The Little We Have (mid 1960s)

[Music] American life of two centuries ago must have been a simple thing an individual could provide his own food his own clothes his transportation and of course he had to provide his own [Music] Protection One could do that in those days possibly even had to do it just to survive from day to day but even then there was a change in the air possibly it began here with the automobile [Music] whatever the reason the way we live today is very much different from what it was a century ago there are for example 4 million of us in Philadelphia 5 million in and around Detroit 7 million in Chicago 11 million in Los Angeles 14 million in New York and of course there are problems some of them the ordinary day-to-day kind anyone would expect from a gathering of so many people but some are specialized the kind we hear little about until it's almost too late one of these special problems is here in the vast seemingly unlimited area we call the sky for in addition to the other uses we make of it this is our communicating space and it's a busy Place indeed so busy in fact that its use is under the complete control of our federal government the immediate problem isn't so much the space itself as it is the distribution of that space television and radio for example occupy this much of it another large user is the federal government they occupy this much of the total although there is no indication as to how and for what the space is used then there are the radio amors the users of radio in aircraft in ships and in a variety of other applications these users all of them occupy this much of the total space and finally there are the users of two-way mobile radio for Public Safety welfare and business who occupy this much of the total the result is this I'm so glad to be here tonight I'm so glad to be Los Angeles approach control this assass 0281 echo1 9.3 over field the car 944 1050 944 go [Music] ahead okay now not take it away from lack of Interest lack of understanding or perhaps from lack of foresight this distribution of our communicating space does not work to the best advantage of all our people especially here in the area of the mobile radio users they're part of the total usable space amounts to just under 5% an almost negligible amount considering the essential jobs they're called on to perform who are they what do they do or what is their problem well it is this inside that tiny 5% area 24 hours a day every day of the year are these communications car 1710 a battery victim at 3138 North California Avenue in a restaurant complainer name is Flagner car 1711 go in on 3138 North California and assist 1710 1108 suspicious Auto in the alley at 13766 lighten Avenue we have a line down in the rear of 9138 central we got six calls on other service phones already get to it quickly please District Two to engine five come in on Gerard Street behind the fire heavy winds are blowing ERS into that area use your booster to chase Sparks service 22 Central manufacturing had a fire last night the office manager says most of the machines are out can you get over there this afternoon for a major repair job Lift Truck Four get some more spring curls over to line 8 please car 14 we got a water main breake at golf and Frasier this takes precedence over anything you have on your schedule repair 27 there's a hotline on the ground at 1717 Central police are protecting it now but get over there quick Springfield the car 944 1050 944 go ahead Junction Road 66 Highway 10 Radio Entertainment Television entertainment federal government and all have been well provided for in the distribution of communicating space but in doing that the communications of Mobile Radio users those each of us depends on for safety for the growth of our economy and for the day-to-day essential Services we need those users must try to communicate in less than 5% of the total space available to all and yet our metropolitan areas continue to grow and this in turn places an ever increasing load on the communicating space we've allocated to these essential users indications of the problem we're creating are everywhere we put more people people on a given piece of land than ever before we develop business and industry bringing even more people to Metropolitan districts all over the nation we do provide the latest most modern facilities for servicing and protecting our metropolitan areas we do give them equipment including Communications equipment but the space they need for the transmission of these communications remains less than 5% of the total what it all means of course is that today all we need is an emergency to create a problem almost Beyond solution all cars alert weather bureau expects hurricane conditions Inland within 24 26 [Music] hours y the hurricane signals up we' got one [Music] coming race to number four what bu reports WIS up around 80 kns going to be a all necessary already bad out here base to number six is here out the to number one when the reports ey hurricane directly overhead last 30 minutes to the hook of that down station toing on Corner live [Music] the standby Station 2 named a diesel plant we've got an intermittent overload on the main West Lake C we St and Fe down on live street is po the power line number one standby trying to get the hook that base get that tree out of here dies repeat the location we can get a crew on that tree one on here get off the air so we can get that L crew couple quick just we can't get to the line situ the winds are [Music] [Music] fading shall we measure the value of adequate Communications in hundreds of thousands of dollars or perhaps in millions and how often is disaster repeated somewhere in the land daily perhaps [Music] hourly station 6813 Lo the intersection at 12 to 119 report shooting in the crowd at 9th and Firestone I don't think you can get in there engine 22 on the scene laying a line This is a working fire on the scene proceeding with rescue operations report children on the second floor room is alerted okay District 3 engine 5 dispatched from headquarters didn't get that last transmission off the message District 2 you got any more ambulances car1 we didn't hear your last message repeat please we didn't hear your last message because every tiny part of the radio space here was filled with Communications all of them essential in every sense of the word but because the communicators were limited to 5% of