Thats a real shame... I've rightfully ignored all of the people who encouraged youth to join the hobby then shunned them for talking about topics that they were

Thats a real shame... I've rightfully ignored all of the people who encouraged youth to join the hobby then shunned them for talking about topics that they weren't interested in or experimenting with different modes that they don't like... Ham radio has plenty of fantastic people in it, and like any other large group that tends to have its share of gatekeepers who believe we all should be able to copy morse at 45wpm in our heads. Shoot for the general again and use one of the online testing groups, simple and no judgement.