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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>You’re still missing the point.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>NWS wasn’t chartered simply to give
the public weather forecasts.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>As with many government services, their
PRIMARY purpose is to</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Support other government agencies.
Whether or not our income tax</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Funds their budget, NWS primarily lives to
serve agencies like the FAA</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>And our military. I feel much better
about whatever funds we spend</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Going to ensure that the commercial
airline pilot in the cockpit of my</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Flight has an accurate forecast, that the
Space Shuttle probably won’t</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Crash on my house during reentry –
does it really matter that much if</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Johnny’s soccer match gets rained
out? I think one of the biggest reasons</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>For NWS was to help reduce the tremendous
loss of life and revenue to</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Commercial shipping – thus, the NOAA
Weather Broadcasts. The other</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Stuff is just icing on the cake, and I
thank them for taking the time to do it.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Be glad you live in a country that has a
NWS – a lot of places don’t, or</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>At least can’t afford more than a
handful of forecasters and little equipment.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>I do agree with your point of commercial
interests who derive the majority of</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Their data from agencies like NWS for free
then package it and sell it to the</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Public. I think it’s wrong, at
least unethical, but obviously not illegal at this time.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>They should pay for the data. But
that’s just my opinion. Even if you file a FOIA</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>(Freedom of Information Act) request, you
have to pay a fee for some poor schmuck</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>to research the data, make copies and
compile it. But as a general rule fees that</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>the government collects don’t stay
with their own agency, thus they incur all the</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>work with no reimbursement.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>And when is this going to happen –
this having to pay for NWS forecasts?</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Are they getting their own Pay-Per-View
channel? That’s one of the only</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Good things about our economy – you can
simply decide NOT to do business</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>With folks that resell government data.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 color=black
face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma;color:windowtext'>-----Original
Message-----<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>From:</span></b>
aprssig-bounces@lists.tapr.org [mailto:aprssig-bounces@lists.tapr.org] <b><span
style='font-weight:bold'>On Behalf Of </span></b>KA8VIT<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Sent:</span></b> </span></font><font size=2 color=black face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma;
color:windowtext'>Monday, January 08, 2007</span></font><font size=2
color=black face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma;
color:windowtext'> </span></font><font size=2 color=black face=Tahoma><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma;color:windowtext'>12:26</span></font><font
size=2 color=black face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma;
color:windowtext'><br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>To:</span></b> TAPR APRS Mailing List<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Subject:</span></b> Re: [aprssig] I
Apologize!</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 color=black
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 color=black
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>I agree.. people expect
too much from the Government.<br>
<br>
Funny though.. we pay for weather data via taxes.. and now we are<br>
going to have to buy it from a private concern, that the government<br>
GAVE it to for free!<br>
<br>
Regardless of what the government uses our income tax money for,<br>
we still pay more than one-quarter of our income for it.<br>
<br>
<br>
</span></font></p>
<pre style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 color=black face="Courier New"><span
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