Jersey Journal/1923/Defends Radio Amateurs' Right To Broadcast

Defends Radio Amateurs' Right To Broadcast. Editor Jersey Journal. I have at hand your editorial on the radio "butter-in." In this write up one of the victim talks about this chap calling his friend. While I don know the amateur who does this personally, I have heard him and will say that he is within his rights as a government licensed operator. Possibly if the "kicker" had gone to see the "offender", he would have learned a lot about amateur activities that he does not know now. You remark that no one should be forced to listen to such "twaddle" as the amateurs send anybody with a sharp tuning receiver can separate the code and broadcasting as easily as they could pull their hands apart. It is only a matter of correctly building the receiving set. As you suggest the government ought to take a hand in the matter. I agree with you., they ought to put the broadcastings up to about 1,000 to 1,200 meters, where the rotten receiving sets could not be interfered with. You also say that amateurs should confine their activities to the open period. Most of the licensed amateurs work and have long hours that make it impossible for them to sit down any time during the day and transmit. When a fellow has to get up at 6 o'clock in the morning and go to bed at 10 o'clock at night in order to get up the next day, there is no reason at all why he should sit back and let the broadcast listeners hog the air. Since broadcasting started, the amateurs have gone half way in many cases with the broadcast listeners, but give some people an inch and they want a yard. I think it about time the world turned and the amateur rights were respected. To begin with, who made possible the wonderful advance of radio? Not the person who sits back and listens to some "opera star" or a "band", but the real radio amateur, who has experimented for years until he has perfected his apparatus. Give some credit where credit is due in regards to receiving sets. I have a fairly good one myself and have no trouble in separating the music and code. Many persons hear the navy station N.A.H., and immediately blame the nearest amateur who is transmitting. If the person who kicked about "butter-in" and the writer of the editorial would like to call at my home any Monday, Wednesday, Friday, or Saturday evenings, I will endeavor to show him his error regarding amateur interference. If the broadcast listener took his troubles to the offending amateur instead of hinting and beating around the bush, he would get more satisfaction. While I am not a licensed amateur yet. I intend to be soon, and if my transmitting set is within the law as stated on the government license, there is no reason I should stop transmitting.

Respectfully, John H. Lindauer.
8 Park Street, Jersey City, February 7, 1923.