Jim’s n7js, Tuner is Down, Down, Down

This note appeared today on Jim’s Online Tuner Site:

ON APPROX. MARCH 23RD, THE ICOM R-75 UNEXPECTEDLY LOST ALL SENSITIVITY IN THE SHORTWAVE SECTION. IT IS ASSUMED AFTER MANY TESTS, THAT THIS IS A FAILURE IN THE FRONT END OF THE RECEIVER - MOST LIKELY CAUSED BY INTENSE STATIC ELECTRICITY IN THE AREA. THE RADIO IS BEING SHIPPED TO SULTAN ELECTRONICS AND THEREFORE WILL BE OFF-LINE UNTIL REPAIRS CAN BE COMPLETED. MORE THAN EVER, WE APPRECIATE YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS FOR THE CONTINUATION OF THIS SYSTEM.

We would ALL appreciate it if someone would contribute a SECOND Icom R-75 to Jim Southwick n7js! It probably would not even have to be new...

Come on all you tightwads! I KNOW there are a few of you out there that could afford to do this; if I had an extra buck to my name, I would have sent him TWO of these by now (and purchased one for me and hired a local ham to ‘hide’ an antenna on my roof, sigh) by now.

And if you are unable to do that, at least send the guy some CASH, so he will have the resources to operate a quality service, including back up hardware and systems! Go use that PayPal Button at: http://www.jimandleah.com/

Notice, Jim did not say when he expected to have his Tuner back up, something I feel that does not bode well for any of us. Guess I am going to get caught up on my reading.

Radio Links by Mike Arsanis n6hbj

You may have noticed a new banner at the bottom of the main page of www.HamFanz.com . It is to RADIO LINKS, a great source of all types of radio information, including the ‘old time’ radio shows I love so much.

If you want to learn something new, find some Ham pages you have not yet visited, or just spend some time with ALL aspects of the radio hobby, then by all means visit (and bookmark!) http://www.n6hbj.com/radiolinks.html

Mike tells me that this page has been up for a couple of years. Sure wish I would have known about it! (Mike, if you belong to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HamFanz/ you should ‘promote’ your page once in awhile!)

My complaints are that Radio Links is so closely ‘linked’ to Mike’s other sites (Judo and other stuff I personally have no interest in), that it’s ‘navigation’, look, and feel could be much better. Why his own name and call are not even on this page!

Yep, this page could definitely use some ‘spiffing’ up like a nice banner, his name and call, a hit counter, updated wallpaper, and a visitors book; the kinda stuff that he could get free. The ‘lack’ of the usual accouterments doesn’t detract from the content at all.

On the ‘up’ side, many common (and the esoteric) sites that you could possibly want to check out can be reached from Radio Links. Plus, every link I tried, and it was a lot, worked; no broken links here! Kudos Mike on http://www.n6hbj.com/radiolinks.html !

Art Bell’s w6obb, Pizza Punch

Last Saturday night on Coast-to-Coast AM, the very first thing artie did was to announce his new business venture, Art Bell’s Pizza Punch. You can find this stuff for sale at: http://www.artbellspizzapunch.com/index.php (which by the way keeps ‘crashing’).

The new site for this venture looks like someone that has never built a web site before put it together with a WSIWYG editor. It definitely has an ‘amateurish’ feel and look. The colors are poor and ‘dated’. The clip art of a microphone and a UFO certainly perpetuates the Art Bell myths artie liked to perpetuate, and feeds (no pun intended!) the Art Bell crowd.

Apparently, Art Bell feels that he needs to have an additional income, if so; it is too bad he picked this particular business venture to back, partner with, or whatever. (I wonder if Pizza Punch is going to be another Bonnie Crystal kq6xa, venture; one of his so-called friends talking him into investing oodles into some barely viable enterprise.)

You can walk into any good Pizza or Sub Sandwich Shop and find a shaker bottle of seasoned Olive Oil to use on your food, not exactly a new or different idea! Perhaps Art Bell’s recent online sales venture just goes to prove how isolated from reality he is.

