FCC Seeks Public Comments on Emergency Communications by ...

In response to the Congressional directive to prepare a study to assess Amateur Radio?s role in emergency and disaster communications and the impact of private land use regulations on the amateur community?s ability to provide such communications, the FCC issued DA 12-523 soliciting comments from the public. The period for public comment runs until May 17, 2012.

?As part of the study contained in Public Law No. 112-96, the Commission has opened a 45 day period for comments to be filed on the issue,? said ARRL Regulatory Information Manager Dan Henderson, N1ND. ?Because of the short deadline for the study to be completed and presented to Congress ? before the end of August ? the ARRL and the amateur community must quickly mobilize their response.?

The FCC Public Notice focuses on two specific areas for comments. The first is the role that Amateur Radio has played and continues to play to support emergency and disaster relief organizations, such as FEMA and local/state emergency management agencies. The second is to determine impediments to enhanced Amateur Radio communications. This would include the impact that private land-use regulations ? such as deed restrictions and homeowner association covenants ? have on the ability of licensed amateurs to fully participate in providing support communications to the served agencies.

?This study is not about zoning ordinances or regulations adopted by the local or state governments,? Henderson explained. ?Amateurs already have the limited protection of PRB-1 to assist them with those situations. The areas of concern here are the limitations that are placed on a property when it is purchased, either as part of the deed of sale or by restrictions imposed by the neighborhood/homeowner?s association. Those restrictions ? sometimes referred to as CC&Rs ? are not currently covered by the FCC?s PRB-1 decision from 1985.?

To allow the ARRL to quickly collect and collate relevant information from the amateur community to help support the filing it will make with the FCC on this issue, a website has been setup. The site ? www.arrl.org/ccr-study-information ? provides details about what kind of information is needed by the ARRL.

Also on the site, you will find links to two online data collection forms. The first form allows you to provide information about specific emergency communications in which Amateur Radio has played a role since January 2000. The second form asks for specific information on the CC&Rs/deed restrictions that control your property. It also asks you to provide information on how those restrictions have impacted your ability to fully support emergency communications.

?Whether you are an ARRL member or not, your information and situation are important to helping us make the case for all amateurs,? Henderson said. ?Whether your support communications are with ARES?, RACES, SKYWARN, CERT or other emergency and disaster groups, your voice should be heard. If you cannot operate effectively from home during an emergency because CC&Rs prohibit adequate antennas on your property, that is important to document and quantify. This issue affects all of Amateur Radio, not just ARRL members.?

Henderson said that due to the short timeframe that the FCC has allotted for public comment, time is of the essence. In order to allow the ARRL to develop its comments, the ARRL asks that all information sent by the amateur community be received at the ARRL no later than April 25, 2012: ?We realize this is a very short turnaround asking for your response, but this is based on the time provided by the Commission for the comment window.?

It is important that when you provide specifics of your CC&R, you also provide the ARRL with a copy of its actual wording. If you have the CC&R in a digital format (or you can scan the document into a file), it can either be uploaded through the website above or it can be sent via an e-mail to CCRinfo@arrl.org . If you do not have an electronic format, a hard copy may be sent via US mail to: CCR Study Information, ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111.

?We need factual, specific details,? Henderson said. ?The more accurate information we have ? including copies of the CC&R language ? the stronger case we can make. Having copies of the exact CC&Rs is important. It allows us to demonstrate the wide variation of restrictions. Including the specific text is as important as any other piece of information you provide.?

If you have questions about what is being requested, you may contact the ARRL Regulatory Information Office via e-mail. ?Again, time is of the essence in this matter,? Henderson said. ?This is the best opportunity that amateurs have had to address the impact of overly burdensome private land use restrictions. If Amateur Radio is to succeed in this effort, it is going to take all of us working together.?

Source: http://www.arrl.org

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Man who held bulldog for ransom is sentenced

By msnbc.com staff

A man who stole a woman?s bulldog, demanding pills and $1,000 for his return, was sentenced?to 3 ? years in prison, the Longview Daily News reported.

The saga of Jagger the English bulldog began on Oct. 4, when his owner, Jennifer Thomas, of Woodland, Wash., offered to give baby clothes to Johnny Lee Jordan, 39, and his pregnant girlfriend, Ivy Rose Svaleson, 24. Svaleson was days from giving birth.

Thomas, who is wheelchair-bound from an accident and relies on pain medication, last saw her 2-year-old pooch in her driveway, KATU News in Portland, Ore. reported. Three days later, she began receiving threatening photos of Jagger by text message, accompanied by threats.

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?If you don?t do exactly as you?re told the next few messages will be of your friend slowly getting tortured to death,? the person wrote, according to KATU. ?And do us both a favor, keep this to yourself, no cops.?

But Thomas relied on her medicine, KATU reported, and she did not have money to pay the thieves.

