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Friday, December 08, 2006

Signal Corps Request

Comrades-in-Arms:

Here is an e-mail I received from one of our fellow Signal Corps veterans.

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The following is an excerpt of an article I'm writing. First, I'd like each and every one of you to think about this and get back to me with what you know or do not know - either in corroboration or denial of the following. And in as many statistics - i.e., deaths by whatever causes - you personally are aware of, over the years, of the people of the Fixed Communications Stations personnel of all MOSs.
But what were the effects of that high power radiation on the people who worked in the Transmitting Stations?
I have kept in touch, over the years, with many of them, especially with the advent of the Internet. We just lost another one about two months ago. Yep, to cancer. I’m 70 years old. The majority of the people with whom I worked over the years are in the age range of 60 to 80+. And the majority of those in the Transmitter field who have passed on died of cancer of one type or another.
Does anyone attribute this to long-term debilitation due to exposure over many years to the effects of high power RF radiation? Probably not, I’m likely the only one keeping track of this. But I can and do say with certainty that the majority of the Transmitter people who have died have died of cancer of one form or another; and that more of the Transmitter people, as a percentage of the whole, have died than have the people who worked in the other Communications sections.

All input is solicited, pro and con. What I'm interested in is MOS, Age, Date and cause of death, as far as is known.

Please pass this along to all the old crews you are still in touch with, also, and ask them to reply to me directly.

Thanks, Loring "Windy" Windblad


windy@uniserve.com

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He is NOT alone, for I have heard this subject discussed on the late night talk radio program, "COAST TO COAST AM".

Please consider sharing this information with other veterans of the United States Army Signal Corps.

Likewise, the problem likely exists among signal veterans from the other services.

We might also wish to notify local amateur radio clubs and veterans organizations.

I'm posting this at my personal blog, "OUR ETERNAL STRUGGLE", and also at Internet discussion groups I participate in.

Thank you.

John Robert "SAIGON" Mallernee, KB3KWS
Official Bard of Clan Henderson
Armed Forces Retirement Home
Washington, D.C. 20011-8400

NOTE: "My unpopular and controversial personal opinions are independent of my Scottish clan."

1 comment:

Oscar Yeager said...

I have had some interest in this topic as well.

I used to dabble in amateur radio, and used high-powered amplifiers in an unheated shed that I made into a makeshift radio shack.

It got cold in there sometimes, and I would often sit on the amp to keep warm, since it threw off a considerable amount of heat.

But now you wonder if absorbing all of that RF had any effects?

Well, at least with me the transmitter was only going when the mike was keyed, unlike people that work with constant-transmision equipment.