Anyone with half a brain would realize that they could buy their own, brand name, Olive Oil at any market and add their own seasonings for about $7.99 for a 19-ounce bottle, or about .47 cents per ounce. Art Bell’s Pizza Punch on the other hand, goes for $4.59 (+ shipping?) per 5-ounce bottle, or about .92 cents per ounce. How stupid does he think his fans are?

Art Bell’s Pizza Punch is actually produced by The Santa Barbara Olive Company http://www.sbolive.com/ (And this web site looks professionally made.) which seems to be owned by Craig Makela and his wife, Cindy. Why a California Company like this would want to associate with Art Bell, is beyond me, must be either a friend or fan of Mr. Bell, or in deep financial trouble and grasping at straws.

Then there are the Art Bell’s Pizza Punch accessories! Overpriced caps, T’s, and aprons! Perhaps he has the Filipino contingent of his ‘extended family’ making these in a back room type environment. Yep, bet that is it, artie needed something to keep the Ruiz women’s hands busy!

The Pizza Punch site is really all about Art Bell. He plays mercilessly on the death of his late wife Ramona throughout the site as a way to sell the product! Including stating that “We will be contributing a percentage of every sale to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, in Ramona’s name”; but at no place does it state exactly HOW MUCH will be donated, meaning that he could get away with ‘donating’ 1/10 of a penny for each sale. And his concern for the Asthma and Allergy Foundation is such that there is not even a link to their site!

Does the man have no morals or class whatsoever?

Want to hear what some of the 3.840 Hams think? Here is a (poor quality – sorry!) clip! http://www.hamfanz.com/GrudgeFiles/BellsPizzaPunch.html

Cherry, Cherry Pie (or Mrs. Ben Gardner kd7bcw)

Ben Gardner kd7bcw, of Little People fame, is going to be married in about 8 to 10 weeks. (The marriage was supposed to occur sooner, but there is some hang-up.) He is going to go to the Philippines to marry Cherry, the cousin of Airyn Ruiz Bell w6obb, and Sharon Ruiz Richardson kd5fjx. Her picture was briefly up on www.hamcams.com, but alas, I did not save it. (But remember, you READ it here, in The HamFanz Grudge Report first!)

The newest newlyweds are planning to live happily ever after with Ben’s Mom! Of course, Ben is trying to keep this all hush-hush, is it because he is embarrassed, or ashamed of what he is doing? Is this something a ‘morally superior’ Ham would do?

Obviously, artie introduced Ben, via computer, to his wife’s cousin, just as Carl Richardson introduced artie to Airyn, his wife’s sister. All of this sharing of the Ruiz women, in a technical sense makes all these men pimps and/or Johns. How many more women does that Philippine family have for sale? Though I do not blame the Ruiz women involved, they are smart enough to recognize when they have hit the jackpot.

Supposedly, Art Bell is paying for Ben’s trip just as he paid for Carl Richardson’s trip. There is no doubt that Ben could not afford it. When I checked the airlines, the going round trip fare was anywhere between $987 and $2000 to Manila. Will artie also pay for hotels, meals, the ceremony, etc? Who is artie going to supply with a Ruiz women next, perhaps Jim Watkins ki6gu? Jeeze, will artie pay to import a Philippine Ruiz boy toy (houseboy of course!) for moi?

Ben makes no bones about being on disability, though no one seems to know why. In fact, he lives with his mother, in his mom’s house. He claims that he lives with his mom ‘to help her out’. (Yea, right, and if you will buy that, I have a bridge for you.) I would like to know how much did he ‘help her out’ before he became disabled. (Yet he continually puts me down for trying to make a legitimate buck, and I do not have a ‘mom’ who owns a home, to live with, or ‘share’ expenses with!).

The scuttlebutt is that Ben’s mom is thrilled with the upcoming nuptials. I do not doubt this. There will now be another woman in the house to do Ben’s laundry, shopping, and other stuff, besides mom, who has been doing it for years now.

These three hams seem to believe whole-heartedly on ‘keeping it in the family’ as well as in ‘the old boys (fools?) club’. This makes the fourth Ham to marry an asian in the past year (Dan Van Hoy vr2hf, married an asian woman named Zane just last week-but her origins are as yet unknown, as is the status of how they met.)

