UPDATE October 6, 2007
It is immensely frustrating to have come so far only to bog down within a stone's throw from the finish line, essentially due to the opposition of a single man and a procedure/protocol allots that power. It's a flaw in the system, but it is the system we have to deal with. While efforts continue in the courts (but with resolution unknown as to time or affirmative/negative), we have little choice but to continue hammering away in Congress. Losing 50 pilots a week, there really is no other choice.
Our co-sponsor total in the House/Senate is 306/49. While the addition of more co-sponsors obviously does not guarantee success (we have passed benchmarks of 218/2 90 without a break), it certainly increases pressure and our visibility on this issue. We will continue to push for more, but the major monthly efforts (Blitz's) do not appear to be something we need to continue.
Your outreach to your personal reps needs to continue and has been having successes. One senior congressman's lead staffer was in tears over the plight of a United Captain, a constituent of her boss. The entire California delegation, as a group, has discussed this issue. Oberstar has been contacted, repeatedly, by Senatorial offices and numerous House reps.
Although he looks bad on this, does not like the pressure and numerous offices are not happy about the situation, he remains dug in: He will not allow this issue to be removed from FAA Reauthorization (H.R. 2881).
Our job is not just to keep the pressure on, but to keep increasing it.
We do this via new co-sponsors, contacting our personal representatives and those we have a clos e relationship with, keeping ourselves visible on the Hill and running ads.
Next week is a 'lost' week in DC. Columbus Day is Monday (8th). Congress returns from the long weekend only briefly only to skip town again, to return on the 15th.
**We need to be on the Hill each and every week after the week of the 8th. If you have the ability, please help us have a presence each Tuesday-Thursday, beginning with the 16th. These would be small groups than a full up Blitz, on the order of 10-12.
It is not necessary for everyone to spend three days on the Hill. As always, one day is helpful if that is all your schedule (and your family) can afford.
**We need you to continue your outreach to your reps. If your rep is a co-sponsor, ask for his/her help. Let them know the situation, as they may not fully realize the impact time has on us. FAA Reauth is a short-term killer although it may be a long-te rm sol ution. If your rep is not a co-sponsor, keep on him/her to become one. The most recent co-sponsors have been the most formidable hold-outs. Clearly, you can win them over.
**We will run new ads the week of the 16th. I had hoped to kick those off this upcoming week but it would not be productive with many offices lightly staffed. The new ads will focus on our personal stories - the negative impact on not just ourselves but our families, the loss of jobs daily, the impact on veterans. We can afford one full page ad each week, depending on funding.
One of the single most damaging problems is that ALPA stepped back from this issue. I know many of you have some serious issues with ALPA based on what happened with your pensions, paychecks, etc. However, ALPA is a huge part of how quickly this moves in Congress. Like it or not, ALPA continues to hold sway on your life. ALPA was positively involved. However, ALPA stepped back from a p roacti ve stance in July. The reasons are multiple but we do know that there was enough hard-line verbiage being thrown around on the Hill that ALPA was unwilling to let our issue come to a vote if the right language was not already in place. In that a Manager's Amendment would take place on the floor, this was not acceptable to ALPA. All age-change groups were seen as one and we were unable to convince them otherwise. That was July. More recently the AFL-CIO has entered the game and doesn't want ALPA to rock the boat re their pet issues - the Fed Ex truckers and NATCA controllers. ALPA had been in the game, stepped back and has declined to step forward again. ALPA has been nordo for quite some time. We need them back.
**Those of you who are ALPA need to redouble your efforts re ALPA. ALPA now has in play the language it wanted but is not stepping forward to have it acted upon to save pilot jobs. Is ALPA sacrificing pilot jobs to make the AFL-CIO happy? Un-f reakin '-acceptable! ALPA's job is to save pilot jobs and it should be pulling out all the stops to do so. If I were a younger pilot, I would look at what is happening now and wonder if I would be cut loose in the future. ALPA leadership should be smart enough to know this festering issue is a unity buster, long into the future. ALPA should approach Oberstar and manage a vote, using the language of H.R. 2881.
At each Blitz we talk about the pilots in our lounges who approach us and ask how it's going. Those pilots want the rule changed but they seldom (if ever) contribute to the cause. Amazingly, one of those pilots was at APAAD member SWA Captain Tony Lorber's retirement reception this week. He asked me how it was going, I asked if he wanted to keep working and his reply was (essentially) "You betcha!". But he has never contributed a minute or a dime. I suggested he get in the game. Maybe we are too polite and not forceful enough. If approached, we need to (must! ) show them the way to the light. Give them contact info, get their e addresses and phone numbers, give them the APAAD bank address for funding. How many APAAD guys/gals have been to a Blitz or two, only to vanish. Where are you people? Are you at least writing a check? If not, why not?
**We need help. As we lose pilots we lose effectiveness. Those group members need to be replaced. Some of you have made an effort in recruiting new foot soldiers to the effort. The question is this: Has each and every one of us made those efforts? If not, we certainly should.
