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Flying at HRT the Navy pogues from Pcola and Whiting would always trash our pattern, sometimes four or five at a time. After the three times being told to extend my base while doing two engine training in order to accommodate a T-34, I cleaned up my Gunship and departed VFR to the west. A few minutes later I checked in with PCola and reported initial Runway 25...it was a fucking bomb burst of white jets trying to get out of the way. After a low approach I requested closed and the tower was fuming (do they have a SOF?) I then requested to go tower to tower at Whiting. They initially cleared me but the tower controller must have called Whiting and told them what I did so they told me they were "saturated and could not accommodate practice patterns." I got called up to the OG/CC's office the next morning and he asked what happened...apparently the Navy wasn't too happy. I told him it was a continuing theme with them dorking up our pattern and how they ruined three consecutive two engine approaches (two engine work was challenging and you had to be low on fuel to get to the training allowed weight so you didn't get a lot of second chances). He laughed and told me to have a great day. I didn't see another T-34 in our pattern for two months.

I hear you but still...Where was the DO? Perhaps another needless soapbox rant but honestly I have thought about this incident 100 times over the past few days and how many different people failed this young man. Yes we can blame the institution...the writing has been on the wall for some time and others have alluded to it in this thread but in a haste to plug the holes in the damn the system made a conscious decision to push as many people as possible through the system. At a very senior level he was failed when the decision was made to start pushing basic skills training from the RTU to the ops unit. When I read the Viper bros were pushing defensive BFM to the unit I thought it was a joke...how can this be? As much as people celebrated Fingers (I did not for personal reasons), he let it happen. He and Mobile bought that risk and risk is never pushed right at a 1:1 ratio, it has a modifier when it comes to basic skills. Should he have been able to land at night without incident...of course but I think everyone who has read the report and knows his flying history can feel the weight of crap that was on his shoulders that night. Senior USAF leadership failed this kid in an epic fashion. The problem is systemic...and the disconnect at senior levels is STAGGERING from my point of view. Probably reason #69 why I didn't make GO but I remember being in the room when a training and conversion plan was being briefed to the MAJCOM commander. The A3 and A1 folks were tag-teaming a brief on how they were going to convert AC-130W and AC-130U crew members into the AC-130J. The training folks were doing their best and their plan had every AC-130 pilot in the command by name and how they would flow through the system....come off the battlefield and start conversion training, PCS to new base, then immediately deploy in new airplane. I knew it was a house of cards and I couldn't hold my tongue, I blurted out "what retention rate did you use in your plan." Well sir we used the historic rate of 64%. "What was the Gunship retention rate last year?" (I already knew the answer) Well uh sirrrr....it was 34%...but we have mitigation strategies form the USAF that we think will help retention. I looked directly at the A1 and asked him if he knew about the 14 gunship pilots who were up for the bonus this year and what had just happened? He just stared at me...so I turned to the MAJCOM Commander and said sir there are currently 14 AC-130U pilots up for the bonus, only one has taken it. The MAJCOM commander was very celebrated in our community, honestly until his reply I worshiped the guy and would have done anything for him...that all ended when he opened his mouth and said in front of everyone....and I quote "They will stay because they are patriots, and if they don't I WILL JUST MAKE MORE." I knew at that moment...every bullshit comment he made about people and families was a lie...and that was it, his mitigation strategy was to let decades of combat experience just walk out there door and he would fix it by making more. I didn't even invite this dude to my retirement. I can point fingers at all the senior folks but for me I want to know...where the fuck was the DO. He/She was supposed to be the last line of common sense in the storm. I had a lot of interesting jobs in my career and made it to a fairly senior level as a Wing/CC down range in combat. Of all those jobs the toughest far and away was being a DO. Yes commanders work hard to take care of people but DOs are supposed to protect people and the mission. As a DO in the WIC it was a struggle...you think going through WIC is hard...trying being an IP there for 6 years. Sprinting a marathon becomes the norm. In fact, as a DO and CC I would remind each new graduate that they had to regulate expectations when they got back to the unit...as much as they wanted to change the world they would have to do so with some finesse or risk alienating the rank and file. You would think being a DO of a WIC squadron would be easy....all graduates, all top tier, all type A...but that presented a different problem in that they would run until they fell over dead. In order to protect them I often had to make tough calls to protect them from the system and from themselves. I didn't always get it right, but damn I tried. I remember one hellish period when we were flying multiple stages of the syllabus do to support asset availability. We typically ran a CAS phase then an Interdiction phase but for two weeks we were running both phases simultaneously. As most know WIC debreifs are purposely painful and on Thursday of the second week it was 0330 and we were doing data collect on the 6th sortie in 10 days. My ADO was leading the sortie and he said "Ok, we will see the WUGs back at 0700 for the formal brief." I looked around the room and all I saw was serious fatigue in both the WUGs but more importantly my instructors. I jumped up and said STOP! "WUGs and Instructors come back at noon for the formal debrief, everyone GO HOME." The ADO was pissed and he followed me back to my office...we had a very heated conversation in my office and he certainly spoke his mind as I always encouraged them to do. I listened then said, "messaged received, go home, I will see you at noon." For two weeks most of the WUGs had been grabbing a few hours of sleep in the squadron, not wanting to waste the time it took to drive home and then back in the morning. That week I noticed about half of my instructors had done the same thing and I knew I had to step in and protect them...from themselves. I might not have been the best DO but that is how I saw my job...PROTECT my people while accomplishing the mission. Where was his DO and how in the world the DO let this kid step that night is beyond me...simply beyond me.