Does anyone else find all this completely disturbing and disgusting?

How in the Hell did Billy w6wbj, do it?

Tonight would seem that many radio station streams of Coast-to-Coast AM are down including but surely not limited to: kfi, kfyi, kogo, and as reported on messenger, no internet steaming on east coast either.

It has to be a conspiracy, there is no other explanation! I am just as sure that artie w6obb will blame Billy! My question still is, how the hell did Billy manage it?

Is Trish Ray k4ze at it again!

Is still another ‘flip flop’ in the making? Trish has been heard briefly a couple of times lately, talking with some of the Little People on 3.765.

Then her site www.livehamcams.com is down; it has been for the last few days. Her personal site www.patriciaray.net is up and running, though there does not seem to be any new content, and the link to www.livehamcams.com from her main site, does not work, you just get a 404.

Her Blog ‘Ham Radio News And Views, Thoughts And Opinions’ at http://patriciaray.blogspot.com/ has not had a new entry since February 7th 2007, and that was a rewrite of a prior entry. (Come on you HAM bloggers, you gotta keep up!)

Has Trish gone on another vacation to Jerusalem without telling us, has she given up on Amateur Radio, is she suffering a depression (seems to be a lot of that going around), or are ‘other’ changes in the works?

Given the standing, Trish has (used to have?) among HAMS, I am somewhat surprised that no one has made note of any of this.

Trish, do tell us what's up!

3.740 Name That Dog!

On the evening of March 5, 2007 the Short Attention Span Network (3.740) had a ‘naming’ ceremony for Tony’s ae6qv, new Chocolate Lab.

Tony had been dogless since his Golden Lab, a pal of many years, had passed (we have all been there, yes?). Recently, Tony sought to fill the void with a new personality, and found this wonderful Chocolate Lab at a local shelter and adopted her.

Being a ‘giving’ person, Tony shared the experience with all who was on or listened to the Short Attention Span Network. Including letting them help pick out a name!

So, of course this meant that there was a ‘naming contest’ that lasted over a period of nights. Many name suggestions were rendered on air, via email, and through a phone patch. Tony was the absolute chooser of the ‘winning’ name.

The date and time of the ‘naming ceremony’ was announced, and the production went on the air (thankfully, without Steve’s presence!).

The entire event was a blast! Those Hams really know how to have fun! And how to put on a ‘class-act broadcast’.

Here is the link to the recordings of that night’s events (and a record of how I became the ‘Godmother’ of a Chocolate Lab!). Good luck to Tony and his new pal. And a good scratch behind the ears too...

http://www.hamfanz.com/GrudgeFiles/cookie.html

Art Bell w60bb, More on the ‘Acceptance Speech’

I have now had the chance to listen to this several times. And I have some further observations.

The entire event, introduction, presentation, and ‘acceptance speech’ lasted about 13 minutes and 45 seconds. Of that time, Noory’s intro and the actual ‘presentation’ took up 6 minutes and 45 seconds. Artie spoke less than 6.7 minutes. Obviously, this entire thing was ‘crafted’ to give Noory and Bell equal time!

The ‘Little People’ remark; I cannot believe that he actually thanked ‘Bonnie’ (I assume, artie’s good buddy kq6xa.) for that ‘joke’ that fell like a rock in a lake. I cannot believe he took her suggestion to use it. Obviously, artie has lost his ‘subtle’ humor talents, if he ever had them! Are the 'Little People' supposed to be overjoyed with the fact that artie linked them to grays, the so called 'aliens that arrive in UFO's to abduct people and mutilate animals? Somehow, unless they are 'very little of mind', I think not.

The ‘Ramona, love of my life’ remark; this may very well be true. When is he going to stop beating us all over the head with his so-called grief? As far as I am concerned, any sympathy he deserved following Ramona’s untimely and mysterious death, came to an abrupt stop the minute he contacted Airyn Ruiz on the internet.