**We need funding. A cousin to the paragraph above, have we all been active in fund raising? The Blitz's cost money (although we run them on the cheap and use our own funds for hotels, meals, etc. Ads aren't free. They run about $8,000. If we wanted to target a congressman in his/her district which we would like to do, it would be at least that much. &nbs p; Fun ding has been diverted since April of last year, in favor of a new group. I often wonder where we would be if we had been able to mount a good PR effort going into the summer, if that funding had not been diverted. That's water under the bridge, but our need for funds remains. Without it, near the end-game, we are crippled.
As has long been the case, this group (and this effort) suffers from both the retirement of its best assets (you) and the length of the fight (seemingly endless).
As our pilots approach retirement many grow discouraged or begin seeking new employment. Funding and involvement slows/stops. Very understandable. As our pilots retire, their focus shifts entirely. Also very understandable. New members, rookies to the effort, step forward. Never, it seems, enough of them. I don't think most grassroots groups have to go through this dynamic.
There is a Catch 22 in this, particularly now that we are so close. And, yes, w e are close. If you step back from the effort, either by not working on it or not funding it, you (and your buddies) virtually ensure a loss.
Look at what has been accomplished in '07: Announcement of an age change NPRM, introduction of age legislation, the acquisition of 306/49 co-sponsors (a total very rare for any legislation), age language in FAA Reauthorization legislation in the House/Senate, age language inserted into Senate Transp Approps legislation (then language attached via Unanimous Consent to align House and Senate). We have four venues for advancement of our issue.
All have issues. All are subject to delay. That's our problem; we cannot afford delay. However, the age change is coming. And you had a hand in it.
In spring '01 we lost in the Senate by only 2 votes. We were on a roll. 9/11 knocked us on our butts. We came back in '03. ALPA and the AFL-CIO knocked us on our butts. We came back in '06, the Republicans fa iled t o deliver, then lost the election - knocking us on our butts. In '07 an age NPRM was announced but Blakey failed to issue waivers or ensure a rational timeline. Back into the dirt on our butts, again. Here we are months later and we are close, very close. The age will change but we are bleeding pilots, 50 a week. One man stands in our way.
We have gotten up, dusted ourselves off and pressed on - time and again. I'm asking you to stick with this, find the energy and assets to press it to the finish. It's not over until you are on your back in the dirt and, even then, you can catch your breath and get up again.
One man. That's what stands in our way.
We can do this. We must. Let's finish the year with a win.
Paul Emens, Chairman
SEND FUNDING TO:
APAAD
FIFTH THIRD BANK
P.O. BOX 635071
CINCINNATI, OHIO 45263-5071
Paul Emens, Chairman
APAAD (Airline Pilots Against Age Discriminati on)
[email protected]
410-991-8381
It is immensely frustrating to have come so far only to bog down within a stone's throw from the finish line, essentially due to the opposition of a single man and a procedure/protocol allots that power. It's a flaw in the system, but it is the system we have to deal with. While efforts continue in the courts (but with resolution unknown as to time or affirmative/negative), we have little choice but to continue hammering away in Congress. Losing 50 pilots a week, there really is no other choice.
Our co-sponsor total in the House/Senate is 306/49. While the addition of more co-sponsors obviously does not guarantee success (we have passed benchmarks of 218/2 90 without a break), it certainly increases pressure and our visibility on this issue. We will continue to push for more, but the major monthly efforts (Blitz's) do not appear to be something we need to continue.
Your outreach to your personal reps needs to continue and has been having successes. One senior congressman's lead staffer was in tears over the plight of a United Captain, a constituent of her boss. The entire California delegation, as a group, has discussed this issue. Oberstar has been contacted, repeatedly, by Senatorial offices and numerous House reps.
Although he looks bad on this, does not like the pressure and numerous offices are not happy about the situation, he remains dug in: He will not allow this issue to be removed from FAA Reauthorization (H.R. 2881).
Our job is not just to keep the pressure on, but to keep increasing it.
We do this via new co-sponsors, contacting our personal representatives and those we have a clos e relationship with, keeping ourselves visible on the Hill and running ads.
Next week is a 'lost' week in DC. Columbus Day is Monday (8th). Congress returns from the long weekend only briefly only to skip town again, to return on the 15th.
**We need to be on the Hill each and every week after the week of the 8th. If you have the ability, please help us have a presence each Tuesday-Thursday, beginning with the 16th. These would be small groups than a full up Blitz, on the order of 10-12.
It is not necessary for everyone to spend three days on the Hill. As always, one day is helpful if that is all your schedule (and your family) can afford.
**We need you to continue your outreach to your reps. If your rep is a co-sponsor, ask for his/her help. Let them know the situation, as they may not fully realize the impact time has on us. FAA Reauth is a short-term killer although it may be a long-te rm sol ution. If your rep is not a co-sponsor, keep on him/her to become one. The most recent co-sponsors have been the most formidable hold-outs. Clearly, you can win them over.
**We will run new ads the week of the 16th. I had hoped to kick those off this upcoming week but it would not be productive with many offices lightly staffed. The new ads will focus on our personal stories - the negative impact on not just ourselves but our families, the loss of jobs daily, the impact on veterans. We can afford one full page ad each week, depending on funding.