Is it hand cranked?

I was a Marine maintainer, and I will have you know, that we also have adjustable wrenches and a flat head screwdriver (but only a big one). The selection of hammers was pretty incredible though.

Here you guys go. You now have your very own spot to argue. It’s your spot and yours alone. Have it here so the rest of us can enjoy what baseops is supposed to be about. Lloyd

You guys would rather think the average Biden voter - not just Antifa and BLM - could be part of a giant conspiracy that stretches across America to falsely deny Trump the presidency than realize that mail in ballots have literally always been more blue than red. You think the government is absolutely inept and can’t accomplish anything, but at the same time you believe that 5+ states can all get away with massive, simultaneous, and complicated voter fraud on a scale that isn’t even within an order of magnitude of anything seen before. You believe this just because the president says it’s happening. Not Fox. Not AP. Not any normal news outlet, just the president. Put some more faith in your average friend that voted against Trump. The thing that’s actually messed up is that our President is trying to disenfranchise regular voters just because they are not in his favor. It’s messed up to declare victory when you have less than 220 electoral college votes on the first night and declare fake news to anything opposing this. It’s messed up to push for lawsuits to stop the counting on states you have a lead in while pushing lawsuits to continue the counting in states you’re losing. I voted by mail, as is my right in the state I’m registered in, and I intend to keep that right. Have an iota of integrity, and just take the results. One side hasn’t said anything of the sort. One side will do whatever it takes to ensure a win, even if that is destruction of faith in the literal American system that is the same as it has been for the last many decades. This election isn’t new, and the problems associated aren’t new. Remember GWB in 2000? I’m sorry that you potentially are going to lose, but we need to pull together and support the actual system of democracy.

You've made 8000 posts in this thread. At one point last week you were averaging one post every 18 seconds. Your position is well established. Everybody including yourself knows why you chose to present this specific story in a long line of similarly themed things you've pointed towards over the last few weeks. Feigning offense at the fact that I 'assumed' something because it wasn't explicitly contained within a paticular post won't get you anywhere with me. It's time to face reality. They said it couldn't be done, but George Soros and the New World Order organized the most complex conspiracy in the history of the world, infiltrated Dominion, and unleashed cutting edge CIA technology called Hammer and Scorecoard to surrupticiously steal the election without leaving a trace. An entity capable of pulling that off isn't going to have left enough untied loose ends (like 2600 uncounted ballots in 30+ counties) lying around to make a difference. It's over. They won this battle. Gotta reconstitute for the next one so you can win the war.

