From: https://www.eham.net/article/8951
STATION GROUNDING - Will we ever be able to dispel the myths? - Steve Katz, WB2WIK/6 - 8/1/2004
8/17/2004 - K4JSR's response
Steve, you forgot about when your parents would "ground" you in your younger days! ;-)
Also you evidently avoided "ground loops" with your aero-plane!
I use an 8 ft. ground rod and common point grounding on my station just because I "feel" better about.
No valid technical reason other than when I use my 135 ft dipole as a center fed "long wire" on 160.
Even then I am dubious as to any benefit, but that is also why I have a 4 leaf clover in my shack.

I can remember when I was a mere lad and was being Elmered by Bubber Born, W4ZD (SK), going outside of his (literally) shack to get a drink of water from hose spigot just outside the door. As the water flowed from the spigot and the ground, and my shoes, got wet the faucet would come alive with electricity and leave me doing a souped up "Teaberry Shuffle"!

Bubber, and other adults would just hoot and laugh at my plight before rescuing me. Bubber would then try to get me to explain how a water pipe coming straight up out of the ground could do such a thing to me. Naturally, being a youth of just 12 I was totally baffled by the phenomena. Bubber finally explained that the water pipe was laid in the same trench to his shack as his AC power line. The water pipe had oxidized sufficiently to insulate itself from the ground and pick up some high (fortunately for me!) impedance coupling to the power line.

He also taught me that when he turned everything off in the shack that the problem would go away. He was able to teach me a lot about the effects of current flow, and other marvels of electronics. I miss him!

The moral of the story? All that glitters is not gold. All that appears grounded ain't!
Thanks for giving folks the "dirt" on grounding.

73, Cal K4JSR
"YIPE!", Ga.