shortwave summary, sep 2006 (part 5)

september 2006 reception reports: (part 1) (part 2) (part 3) (part 4) (part 5)

All of these receptions happened with my Eton E5 receiver and DE31 active loop antenna.

Received stations:
* Radio Havana Cuba
* Deutsche Welle
* Radio Canada International
* Radio Russia
* Radio Australia
* BBC
* WHRA

* 23 Sep 2006, 0500 UTC, 6000 khz (Radio Havana Cuba): The Bush administration got cooperation from Congress for the "abuse of prisoners". The President has the right to enforce the Geneva convention. USA's interrogation program will go forward. Congress is closer to an agreement with the Bush administration regarding wiretapping when related to potential attacks. There was a story about funds seized from banks in Jordan that I didn't record in detail. The USA threatened to bomb Pakistan "back to the stone age" if they did not join the war on terror, according to Pervez Musharraf. Pakistan sided with the USA out of national interest. The Pakistani president was recently with Bush at the White House. Pakistan reportedly suppressed domestic support for attacks against the USA.

Peru's former intelligence chief was convicted in an arms scandal and faces 20 more years in prison. He still faces other charges, including involvement in forming death squads. He's eligible for release in 2023 (due to time already served). The UN general assembly is taking place in New York City. Cuba speculated on new acts of aggression planned by the USA against Cuba. A Cuban Five protest in Washington D.C. will help get the word out about their case. Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez urged Americans to "wake up and fight" for new leadership. "We're not enemies of the American people," he said. He called the American lifestyle unsustainable due to consumption of oil and other natural resources. Well, 7-11 won't be consuming your Citgo gas anymore!

During his speech, Hugo Chavez referred to Bush as the devil, and acccused him of acting like the owner of the world. Chavez also called for deep UN reforms. He referred to an "immoral veto" by the USA which led to Israel's month-long assault. Chavez received a lengthy applause and many accolades following his passionate speech. Thousands demonstrated on New York City with the chant, "hey hey, ho ho, Bush has got to go." Over 1 million people protested the final results of Mexico's presidential election. "White-collar crooks stole the election," said the challenger. A parallel government will be set up by the challenger. The UN condemned Israel's use of cluster bombs. As much as 40% of the cluster bombs in Lebanon did not explode. Israel is not providing the coordinates where the bombs were dropped. 90% of the cluster bombs were dropped in the final hours of the conflict. Record numbers of anti-Muslim incidents are being reported in the USA. Almost 2000 incidents were reported last year.

As this was the weekly review show, it was entirely focused on news. Most of the news was highly political, with RHC taking the opportunity to celebrate Hugo Chavez's speech and exploit fissures in United States policies.

* 25 Sep 2006, 0007 UTC, 9695 khz (Deutsche Welle): This reception started with news about the rail accident in which 23 people died. There were protests in front of parliament in Budapest, Hungary, amid allegations of lies about the state of the economy. Elections are coming on the first of October, which will be a referendum on the government's performance. Austrians will soon vote for a chancellor. There are new laws to stop abuse of the asylum system in Switzerland. Asylum-seekers now must produce identity papers within 48 hours.

This was only a 10-minute reception. I logged it mainly to provide additional data for my Deutsche Welle reception reports, which I submitted along with a QSL request.

* 25 Sep 2006, 0101 UTC, 9755 khz (Radio Canada International): Himalayas? Kathmandu, Nepal. This is a story about the helicopter crash there. Sri Lankan navy sunk 8 Tamil Tiger boats. Hamas is serious about forming a power-sharing government with Fatah. Roads in Kentucky are submerged due to rain. Book news. Monica Ali is the author being discussed. This author interview seems more appropriate for a regional or national broadcast. She was born in Bangladesh and raised in England - how is this relevant to Canada? Maybe they do things differently on Sundays. 13710 khz is supposed to be broadcasting to the western USA but that frequency is not active now. This book talk continued for half an hour, and I was disappointed with this broadcast.

* 27 Sep 2006, 0714 UTC, 7320 khz (Radio Russia): I found this signal on my E5 while trying to find stations to test on a Kaide shortwave radio that I acquired. The language sounded like Russian, and hfradio.org listed Radio Russia for this frequency and time. There was speaking over soft, dramatic orchestral music. There was a male speaker, then I heard part of a hymn, then a female speaker.

* 29 Sep 2006, 2200 UTC, 17785 khz (Radio Australia): Thailand will have a new prime minister soon. An interim constitution has already been presented. It will be another week before a functioning government is ready. The new Soloman Islands attorney general will be extradited for a child sex offense. Russia is evacuating embassy workers and their families in Georgia following espionage charges. I wonder when Thailand's own shortwave broadcasts will be usable again.

* 29 Sep 2006, 2208 UTC, 13765 khz (BBC): Discussing the Russia/Georgia incident. Heard "BBC News" identification after a story. Now discussing NATO, Afghanistan, and the Taliban. NATO members promised more troops to battle the resurging Taliban. British defense secretary involved in requesting more troops from the NATO members. President Bush is disappointed at the lack of progress in Afghanistan. Something about Mexico and illegal immigrants.

I couldn't stay with this BBC transmission because of strong local interference and a weak signal.

* 30 Sep 2006, 1717 UTC, 17795 khz (World Harvest Radio / WHRA): I tuned to this frequency while testing the tuning accuracy of another radio, and happened to catch a funny moment. A woman called in to yell at the program host because her husband gives a lot of money to World Harvest Radio, and she felt like she was married to the radio. She complained about being stuck in traffic on Long Island and not having any money. It was a classic greed vs. greed moment.