You are a master's class in argumentative fallacy. Your evidence of cheating is an incorrect and uneducated assumption on risk/reward? Manipulating an election on the scale required to affect the outcome would require a multiple person conspiracy to commit fraud. The fraud itself is a felony, the act of conspiracy is a separate, much more serious felony that the DOJ has a pretty good track record of obtaining long sentences for. So it is not, as you baselessly claim, "low risk." Regarding your assertion of high reward, for who? The individuals capable of attempting the crime are clerks, volunteers and minor appointed officials. "Jim, you've done a good job serving the people of Michigan as a country registrar. We appreciate the time you've taken away from your insurance sales job to help us conduct a fair and impartial election. If you'd be willing to help Joe Biden win by asking your peers to help falsify data, here's a big bag of un-laundered cash you can share. I promise I'm not a cop and promise I'm not wearing a wire." 🙄 Say, maybe the Apollo mission were faked and 9/11 was an inside job. Also, just because you're dishonest doesn't mean that other people are too. You're the anomaly. Most of us play by the rules. If you want to see the proof of this being a fair election, simply read what Trump's legal team has argued in court. No Fraud, no evidence of anything.

Ruh roh. Not a flattering look for the ACES seat. No way even the most experienced driver is going to have the presence of mind and the in-the-blind dexterity to pull the manual override in a ground level ejection attempt, at night no less. Manual seat sep from a ground pull is just not a realistic expectation under any circumstances. Surprised this hasn't got more public scrutiny in the community. The TUL ANG ejection cited even allocuted to the fact that dude had the benefit of daylight and a looong freefall to gather his thoughts and remind himself of the manual seat-sep option. This kid (he was a student of mine at DLF) didn't get that chance. The most contentious and soul-searching weeks of my AF career by far, were the weeks immediately following the 38 crash in our AD associate squadron, due to the NAF level leadership's unwillingness to speak immediately as to the SIB-relevant facts pertaining to the condition of the seats following the fatality. That soured a lot of people, and created a climate of open dissent, and led to a couple of firings. Ugly stuff all around, even for DLF (which was just coming out of Mollygate and the T-6 MX firings, and is a football bat of a place on a good day). Then there was that big boo boo in Midland with the Bone, and the eventual inspection revealing NONE of the seats would have fired. I could go on. These are fundamentally confidence-eroding trends, and big blue better get their @ss around it or it's gonna lead to chaos. The pointy jet/non-deadstickable business doesn't have the off roading option like I used to joke about during my T-6 IP days. On this side of the street you need confidence in your seat or things get insubordinate real quick. As to the decision not to controlled eject, I'm not gonna second guess the element lead and SOF. That's a tough one though. Even by the AIB's own stipulation, the kid would have still faced the hardship of having to have the presence of mind to manually seat-sep a faulty seat during a controlled bailout attempt... At night, not knowing he had a bad seat. Eff those odds. I don't know the Viper's landable gear combos, but in the 38 one main up one main down is a no-go. Difficult to ascertain the weight bearing capacity of a damaged MLG on this accident, especially given the indications of brace damage as described by the chase ship. The kid did the best he could given the information presented at the time. That seat betrayed him period dot. That pull was textbook in the envelope, should have led to a canopy. I'm at a loss.

Shouldn't even have to make the call. They should already be self-mobilizing. If doing everything possible to undermine faith in the democratic process (I'm not talking about lawsuits) isn't quite enough to classify you a "domestic enemy" of the Constitution, then refusing to abdicate would remove all doubt. Not that it would work this way in reality, but there should be 1.5 million members of the military moving on D.C. to honor their oath. I didn't vote for Biden and I'm no longer beholden to any oath, but I'd make the trip if it became necessary. The fact that the electorate put a person in power that would make these kinds of questions less than batshit crazy to entertain is an embarassment for the country. As Robert O'Neill said of Trump's desired military parade in D.C.: that's "3rd world bullshit". So is having to think about this. The international community has been watching 3rd world bullshit from the highest level of government in this country for 4 years. It does no favors to our status as the last standing superpower. China is surging economically but we have always had uncreachable high-ground over them (and others) from all other angles. We're a little less untouchable than we used to be and have nobody to blame but ourselves.