Investigators became involved, but turned up little. Then, on Oct. 24, Jagger the bulldog was found dead on?railroad tracks. Officials believe he died before being tied to the tracks. Thomas?s veterinarian concluded that the dog had been tortured, although a Human Society investigator did not find obvious torture wounds, the Daily News reported.

Svaleson has admitted to sending the text messages and tying up the dog by the railroad tracks, the Daily News reported. She and another accomplice will be tried next month.

A witness pointed police to Jordan, who has an extensive record in Washington State.

Thomas, accompanied by her husband and daughter, watched Friday as Jordan was sentenced to 41 months in prison for theft and extortion. Thomas said he showed little remorse for stealing her dog. ??

"He supposedly was apologizing but he didn't look at us," she told the Daily News. "He tried to blame it on somebody else. He said, 'I'll admit to my part of it but there was another person.'"

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Energy-efficient data management strategies 'can save money'

Energy-efficient data management strategies 'can save money'

Feb 25 2011, 10:05 AM

Businesses can save money by pursuing data management strategies which have a focus on energy efficiency.

Josh Boulton, Publisher at Green IT Magazine, explained that the issue is an important one for companies, as data centres typically use the same amount of energy as 3,000 homes each day.

He said this makes the area one that can be tackled successfully by organisations in terms of the potential cost reductions they can make.

"It has a very quick impact and there's a genuine bottom line saving that can be achieved," Mr Boulton stated.

His comments on data management efficiencies follow a recent Devoteam study, which interviewed companies across 11 different countries and found 90 per cent of them are working on improving the energy efficiency of their data centres.

Approximately 67 per cent of those questioned also said green IT solutions act as an opportunity to meet customer expectations and invest in sustainable development.
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Nanaimo Arts | Entertainment, Sports | Recreation | Model Boat Show

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Saturday, March 31st, 2012 - Sunday, April 1st, 2012

Nanaimo Boat Modellers will stage their annual model boat show with an extensive display of scale models and an indoor pond with operating radio-controlled models. Children, ages 6 to 86 will have an opportunity to try their skill at operating one of the models on the pond.

This is a chance to meet some of the modellers and find out about their weekly activities where they operate their boats - both sail and power - at the Inn On Long Lake on Sunday mornings.

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Prostate Cancer; Healthiness; Chemotherapy | Increasing Cancer ...

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Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray ready for Sony Ericsson finale

After world No. 1 Novak Djokovic?s 5-hour, 53-minute marathon victory over No. 2 Rafael Nadal at the Australian Open in January ? the longest final in Grand Slam history ? Sony Ericsson Open fans likely hoped for a 1 vs. 2 blockbuster rematch in the men?s final at 1?p.m. Sunday.

What they?re getting instead could be just as compelling.

Fourth-ranked Andy Murray of Great Britain is the only player who has beaten defending Sony champion Djokovic twice since the Serb became No.?1 after Wimbledon, and will meet him again for the 13th time in the final in Key Biscayne.

The two, who are each 24 and have played each other for years after competing together as juniors, have taken turns winning since their first meeting on the ATP World Tour in Madrid in 2006.

Djokovic (19-2 overall in 2012) leads the series 7-5, with Murray (17-3) winning their last match 6-2, 7-5 this month in the semifinal of the event in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. And though Djokovic also won the Sony Ericsson Open in 2007, Murray had his own glory lofting the championship trophy at the Tennis Center at Crandon Park.

Murray?s victim that day in 2009? Djokovic ? 6-2, 7-5.

?Andy is a top player for many years already,? Djokovic said after defeating Juan Monaco 6-0, 7-6 on Friday night in a semifinal. ?He deserves to be up there. He?s very consistent with his results. We all know his talent, his potential, and quality. He?s dangerous on any surface.

?He likes the conditions [at the Tennis Center at Crandon Park]. He likes to play in the heat, as well, and has a good serve. ?We grew up together. We know each other really well.?

The most intriguing factor for Murray on Sunday will be whether his odd route to the final will serve as an obstacle or advantage.

While Djokovic has cruised through five matches at the Sony Ericsson Open without dropping a set, Murray has played only three matches since the tournament began March 21. Two of his scheduled opponents withdrew from their matches before they started ? 26th-ranked Milos Raonic in the third round because of an ankle injury; and Nadal for Friday?s semifinal because of an ailing knee. Murray?s last match was Wednesday when he defeated No.?9 Janko Tipsarevic 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in a quarterfinal that lasted just over 2?1/2 hours.

?To be honest, it hasn?t really happened to me that often where even one guy has done that,? Murray said Friday. ?So yeah, to get two [walkovers] in one week is strange.?

He was asked if he?d have anxiety about not having had enough court time going into the final.

?I mean, I don?t know,? he replied. ?You don?t really know the answer to that. You never know how you?re going to play on the day. Obviously, you don?t play a match for three or four days, it?s different than if you played one or two days ago.

?But the positives are that you?re going to be fresh and physically feeling fine. So, who knows? Wait and see on the day.?

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