The ‘new woman’ remark; at the opening of his ‘speech’ his specific comment was, “And I found this wonderful new woman, seated right down there.” (New Woman? New Woman!!! ) What an insensitive, uncaring, and sexist comment. If he had a new transceiver, he would sure as hell mention the name! It would seem artie can trade-out women like some do cars or houses. He does not even sense that there is something basic, deep down, wrong with this. He did, at the end of his ‘speech’ mention that he was going to take his NEW WIFE (ditto all the above comments), Airyn (pronouncing it as HE prefers to pronounce it), and the expected child, Asia, to Disneyland.

At this point, I do not even know how Art Bell w6obb, can stand himself...

Addendum:

Within hours of posting the above, I saw a television ad for Disneyland promoting a ‘two for one’ deal. Tell me artie is not THAT cheap! This advertisement also made note of the fact that the park had opened in 1955.

My mind then made the leap to wondering how many times artie had gone to Disneyland between 1955, when the park opened and artie was 10 yrs old, till artie turned 39 in 1984 when Airyn Ruiz was born. Yuk! What a sick old man...

Art Bell’s w6obb, Lifetime Achievement Award

You would think that a 61-year-old man that has worked in broadcasting most of his adult life, and had been involved in Amateur Radio since his early teens, could come up with a better acceptance speech than what he did! This man of words had no new ones yesterday! In fact, I do not believe he gave this ‘acceptance speech’ ANY thought at all. He sounded old, shook up, uncomfortable, and unprepared.

He briefly related the same old story we have all heard for months and years; including the loss of ‘the love of his life, Ramona’, and the ‘new woman’ in his life (don’t you think Airyn Ruiz Bell is tired of hearing that?). He told the gathered big wigs about ‘Asia’; how and where she was conceived, and when her birth was expected. As expected, he did not mention his adult son nor his mother (people he SHOULD have thanked!).

There were two surprises. The first being that right out of the gate, artie mentioned ‘The Little People’ (Wow, he really IS trying to gather in his ‘Cult of the Loop’ loopies around him!), and then tried to cover up what he meant by the term. The second surprise was that he was taking Airyn to Disneyland right after the luncheon - cannot think of a more fitting place for either of them, just where they both belong, with Mickey Mouse, Goofy, and Tinkerbell!

I did make a recording of Art Bell’s Lifetime Achievement Acceptance Speech (from what organization???). Since it is material from Coast-to-Coast AM, therefore proprietary stuff, I can not post it. I also have copies of the ‘award ceremony’ pictures that were posted on the Coast-to-Coast AM web site, but it is a ditto on the proprietary thingeee there also. (Artie is just waiting for some reason to sick his lawyers on moi!).

If perchance, you missed both the ‘speech’ and the pictures, or even the 'award lunch' itself, I don't think you have not missed anything of interest or import...

(btw, the pic above is a 'spoof' from July 2004 www.hamcams.com)

Steve Wingate w6txh, With Friends Like This...

It would seem that unlike a rolling stone, Steve Wingate w6txh is gathering an ever-wider group of outright enemies. Apparently, these are folks he has ‘jammed’ one time too many, or perhaps just people that cannot stand drunks.

At any rate, early last night on 3.740 a HAM was emailing pictures of Steve’s House in Eureka California to all that wanted them. He did this so any who were interested could easily find the place, the antenna wires, etc.

Not that this has not been done before, a couple of years ago on 3.840, HAMS not only gave out Steve’s address, but his private telephone number. No doubt, Steve suffered much harassment because of this. (He now, wisely, lists a P.O. Box on QRZ.) Still he did not see the light.

A vigilante approach to Steve Wingate will not work; it has not worked in the past and will not work now. When people take the law into their own hands, the least that will happen is that the vigilante will end up with dirty hands, not to mention court dates!

I can understand the frustration behind such actions. People have been, impotently, filing multiple complaints with the FCC for years. They have tried reasoning with Steve, ignoring him, befriending him, cajoling him, then moving to other frequencies, ad nauseam. However, the bottom line is that two wrongs never makes a ‘right’,


You can find some short clips of this at: http://www.hamfanz.com/GrudgeFiles/Wingate.html

Jim Southwick n7js, Scott Baris n6edv, Green Eggs & HAMS

Early on Friday evening, March 2, on 3.850 (because of contesting on 3.840), two Misfit HAMS, both married and without children as far as I know, ended up talking to a group of youngsters in Wyoming who were on a campout.