You mean like Callsigns...

He is mentioned in the memoirs of several POWs, including Leo Thorsness (MoH recipient who at one point shared a cell with McCain) , Bud Day, and James Stockdale (also both MoH recipients). They did not speak ill of him then, nor when he ran for President in 2000 or 2008. I'm personally going to take the word of three MoH recipients over "some guy my dad knows whose uncle was a POW", or some swiftboat conspiracy theory website that looks like it was designed for free on geocites in 1997. Throwing spears at the mans grave is pretty classless, imho.

If people were fundamentally evil, society would trend downward. It hasn't. There are evil people. There are more good people. Over time the good have beaten the evil. Our system protects the good from the evil to allow the good to flourish and continue doing good. If you've seen little evidence of altruism, you've been limiting your view to a TV screen. Look around, it's literally everywhere.

ADMIN NOTE: Too late, you now require approval before any of your posts will show. Don't bother messaging me about it, you were very close to being banned; so even if you don't agree with it, I am doing you a favor. I did you a second favor by deleting several of your recent offending posts. Anyone else?

I’m genuinely curious as to what you thought would improve under Trump as well. I think the president really does a lot less than people give credit, but I still voted opposite you. Since you said you’re genuinely curious, here’s a few points: 1) I believe a lot more of America’s influence in the world comes from soft power than people realize. How the world perceives our president is important, and worldwide public perception of the status of America is at an all time low, in part due to rough rhetoric. I think this could improve. 2) I believe basic, preventative healthcare should be a fundamental right for the working class. This has a higher likelihood of happening now. Will be good for my children. 3) I don’t believe in social conservatism even slightly. Protect the rights to abortion/birth control/gay rights. Keep religion separate. 4) One of the biggest ones is probably income inequality. Trickle down economics does not work. I don’t care how many times you’ve been spoon fed that line. Productivity over the last 50 years has gone up - wages have stayed the same (inflation). The system is rigged against America’s youth whether you look at college that costs 70k a year (look up the costs), a dwindling job market (it’s been like this pre-Covid) that was propped up by min wage gig economy jobs, or the disastrous housing crisis. I’m glad I’m in the military, as it solved a lot of these problems, but is the American dream still alive as much as everyone says it is? Policies to increase min wage, provide healthcare, reduce student loans, support unions/workers rights - these will benefit the whole of America. It’s hard to vote for a “billionaire” who literally paid less than I did in tax for multiple years. And before you say he was just playing by the rules, if he cared about the system, he would make a concerted effort to fix the glitches. 5) Responses to pandemics or emergencies will actually have compassion or an iota of human decency. Handling of things like Puerto Rico or COVID have been terribly politicized and divisive for the nation when they shouldn’t have been. 6) The federal reserve has been used for quantitative easing in a dangerous precedent to prop up the stock market. The US government basically propped up $3T of stocks THIS YEAR and then the president took credit for the economy. The economy is a sham and the fed balance sheet should stop being manipulated. We’re using the coffers of our children for republican talking points. 7) Politics is nastier now than I’ve seen it. The media has been demonized, unless it rhymed with “Rox,” and I’ve never seen more conspiracy theories in people I know. I’d like someone that would like to improve America for all, not just red/blue voters. Also, I’d like the president to stop calling me a “hater and a loser”. You’re the leader of the free world, so act like it. Issues: 1) NATO and the EU have never pulled their weight, and we are probably going back to the one sided relationship that we all hate. 2) If Military acquisitions are cut anymore, maybe we’ll be fighting China’s 6th gen fighter with mech scanned vipers here in a decade. Although, to be fair, the Trump policies didn’t exactly FIX the acquisition problems that the military have had the last 20 years. 3) Racism is real, I believe. But the Democrats solution to be hypersensitive crybabys and cancel people is stupid. I agree with the recent push to limit diversity training, and I fear there are gonna be some STUPID policies. Did you see that survivor is gonna be 50% POC??? So dumb. 4) Biden is old and Kamala Harris is not someone I respect or like. This is the biggest drawback for me. I honestly am not worried about job security. I’m in defense, as I assume you are, and there are boundless opportunities for military officers in and out of the military. My wealth will continue to increase in the stock market just as much as it would have. I can still purchase property, but I am definitely not going to be part of the owner class (and none of you will be either). Bottom line, I want someone with a bit more moral compass and maybe slightly more progressive views. So that’s how I voted this election.

