Bringupthebird
Grumpy? Who-Me?
- Joined
- Feb 7, 2006
- Posts
- 2,182
I have heard of a few west individuals deciding, for whatever reason, to join USAPA, with or without pre-conditions. While everyone is entitled to make up their own mind, consider the effects your choice will have.
By joining, you allow yourselves to be used by Bradford as evidence of USAPA's popularity and reward their behavior with the perception of credibility. Because all dissention is squashed by the USAPA politburo, we don't know how many USAPA members share your disgust with the current regime, yet are constitutionally bound to them for another 12 months or more. We do know that the overall margin of victory was slim for USAPA and they have done little to bolster anyone's confidence that they voted for the right group last time. USAPA has "Harumphed" themselves into irrelevance and dragged the rest of the pilot group off with them.
The idea that by not joining, you give up the right to vote and influence the outcome of events is not lost on me. But the best course (IMHO) to effect change is to engage those east pilots who want more than an embarassing ad in the paper and want to be more than cheerleaders for Bradford. Those east pilots who aren't willing to sit by and watch Bradford spin his wheels in the ditch at their expense can be great allies in ousting the hard-line extremists and replacing them with leaders who will help build a union you can be proud to join.
Would it be unreasonable to think that there are 800 or so of these east pilots who feel alienated in the anti-west rhetoric, who are concerned less about a phantom onslaught of westies than the continued stagnation and erosion of their careers under USAPA's "Don't Just Do Something, Stand There" policy?
Once the extreme element on the east has been marginalized and the alliance of progressive west and east pilots has a clear majority of the votes, then it will be time to join and provide the rudder this pilot group has needed for a long time.
To those who have given up and feel "the east" will never change, I have shared those feelings. But we don't have to change every pilot's mind. We just need to let those who want more, know that they aren't alone and that they don't have to sit idly by and face the endless stream of embarassing gaffes by Bradford and his pals.
By joining, you allow yourselves to be used by Bradford as evidence of USAPA's popularity and reward their behavior with the perception of credibility. Because all dissention is squashed by the USAPA politburo, we don't know how many USAPA members share your disgust with the current regime, yet are constitutionally bound to them for another 12 months or more. We do know that the overall margin of victory was slim for USAPA and they have done little to bolster anyone's confidence that they voted for the right group last time. USAPA has "Harumphed" themselves into irrelevance and dragged the rest of the pilot group off with them.
The idea that by not joining, you give up the right to vote and influence the outcome of events is not lost on me. But the best course (IMHO) to effect change is to engage those east pilots who want more than an embarassing ad in the paper and want to be more than cheerleaders for Bradford. Those east pilots who aren't willing to sit by and watch Bradford spin his wheels in the ditch at their expense can be great allies in ousting the hard-line extremists and replacing them with leaders who will help build a union you can be proud to join.
Would it be unreasonable to think that there are 800 or so of these east pilots who feel alienated in the anti-west rhetoric, who are concerned less about a phantom onslaught of westies than the continued stagnation and erosion of their careers under USAPA's "Don't Just Do Something, Stand There" policy?
Once the extreme element on the east has been marginalized and the alliance of progressive west and east pilots has a clear majority of the votes, then it will be time to join and provide the rudder this pilot group has needed for a long time.
To those who have given up and feel "the east" will never change, I have shared those feelings. But we don't have to change every pilot's mind. We just need to let those who want more, know that they aren't alone and that they don't have to sit idly by and face the endless stream of embarassing gaffes by Bradford and his pals.