One of the single most damaging problems is that ALPA stepped back from this issue. I know many of you have some serious issues with ALPA based on what happened with your pensions, paychecks, etc. However, ALPA is a huge part of how quickly this moves in Congress. Like it or not, ALPA continues to hold sway on your life. ALPA was positively involved. However, ALPA stepped back from a p roacti ve stance in July. The reasons are multiple but we do know that there was enough hard-line verbiage being thrown around on the Hill that ALPA was unwilling to let our issue come to a vote if the right language was not already in place. In that a Manager's Amendment would take place on the floor, this was not acceptable to ALPA. All age-change groups were seen as one and we were unable to convince them otherwise. That was July. More recently the AFL-CIO has entered the game and doesn't want ALPA to rock the boat re their pet issues - the Fed Ex truckers and NATCA controllers. ALPA had been in the game, stepped back and has declined to step forward again. ALPA has been nordo for quite some time. We need them back.
**Those of you who are ALPA need to redouble your efforts re ALPA. ALPA now has in play the language it wanted but is not stepping forward to have it acted upon to save pilot jobs. Is ALPA sacrificing pilot jobs to make the AFL-CIO happy? Un-f reakin '-acceptable! ALPA's job is to save pilot jobs and it should be pulling out all the stops to do so. If I were a younger pilot, I would look at what is happening now and wonder if I would be cut loose in the future. ALPA leadership should be smart enough to know this festering issue is a unity buster, long into the future. ALPA should approach Oberstar and manage a vote, using the language of H.R. 2881.
At each Blitz we talk about the pilots in our lounges who approach us and ask how it's going. Those pilots want the rule changed but they seldom (if ever) contribute to the cause. Amazingly, one of those pilots was at APAAD member SWA Captain Tony Lorber's retirement reception this week. He asked me how it was going, I asked if he wanted to keep working and his reply was (essentially) "You betcha!". But he has never contributed a minute or a dime. I suggested he get in the game. Maybe we are too polite and not forceful enough. If approached, we need to (must! ) show them the way to the light. Give them contact info, get their e addresses and phone numbers, give them the APAAD bank address for funding. How many APAAD guys/gals have been to a Blitz or two, only to vanish. Where are you people? Are you at least writing a check? If not, why not?
**We need help. As we lose pilots we lose effectiveness. Those group members need to be replaced. Some of you have made an effort in recruiting new foot soldiers to the effort. The question is this: Has each and every one of us made those efforts? If not, we certainly should.
**We need funding. A cousin to the paragraph above, have we all been active in fund raising? The Blitz's cost money (although we run them on the cheap and use our own funds for hotels, meals, etc. Ads aren't free. They run about $8,000. If we wanted to target a congressman in his/her district which we would like to do, it would be at least that much. &nbs p; Fun ding has been diverted since April of last year, in favor of a new group. I often wonder where we would be if we had been able to mount a good PR effort going into the summer, if that funding had not been diverted. That's water under the bridge, but our need for funds remains. Without it, near the end-game, we are crippled.
As has long been the case, this group (and this effort) suffers from both the retirement of its best assets (you) and the length of the fight (seemingly endless).
As our pilots approach retirement many grow discouraged or begin seeking new employment. Funding and involvement slows/stops. Very understandable. As our pilots retire, their focus shifts entirely. Also very understandable. New members, rookies to the effort, step forward. Never, it seems, enough of them. I don't think most grassroots groups have to go through this dynamic.
There is a Catch 22 in this, particularly now that we are so close. And, yes, w e are close. If you step back from the effort, either by not working on it or not funding it, you (and your buddies) virtually ensure a loss.
Look at what has been accomplished in '07: Announcement of an age change NPRM, introduction of age legislation, the acquisition of 306/49 co-sponsors (a total very rare for any legislation), age language in FAA Reauthorization legislation in the House/Senate, age language inserted into Senate Transp Approps legislation (then language attached via Unanimous Consent to align House and Senate). We have four venues for advancement of our issue.
All have issues. All are subject to delay. That's our problem; we cannot afford delay. However, the age change is coming. And you had a hand in it.
In spring '01 we lost in the Senate by only 2 votes. We were on a roll. 9/11 knocked us on our butts. We came back in '03. ALPA and the AFL-CIO knocked us on our butts. We came back in '06, the Republicans fa iled t o deliver, then lost the election - knocking us on our butts. In '07 an age NPRM was announced but Blakey failed to issue waivers or ensure a rational timeline. Back into the dirt on our butts, again. Here we are months later and we are close, very close. The age will change but we are bleeding pilots, 50 a week. One man stands in our way.
We have gotten up, dusted ourselves off and pressed on - time and again. I'm asking you to stick with this, find the energy and assets to press it to the finish. It's not over until you are on your back in the dirt and, even then, you can catch your breath and get up again.
One man. That's what stands in our way.
We can do this. We must. Let's finish the year with a win.
Paul Emens, Chairman
SEND FUNDING TO:
APAAD
FIFTH THIRD BANK
P.O. BOX 635071
CINCINNATI, OHIO 45263-5071
Paul Emens, Chairman
APAAD (Airline Pilots Against Age Discriminati on)
[email protected]
410-991-8381