Georgia elected a U.S. Representative who believes a cabal of Satan-worshiping pedophiles is running a global child sex-trafficking ring and plotting against President Trump. People vote for her or AOC for the same reasons people vote for any candidate.

Bye, Felicia.

I never said anything about racism...wtf are you on about? Just to be clear when you talk about the before part and "out of context" you must have just forget this part - "I’ve gotta use some tic tacs, just in case I start kissing her. You know I’m automatically attracted to beautiful—I just start kissing them. It’s like a magnet. Just kiss. I don’t even wait. And when you’re a star they let you do it. You can do anything....Grab them by the pussy,...You can do anything” No...that doesn't sound consensual to me. Especially that "Just kiss. I don't even wait." We're talking about the ladies in our lives and why they're turned off by Trump's rhetoric. I specifically said my wife waited through to see if she agreed with his policies, some she did...most she didn't. COVID response was probably the final straw for her personally, it was for me. Over it all was a inability to stand they way he communicates anything. Again you denigrate the people who disagree with you: "feminine men." Thereby inferring only masculine dudes don't have a problem with his lack of "being a gentlemen." There are a lot of conservatives who're calling him out right now for "being an A$$" and calling our democratic institutions a fraud. A plan from Republicans that doesn't cause her family to go into bankruptcy because of issues beyond their control. gg, no re

As someone who voted for Trump, I am honestly having a hard time believing the voter fraud claims for this election. The primary reason for that is there was no "Blue Wave" in the other elections. The country essentially held the line on where they were with the Senate, and the R's even gained ground in the House. If there was some massive scheme to use voter fraud to help the Dems, I think we would have seen it play out in other races as well. Ultimately I think this came down to being a referendum on Trump himself. I personally know several people, both friends and family, who voted for Trump in 2016 but did not this time around. Their choice was based almost entirely on Trump's personality and the way he carries himself. I think those are the people who swayed this election the other way this time. In all honesty, Biden and Harris have a massive challenge in front of them (if they do ultimately win). The nation I think has proven, as Shapiro and Tucker have both said as well, that they are not buying the BLM, Antifa, AOC, super leftist agenda. Perhaps a slight majority was over the Trump experiment, but Biden and Harris are now in a tough spot because I think they, and the rest of the Dems, thought they would gain full control and have unstoppable power to push through a massively left leaning agenda. That is no longer the case. In my opinion, many on the far left in Washington will want Biden out quickly due to "health concerns", but that is not such an easy road to walk anymore without full majority. Making that swap before the mid-terms could prove even more fatal. As another poster mentioned earlier, Trump has probably served his purpose. If nothing else, he proved how deeply corrupt the media and most of Washington is and he showed how to impassion a base of supporters. I can't remember the last time I saw people that excited about a candidate not named Obama. The conservatives in this country now have a big opportunity in front of them to reshape what the party looks like. However, they need to ensure that future includes the base that Trump built. One incredible thing that I think Trump did is he made the Republican party become the party of the working class. Blue collar workers that would often lean towards the pro-union Democrats have switched sides. The conservatives in this country cannot throw that away. There needs to be less Mitt Romney's as the face of the party and more Dan Crenshaw's. I've had a few beers this evening so hopefully that all made sense. I guess everything I wrote might also be moot if somehow Trump still manages to win.

imagine writing all this, but unironically

If you think trump has exhibited anything resembling good leadership during his tenure, you are not a serious person. There are some pro-trump arguments I can buy: you like him on policy, or because he's a middle finger troll to the radical left, but good leadership is not one of them. On the topic of administration turnover: -yes every administration has turnover -no it isn't inherently a bad thing -no it isn't surprising the "you're fired" guy has fired a lot of people I just wonder how trump supporters justify the scathing criticisms coming from high profile resignees like Mattis. 10 minutes ago Mattis was the most respected military leader in a generation and proof positive that trump was putting an incredible team together. But when he says trump is an incompetent egomaniac who's impossible to work with, it's chaffed off with incredible ease.

