Spot on, Joe. If you watch the different trade unions (plumbers, pipefitters, carpenters, etc) you see their advertisements or hear their radio ads talking about their experience. Not once does ALPA make any type of advertisement (outside the rag, Air Line Pilot) to talk about the experience or trials and tribulations of their membership.
ALPA will look at MPL as just another vehicle in which to gain a dues paying member.
stlflyguy
You illustrate another "damned if you do, damned if you don't" situation that ALPA finds itself in.
You seem to suggest that ALPA should spend dues money trying to explain to the public about the "trials and tribulations" of our membership. ALPA, in the past, has advertised points concerning our profession. In fact, there was an ad put up in the ORD terminal a while back. And do you know what many ALPA members had to say about that expenditure on various forums that I frequent? Can I paraphrase?
"Those ALPA guys, wasting all my money on advertising. Why do they waste their time trying to explain our profession to the public who could care less about us." "Gee, I wonder how much money that ad cost....." "Another example of ALPA wasting our dues money......."
So how does ALPA "win?" They advertise, some guys complain it's a waste of dues money. They don't advertise, and guys like you say we should be more like the trade unions and tell the world all about how tough our profession is.
Ah, forget it. I'm just an ALPA apologist anyway.