the total available space many of their messages weren't even heard but then these are disasters not necessarily representative of daily problems especially the kind that might touch you so picture yourself just riding through your city or your town and then imagine the thousands of messages in the air every moment all designed to make life more comfortable for you all designed to protect you and those nearest to you listen District 2 one alarm Fire Res 616 Porter engines 22 and 27 and Ladder 16 responding from quarter District Two rolling from fif and Main engine 22 on the scene L Line This is a going Fire District Two on the scene give me a second alarm advis response attention all Harbor districts a vessel SS Washington and Delaware is bed off the shore at the p 25 Southside contains cargo volatile of toxic solvent control to all stations and units expect freezing cold and rain tonight all vehicles are on standby as of now in anticipation of snow and ice 1124 a domestic disturbance on second floor 3228 West floro complainant's name is mcke 825 to control report of gas in building at 111 Sandra explosion 770 to station 4 where clear to restore power to Circuit 14 768 Station 2 verify the inspector for Ridgeway Paving job something wrong contractor says on the plan the fire hydrant shows up right in the middle of the driveway station 9 to 865 complaint of Miss garbage pick up unsanitary conditions 956 hubber Mrs Jones 751 station 4 notify the police department that this is the major accident at 1400 Edge field car hit a pole ambulances already picked up going to St Joseph I got the hot wires cleared we'll stand by until police arrive 961 to station 4 I got the horse TI up at stadium in Jones s the horse trailer unable to locate owner station 4 to 770 Northbound red light out at F Jones 833 to station 7 a heavy truck knocked over the street sign and fire alarm box 14th and K Vis the sign shop and light and Signal just remember that as you hear these messages some of them deadly serious some almost humorous they consist L represent the difference between coming home to this or to [Music] this but let it not be due to a simple lack of communicating space or it could after all happen to you the question is of course what's being done about the communicating space problem and who is trying to correct it and what can you do to help well something is being done and the people who are doing it need your [Music] help it shall be the purpose of this Association to for the development and progress of the art of police and Public Safety Communications to the end that the safety of human lives the protection of property and the general welfare of All Peoples may be benefited to the highest degree by 1935 most police Communications officers began to recognize the importance of two-way radio and had formed an association which today is APCO the associated Public Safety Communications officers whose purpose is far more important than it was in 1935 at that time two-way radio as a communicating device was only beginning to be recognized today its use is almost Universal and with that use comes the pressing need for more space to communicate in it has in fact come to this well our whole communication system in New York is going to depend on whether or not we have the airspace to communicate in we need more now the police department of Chicago gets a call for some kind of help once every 90 seconds we've got to have more radio channels the brush fires here in LA hit us pretty hard every year we use all our space but it just isn't enough I know people are moving in here faster than just about any place in the country so what'll happen in the future I just can't imagine unless of course we get more space when we need it like right now good we got our own police protection now out here in the suburbs but every time another Community starts doing that we have to share our radio channels with them look at all the new homes if the place keeps growing like this what will our situation be say 5 years from [Music] now and in what metropolitan area isn't this to St Louis Milwaukee Houston Minneapolis Kansas City Pittsburgh and in what suburb isn't the same thing true Strawberry Hill Park Ridge Shaunie Mission Elm Grove Forest Park the problem is everywhere in every area of this nation where people gather to work to play to live perhaps not today but tomorrow or the next day or perhaps the next all right what's being done about [Music] it the associated Public Safety Communications officers recognize the need for a change in this Arrangement a change in the distribution of the radio airspace that's available now and they're working toward that goal but the problem is a big one big enough to need your help these are the rules and regulations of the Federal Communications Commission the agency which among other things is in charge of the distribution and control of communications space throughout the nation it is here in these regulations that changes must be made to provide not only for today's needs but for tomorrow's as well common carrier frequency also this is Sher land mobile this big black is TV's govern that will take action on the part of all citizens for changes in these rules and regulations are not likely to be made just because appco recognizes the need instead the problem must be made clear to those who can bring such changes about and that's where you can help the redistribution of communicating space is going to take legal changes revisions in federal laws congressional action and that of course means support for those changes support on the part of Mayors Town councilmen state representatives Governors everyone associated with those who can help bring about a proper change in the law and a substantial increase in that five % area we've been talking about Mayors councilmen representatives are people you must inform so that they may know just how serious this problem has become and how much more serious it grows with every passing day station 6 813 the intersection of 12 119 report shooting in the crowd at n and Firestone to attempt to jam all all these communications in such a tiny part of the available radio space is virtually a national disaster but it is still one that can be avoided provided of course you will lend your support app and everyone associated with this group urgently asks you to do just that we didn't hear your last message repeat please w