Understand your concern but that math doesn't follow your logic.I read an interesting study yesterday...short version = of the 238,000 U.S. deaths 9300 were normal healthy people that had no underlying health issues. The two most common causes of death due to a flu shot are anaphylaxis and Guillain-Barre Syndrome, and from the information given by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) it is possible to work out an approximate number. The CDC reports 1.31 cases of anaphylaxis per million flu shots given, so that would be about 183 cases per year in the US (on average, around 140 million Americans a year receive a flu shot). Anaphylaxis has a fatality rate of between 0.25% and 0.33%, so on average that would be one death every two or three years. Guillain-Barre Syndrome is a reaction of the central nervous system to bacterial or viral infection, most commonly food poisoning. It causes paralysis, usually temporary, and may result in a hospital stay of up to six weeks. A small number of people are permanently impaired, and approximately 3% -5% die. According to the CDC, only one or two people in a million will develop GBS as a result of the flu shot. That gives a range of between 4 (140 x 3%) and 14 (280 x 5%) deaths a year from flu-shot related GBS. Based on these calculations, the number of people dying from the flu shot in the US each year would be between 4 and 15, so probably an average of about 9, out of 140 million vaccines given, while anywhere from 12,000 to 56,000 die as a result of catching the flu, and the vast majority of flu-related deaths occur in people who are not vaccinated (CDC figures from 2010–11 through 2013–14). Compare that against a known 9300 COVID-19 deaths from a healthy population using social distancing, masks and lockdowns....seems like easy math even for a knucklehead gunship dude like me. Given all this I will 100% get it, especially the Moderna version that just finished Phase III Trials. As others have noted vaccination is not just about preventing you from getting the disease, it is also about protecting the herd. The U.S. government does have a specious record when it comes to experimenting on unknowing Americas but given the engagement by the entire scientific community on this problem, I seriously doubt anything nefarious has happened. Like a dork I read the Phase III report on the Monsanto vaccine and there were no fatalities or serious side effects in the 30,000 recipients. I believe there were 5 fatalities and 1 other serious illness in the test subjects, but all deaths were among people that received the placebo. Just my .02

You suck at details dude. Almost like it's willfull ignorance...weird. It wasn't 2600 ballots with Trump votes, it was 2600 ballots. The third sentence in your own source says it's presumed to result in approximately +800 differential in favor of Trump. So you'd actually need 17 more counties with similar issues to make a difference, not 4. Except that Floyd County is among the largest counties in Georgia that leans heavily Republican. So in reality, you'd probably need similar issues in ~30 Republican counties to make a difference. This is all assuming that your audit finds 30 discrepancies that result in +Trump differential, and none that result in +Biden differential. 0% chance of that happening. What exactly is your issue? Georgia self-initiated a hand recount/audit to make sure they got things right. They found a discrepancy and they corrected it. What more could you ask for? When was the last time you sorted 5 million items into 2 categories and didn't make a single error? Not to mention that the audit is part of the counting process, so to call it an 'error' isn't correct. It's only an error if it's found after the vote count is certified. Not to mention even if Georgia flipped, which it won't, it changes nothing. Move on with your life.

Exhibit 1 on why we will never get away from hours and hours of annual SAPR training. Yikes thats a hot take. Also who raised you that preferring to be a gentleman with couth was a sign of a feminine man?

