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Ham radio seems to be infested with rule-lovers. Why should it require certification? Usage of public sidewalks involves the same principle of shared resources,

• solarengineer 6y ago
  You are perhaps looking for a discord server, that anytime can join and talk in - but even those have rules, as do sidewalks - the law allows us to walk, but we mostly can’t set up a shop on the sidewalk or encroach on it. While there indeed are various rules with respect to Amateur radio, these are related to which bands one is licensed to use ( since other adjacent bands are for other uses), communication conventions, the absence of encrypted communications, and the prevention of using an amateur band for commercial purposes. Various countries may or may not mandate that one learn Morse code as well. Amateur radio is also a technical hobby, with the expectation that participants learn to set up antennae, link to their radios, set up electrical safeguards from lightning for their own safety, and understand certain electronics of they wish to create or modify their equipment. Based on their understanding and competence, they are licensed to do various things ( eg a beginner is not allowed to mess about such that they interfere with the International Space Station from sheer ignorance).
• OnlyOneCannolo 6y ago
  For the same reason that driving requires a license ... so you know not to drive on the sidewalk and not to park in the road.
• detaro 6y ago
  You walking on the sidewalk badly doesn't cause consequences for people also trying to walk on the sidewalk in a radius of many, potentially hundred, miles. It also makes legitimate use of ham bands a lot easier to distinguish from illegitimate use.