To the local Emergency Manager the idea of being able to communicate outside of the county lines is almost a moot point. With the flow of traffic through ICS and NIMS they have to pass their information from City -> County -> Multi Agency Coordination -> State -> Regional Levels -> Federal. It will look cool to talk to some guy in Vermont from Texas but, not practical. To pass traffic across town or send a message and have it waiting in their E-Mail Inbox will be special.
I have been saying it for the past several years. Field Day is no longer about Emergency Communications. The ARRL has made it into a contest. I understand that points are what bring some people out, but personally I see the worst of Amateur Radio in Field Day. To many people have the mind set of get points, points are good, need points... If people would start using proper protocols, standard phonetics, proper station identification, and pass NTS messages we could get a lot further. The only good thing I have seen come out of Field Day in the last couple years is the setup and testing of our equipment, sharing of ideas with fellow hams, and the little bit that we get to show new hams. Personally, I think Field Day has lost its purpose. [ED - Talking about demonstrating or making contacts using DSTAR during Field Day is on topic, discussions of the relevance of Field Day or its rules is for another forum.]