I'll preface my post with this: having traveled around the world and enjoying most of my travels and cultures I've visited, there's no where else I'd rather call home besides the USA. But just because we're the best doesn't mean we don't have flaws, or shouldn't strive to become better. And we need to do that as Americans, not as Republicans or Democrats throwing spears at each other, otherwise, our enemies will use that divide to weaken us or tear us apart. The great power struggle doesn't just exist militarily, but also politically and economically between nations. One is a private organization, and one is a public institution. That's the difference. And no, I don't think matching percentages in different populations should be the end goal for either organization. The NBA went through its transition long ago dealing with race, to the point where the race of the player doesn't matter now, just their performance, because that's what sells tickets (an exciting game), and makes money. But they got past the hurdle of integration and quotas/caps long ago The military strives to be a meritocracy, but there are still biases that exist that favor some groups and hinder others. For example, the army ran an e where they removed the official photo from the promotion package, and got a surprising result. https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/06/25/inside-armys-decision-eliminate-photos-officer-promotion-boards.html/amp I think it's right we get after any unfairness in the system based on things that shouldn't matter (race/ethnicity/gender) to allow the best to rise through the ranks and so everyone is treated fairly, especially if we want to be a meritocracy. It's also easy to point at the recruiting pool and say there aren't enough qualified from X group, but issues could go earlier than that. Educational/academic opportunities, athletics, clubs, etc in K-12 schooling, that lead up to being eligible in the recruiting pool, especially on the officer side. That's not DoD's problem, but a societal issue that merits looking at from other parts of government (or our society, which should be reflected in government). In a sense, the military (especially the officer corps) may already be reflective of the country based on opportunities available, whether that's just educational/volunteer opportunities that combine into an attractive package (sts), or just familiarity with the military growing up and it being a realistic/attainable goal. It'll likely take a generation or two to fix, but that requires groundwork to be laid now to create a better future for our kids, and we likely won't see any benefit in our careers. It's less about making percentages match up (though there are people that believe that), but ensuring that if people want to compete, they aren't having to overcome additional barriers based on the race/gender, because they shouldn't have to.

Crenshaw!

So I put this here vs starting another thread that likely wouldn't be that long. Sean Connery died today, aged 90. The best James Bond ever. So suck it, Trebek!

Too bad every fighter doesn’t have AGCAS.

To be fair, that applies to a lot of politicians from both parties. But yes, Newsom is tied for worst governor with several others...can’t decide who’s a bigger POS, but there’s several who keep trying to out-do each other for that coveted title.

The fact that you either have to vote for her or Trump is exactly what is wrong with the two party system in America. Dems and republicans include too many groups that totally make no sense pairing up.

There hasn’t been your entire life, if we’re defining unsafe as risk of catching respiratory viruses in a public setting exists. The flu, pneumonia, etc. didn’t make people not want to eat out, yet here we are pretending 12% positive rate and 99.86% survival rates (US under 70) are Ebola reincarnated. For comparison, last year the positive test rate for the flu was 52% and death rate was ~ .02% for under 70. So quite literally, the risk to your average, healthy person under 70 is .12% higher than the flu. Clearly risk goes exponentially up or down to age groups above and below the 70 line. People spent 2018 cool with a 52% chance of catching a virus followed by a 99.98% survival rate, yet are incredibly concerned in 2020 over a 12% chance of catching a different virus followed by a 99.86% survival rate. I get it this doesn’t encompass specific scenarios like elderly family with health issues, the individuals with compromised immune systems, healthcare workers in close proximity to high risk patients, etc. But, it does encapsulate the vast majority of our demographics.

Dang - she only lasted ‘About Half A Scaramucci’:

You can do that without the vaccine.

