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  • Hacker News
  • not trying to be controversial here; but isn't it weird that you can buy semi automatic guns and there's restrictions on radio equipments bc these equipments can mess with the bandwidth used by public services - but similar arguments hold for guns as well.
    by prometheus1992
  • Lots of interesting discussion here, but let's cut to the real question:

    1. Since people are still going to find a way to buy items the FCC doesn't want them to have, what's that new outlet going to be? I saw somebody mention TikTok. OK... what else? Facebook groups? Craigslist? Private old-skool phpbb forums? Usenet? Mastodon? AliExpress? Something that hasn't been invented yet?

    by mindcrime
  • To be fair to eBay, their banned items policy is quite extensive.

    And also for some reason explicitly lists „military aircraft and ships“. Which surely should be allowed just for the comedic value.

    by FabCH
  • I can see that Meshtastic devices could also be blocked. Also, many don't operate with the FCC rules on the frequencies used.

    https://meshtastic.org/docs/legal/

    by zitterbewegung
  • For people that didn't read the article, listings will need to include the FCC ID. So most consumer goods will still be available.
    by tfwnopmt
  • The purpose of the restriction is to keep people from using hacked baofengs to chat on bands a) they're not allowed to use unlicensed b) could potentially already be in use by another service eg EMS/fire/police.
    by nubinetwork
  • Why is eBay acting as the FCC? I can still buy lasers that will rip through your retina in the blink of a eye from eBay (lol). The equipment is completely legal to own and operate, and transmit with the proper licensing (which is not required to purchase said equipment).
    by 0x1ch
  • I always found the difference between ham radio operators and computer hacker community interesting.

    There is obvious large overlap. Both are nerdy and techy and attract similar base groups. But the ham space is dominated by people who want to be "good citizens" through collective action, while computer hacker is more about cyberpunk "if I could do it, then it's allowed".

    Perhaps it's the clearest example of "The medium is the message" concept.

    by eddythompson80

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