TopBand: Misplaced patriotism

[Chris R. Burger]

I don't know if this Reflector is the ideal forum for a discussion 
about the merits or otherwise of the Chanukes vs. the Yankees, but 
let me offer some suggestions.

By most standards, I'm unbiased.  I've visited both countries, 
enjoyed both, have friends in both, and even work both occasionally 
in contests.  Gee, to my untrained ear with its heavy accent the 
people even sound the same!  I couldn't care less about your mutual 
differences, and neither could most people on this Reflector.

What sparked some of this international mud-slinging was a series of 
comments about perceived inadequate operating skills on a certain 
DXpedition.  As these comments are thoughless and virtually identical 
to the misplaced comments in the early days of the K7K expedition, I 
don't think I'll even try to address those concerns again.  Let me 
just point out:

*  It is a fact of life that the people that have the inclination, 
   time and money to go on DXpeditions are not necessarily the 
   best equipped for the job.
   
*  It is also a fact that someone who sacrifices significant time, 
   money and energy to go on a DXpedition cannot be dictated to.
   Quoting the organiser of a recent low band DXpedition:  "My
   time, my money, my energy, my sleep, my equipment, your rules?
   No way!".  The Golden Rule applies:  "He who spends the gold, 
   makes the rules".
   
It's a free world.  You're welcome to organise the best DXpedition 
the world has ever seen, using your own time and your own resources.  
If you cannot do that, at least sit back and allow the other guys to 
do their thing.

One final perspective:  Even Rudi Klos was not born a perfect 
DXpeditioner.  Looking back at my own DXpedition efforts, I must 
concede that some of the early operations were embarrassingly small 
scale.  Nevertheless, people like the NCDXF supported us, and we 
learned new tricks.  By the time the opportunities for bigger things 
came along with Walvis Bay and the Penguin Islands, the painful 
lessons had been learned and we were ready to do reasonable 
operations with tens of thousands of contacts and with a reasonable 
presence on the low bands.

What would have happened if those first 500-QSO efforts at H5AYB and 
ZS6BCR/A22 were subject to the same kind of scornful public rhetoric 
that the current expeditions are?  Who knows?  But I can venture a 
guess.  A nineteen-year old packing his jalopy with modest equipment 
and driving a few hours to a neighbouring country would probably not 
have reacted too well.  Would that nineteen-year old's untested self 
image have survived the assault of a barrage of ill-considered 
comments by armchair operators with a beer gut?  I doubt it.  Would 
he have been around when more worth while opportunities presented 
themselves?  I doubt it.  He may well have taken up stamp collecting.

So, guys:  We all understand your frustration at missing a new 
country.  We all understand that you absolutely must work all 
countries by your next birthday.  Just cut the operators some slack.  
And if you really must vent your spleen, do it in the privacy of your 
own home.

Chris R. Burger
ZS6EZ

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