Topband: Maritime gear programmable on ham bands?

[Tom W8JI]

>I don't think anyone has mentioned the ONE VALID use for an "open" radio 
>and that is MARS system service.  It still exists and with the advent of 
>radios that can transmit almost anywhere without modifying the RF 
>circuitry, MARS ops have moved further and further away from the freqs that 
>are closest to the ham bands.
>
> At any rate, wasn't sure if MARS had been forgotten :)

Why would someone buy an $1800 ICOM marine radio for MARS, when they could 
get a $900 Ham radio and have both sidebands and other modes with the same 
basic performance?