The kids took turns on the radio, and were polite if too soft spoken. Some seemed bored with the whole thing, but others seemed awed. Future HAMS all...

Scott Baris soon got ‘Cindy’ his wife on the radio to talk to the kidlets, and he wandered away to do something else. By the way, Cindy has a nice a voice and attitude, to match that body we have all seen so many pictures of over the years. Jim Southwick stuck it out for the duration.

Though the Wyoming Station was at times difficult, if not impossible to hear, the resulting QSO was fun, uplifting, and entertaining.

You can find an unedited recording at: http://www.hamfanz.com/GrudgeFiles/scouts.html

Art Bell w6obb, Dirty Old Man

Last night on Coast-to-Coast AM, Art Bell announced that Airyn Ruiz Bell had just celebrated her 23rd Birthday. He posted this picture of a very pregnant Airyn Bell celebrating her 23rd Birthday at a ‘surprise’ party hosted by ‘Kathy’ (of KNYE management?), and other Pahrump residents (probably Paul Bowman w7mag, and his family, feeling sorry for Airyn being so far from home).

I am no mathematician, but this mean that Airyn had just turned 22 years old when Art married her, last summer. And that Airyn was just 21 when he started corresponding with her; just one year less than 40 years his junior!

This would probably make her younger than his only child (to date), his adult son, Art Bell Jr. Wonder what he thinks of this marriage created by cold hard cash and consummated in lust? After all, Art Bell Jr. who has apparently never gotten much of anything (including parenting) from his father stands to lose any future financial security that was rightfully due him.

Bell has lied repeatedly, on Coast-to-Coast AM, and via emails, forum messages, and apparently, phone calls to his ‘friends’ (What? He still has some?), telling all that Airyn was 25 when he ‘met’ her!

Art Bell is a liar and experienced manipulator. More proof of this is that during last night’s show, he was giving kudos to the Fantastic Forum! How many times over the years have we heard him put down, make fun of, negate the Fantastic Forum and other like groups and those that participate in them, on Short Wave Radio? (Guess this is the only place left for him to turn to for adulation.)

He is a despicable old (and not aging gracefully!) leach. A man who is trying to relive younger days through this inexperienced (in so many ways!) young woman, who had no choice but to go where the money was, both for herself and her relatives. Art Bell is a dirty old man, and has effectively proved that money corrupts, or at least that it corrupted him, and perhaps Airyn too.

Steve Wingate k6txh, and the FCC

For a number of YEARS, now, people have been complaining to the FCC about the ‘under the influence’ on air behavior of Steve Wingate.

For a while it even seemed that the FCC would take some kind of action, please see the FCC letter to Steve Wingate (half way down the page) at: http://www.arrl.org/news/enforcement_logs/2006/0301.html.

Note that the letter, dated 2.22.2006, gave Steve some specific steps to follow if he wished to avoid enforcement action against his license.

It is by now obvious that Steve Wingate did not comply with ANY of the requirements set forth in the letter. In fact, Steve has figuratively thumbed his nose at FCC officials (and the rest of us). Therefore, why is the FCC not taking action?

The question is, why should the public, who would not have to tolerate this type of behavior in the work place, school, church, civic groups, broadcast radio, television, movies, etc. be unwillingly exposed to it on short wave radio?

Steve Wingate would appear to be an out of control substance abuser. In the past year, Steve has totally ignored the terms suggested in the FCC letter, so that he could retain his license. It also would appear that he has not taken his problems seriously enough to do anything about them; I do not believe he has been in any type of ‘treatment program’.

This is sad, sad for him, sad for all who have to deal with him on air, whether they want to or not and, ditto for short wave listeners.

I cannot help but wonder if Steve would like his parents to hear all this crap, to see what their son has become? (Steve, if you do not want to see [hear] it on the front page of the morning paper, do not do it!)

Here are a few random audio clips of how far Steve has come in the past year: http://www.hamfanz.com/GrudgeFiles/SteveO.html