Christian Marks

WG0AT, the goat man of ham radio, has produced a series of videos that go well beyond logs of Field Day and Summits On The Air expeditions. The videos convey the addictive allure of QRP (low-power) DX (distance) ionospheric propagation; the older-male demographic of amateur radio and the relative absence of women; the rarefied club of CW (morse code) operators; the association of ham radio with the military and civil defense; and off-the-grid consumerism, which combines American rugged individualism with an inextricable dependence on miniaturized high-tech electronics, geo-positioning satellites, chemical engineering, and cellular telephony. WG0AT has a knack for translating into English the Capridese irony of his two rescued goats Rooster and Peanut, who provide running commentary and comic relief.