Capt Prater: Here is your sign!

[PCL_128]

He knows what is best for him, that is about it.

You guys keep ignoring the fact that it doesn't affect him one way or the other. You can still be ALPA President if you're past the retirement age. Age-60 doesn't affect Captain Prater.

 

[Phaedrus]

Age-60 doesn't affect Captain Prater

Sure it does.

 

[PCL_128]

Sure it does.

Care to elaborate?

 

[Freight Dog]

PCL... i'm still waiting for your answer about Prater selling out on other issues. What makes you so sure he won't sell out on the above mentioned issues simply because it's either already happening in other industries or elsewhere in the world?

 

[PCL_128]

PCL... i'm still waiting for your answer about Prater selling out on other issues. What makes you so sure he won't sell out on the above mentioned issues simply because it's either already happening in other industries or elsewhere in the world?

Captain Prater isn't "selling out" on anything. He's being pragmatic and doing what is in the best interest of the membership. Remember, this isn't just something coming from Captain Prater; Captain Woerth also admitted to many MECs last summer that he knew a change was coming, and there was nothing that could be done to stop it. It was only a matter of time. Well, that time has come. Administrator Blakey and the FAA have no intention of backing down on this. The rule will change. Period. We don't have, nor can we get, significant bipartisan support in Congress to derail this issue. We were able to derail the foreign control NPRM through bipartisan support from both houses of Congress. No such luck with the Age-60 issue. Without that, the FAA will do what they please. That means that we had better be prepared and do our best to minimize the damage to the membership.

 

[Flopgut]

Captain Prater isn't "selling out" on anything. He's being pragmatic and doing what is in the best interest of the membership. Remember, this isn't just something coming from Captain Prater; Captain Woerth also admitted to many MECs last summer that he knew a change was coming, and there was nothing that could be done to stop it. It was only a matter of time. Well, that time has come. Administrator Blakey and the FAA have no intention of backing down on this. The rule will change. Period. We don't have, nor can we get, significant bipartisan support in Congress to derail this issue. We were able to derail the foreign control NPRM through bipartisan support from both houses of Congress. No such luck with the Age-60 issue. Without that, the FAA will do what they please. That means that we had better be prepared and do our best to minimize the damage to the membership.

ALPA will alienate 70% of the membership by not resisting this fully. And when they screw up smoothing over implementation of age 65, 95% of ALPA members will regret the change and resent ALPA.

Here's the deal: Just saying: "It's going to change anyway!", is not managing expectations in the least. The issue is too important and we pay WAY too much for representation that falls short like this. That sort of response might be OK if this were a skycap union or a Lion's Club softball team. This is supposed to be ALPA! We pay a SH!TLOAD of money for this! A BRP and an ARC isn't going to cut it. We need to know he is going to represent us! We need to start defending this profession like the NRA defends the 2nd amendment. We are lacking leadership! He should be ready to answer our immediate concerns or inspire us to his vision, and he is not.

I like Captain Prater, but you're going to be able to measure his credibility with an egg timer, I'm afraid. Anything he does now is too late to be proactive, and there is a reason: He secretly wants this change. I fear his active lack of concern for the wishes of the majority of this union is no accident. He'll take this windfall opportunity for the minority membership he holds more dear, and that will make it even easier to do it again, and again, and again...

I might be wrong, but I doubt it more every day.

 

[Freight Dog]

Flopgut is right on all accounts. We do pay a sh*tload of money for this, and I'll tell you it burns me to see the amount I'm paying in ALPA dues every month and then see the majority get sold down the river, especially when another pilot union such as APA does exactly what ALPA is *SUPPOSED* to do.

Also, Flopgut says that Prater "secretly wants this change." Actually, it's not a secret. He made that statement when he was campaigning that he was pro-change, but if the membership wanted to keep the rule, he was going to work to keep the rule in place. He failed us by not fighting this tooth and nail. This is where APA really made ALPA look like a bunch of pu$$ies. Now, tell me... how do you expect to sway other non-ALPA groups to join ALPA when ALPA won't even represent the wishes of the majority?

You can call it pragmatic, I call it selling out.

 

[Flopgut]

Also, Flopgut says that Prater "secretly wants this change." Actually, it's not a secret. He made that statement when he was campaigning that he was pro-change, but if the membership wanted to keep the rule, he was going to work to keep the rule in place.quote]

You're right, thanks for the correction. What I should have said was: He secretly wants to betray the membership.

I like the guy, really. This is a tough issue, I think he'll try to deflect our attention with other isses [fatigue]. He's kind of like an Anakin Shywalker figure; He's going to turn to the dark side and then we're all screwed. Next, he'll fast track this change. Absorb the many lawsuits we get from the recently retired and serve us all with assesments....

I hope I'm wrong. Seniority IS a little like the force when you think about it...

 

[Stan]

Does anyone think it is suspicious that the NPRM was announced soon after Prater took office?

 

[007]

Does anyone think it is suspicious that the NPRM was announced soon after Prater took office?

What's the NPRM?