A ham radio caucus?
Last night I had the privilege of participating in the Iowa Caucus. As the vast majority of the readers of this blog are outside of Iowa (see my website country statistics), I’m sure many won’t know what a Caucus is or its relationship to ham radio (the primary focus of this blog).
My experience in the caucus was this…
- 6:15 pm Arrive at the caucus site
In my case, the Madrid High School, here in central Iowa. - 6:30 pm Register and voter validation
- 7:00 pm Caucus meeting begins.
About 300 people from 6 precincts were in a room. The meeting was called to order and a list of candidate names were read. As each candidates name was read, folks had to stand and speak out as to why this person should become the next President of the United States. - 7:30 pm "Voting".
Here is where the two parties differ. The Republicans submit a vote (typically on a piece of paper) for their candidate. The Democrats use a more complicated process of selecting the most viable candidates. As my precinct had over 130 in the room, it took a half hour or so for the voting process. - 7:45 pm Select local representatives (delegates)
Folks are elected from within the precinct to provide representation at the county level. At the county convention (in a month or two), state delegates are then chosen. At the state convention national delegates are chosen to represent Iowa at the national party convention. - 8:00 pm Refine the platform
For the next hour or two, the caucus-goers determine at the precinct level whether their party’s platform needed any refinement. Discussions ranged from eliminating the national income tax to local control over corporate-run farming operations for odor control. - Close the caucus
Through the process you get the perspective of your neighbors on issues that matter most on everything from selecting a leader to hot-button topics. At my 
table, I joked that I was looking for the pro "ham radio tower" candidate and my neighbors (who have yet to voice any concern over the tower) got a chuckle.
The caucus is not perfect. It’s not completely democratic. But it seems to be effective and actually people study the issues and actively participate.
How does this relate to ham radio???
- Ham radio operators need to be at least somewhat aware of what’s going on in local, regional, and national politics. This is important for protecting our spectrum, our right to install antennas/towers, maintaining public goodwill, etc.
- Any chance to get out and meet with groups of your neighbors to discuss common concerns can be a great way to "build bridges"… knowing that your neighbor is concerned about taxes, too much government control or jobs may be just the icebreaker you need when it comes time to discuss your antenna plans down the road.
- It might be time for the ARRL to consider a new process of electing leadership. Perhaps a caucus/forum style process would encourage more participation in selecting future leaders and setting policy.
Just a thought…
…-.-