands,  trunking or otherwise.
 
Agreed that ham radio provides a fine service but tax payer pay both  locally 
and nationally for public safety communications systems to the tune of  
millions of dollars. 
 
The feds after the 911 report should have tagged all grants would only be  
made for the system capable of inter-operatablity.
 
FEMA should be able to move into a market and their radio should be able to  
operate on local public service frequencies and likewise public service to 
talk  to FEMA radios.  Look at the loss of lives in 911 attributed to the fact  
that fire and police could not talk to each other.
 
Dave