Thanks for the response. First, my broader point is that making an argument about Trump being an outlier, bad-(leader/executive/whatever), or otherwise for firing people isn't a good point. The man fires a lot of people, has fired a lot of people in the past, and will probably fire a lot of people in the future. We knew this before he was president and now we feign surprise? Or use it to make some meta-point about him being X? I just don't think arguments that ignore the context of who someone is really get anywhere - that's what I was trying to get at. Honestly, I have been basically pretty neutral about ALL the presidents I have served under and if I'm being honest, haven't seen that big of a difference between Bush, Obama, and now Trump. My day-to-day has been fairly consistent and IMO not tied to who was in the white house. What I don't like is the hyper focus on personalities that we (meaning smart officers) are exhibiting throughout this tumultuous time. If I could go back four years and examine my opinion about what the impending Trump presidency would have looked like, I would have proved myself 100% correct - which is to say he didn't change all that much. The political and media apparatus was fully united against him and invested in a useless presidency. And low and behold, that's more or less what we've had. So all that is to say I don't worry too much about any one individual, as much as we like to pin the tail on the donkey, some of these problems require more that one person to address. That said, I am extremely concerned about what I see taking place within the democrat party. To your point about leadership, fine, I guess, but I've never been one to drink the AF's koolaid that leadership is a magical panacea for each, every, and all problem. That's a meme, and one that I think infects a lot of peoples' mindset in the AF. What we're missing most, IMO, is job competence and accountability. Are those functions of leadership? I suppose depending on your frame, more or less so. But when we call literally everything a leadership problem, we lose focus on how to solve problems because everything becomes the proverbial nail. Re: MX officers being better able to lead the USAF. This argument is the literal manifestation of "my dick is bigger than yours so I should be in charge." God bless our MX leadership - lord knows I don't want to do it. That said, the size of the organization they've "led" doesn't lead to them knowing the first thing about winning an air war or leading an air campaign. Nope. That's why they're not in charge of the Air Force and also why they should never be in charge of the Air Force. It's also why the type of leadership (or skillset, perhaps) disparaged above is exactly what's required - because it's serves the greater, fundamental purpose of our organization. No matter how many 0700 meetings some O-5/6 spends going over the blotter, they won't ever have the experience garnered only from Red/Green Flag, combat, pilot training, etc. They work a critical piece of the USAF, but it still only serves a supporting role. Finally, about DT's racism. Fine - he's extremely crass and says shitty things. But consider, if you will, that Joe Biden chose a running mate based on two primary factors: a v_gina and dark skin. Which of those (or both) qualifies you to lead the free world? Maybe it wasn't either. Maybe it was her ability to garner peak support of 15%? Maybe it was her ability to drop out of the race when she was teetering at about %1? The point is that the democrats are literally choosing their leadership based on what flavor of ice cream you are - it's not about any ability - let's not kid ourselves. That is racism - any which way you slice it. And it's particularly dangerous because it's "acceptable" - it's disguised. It is all done in order to create the facade of a "diverse coalition" in order to implement whatever bullshit they know they wouldn't be able to get done with white guys at the helm. Their "diversity" is a tool. Consider, if you will, California's most recent attempt to instantiate a racist policy into law (https://newsroom.ucla.edu/stories/prop-16-failed-in-california) - thankfully it failed. Consider the numerous other examples from the democrat party wherein they are attempting to do wildly Un-American things (i.e. blanket student debt forgiveness). So while DT may be an incompetent, racist, homophobe and everybody knows it - look at what the "woke" democrat party is trying to do - and they have the media on their side. That worries me a lot more than one Obama or one Trump. Hence, my disillusionment with the hyper-focus one individual.

Awesomeness like this does not belong in the "What's wrong with the Air Force?" thread. 🥃

It's almost like we aren't a true democracy.. by design.

I have no idea what you guys are talking about, but it's making me want to start on my PPL.

Fuck Alex Jones.

Nothing. They should be investigated. That's a long ways away from refusing to concede in the face of a multi-state loss and no actual evidence of any fraud, while continuously eroding faith in the democratic process. Let's not forget that Hillary lost Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin by less than a point. Obama was welcoming Trump into the white house by this point in 2016. History will not be kind to Mr. Trump's actions between November 3rd and January.

Are we sure Guardian and Slackline aren't married to each other?

Uh oh, people don't agree with you on something so we're going the wrong way, and you don't like it?! Cry somewhere else like a bitch. We're having big boy discussions in here.

You know, I think this was the best case scenario for a Trump loss. It might even be better than a Trump win, assuming the GOP can pick the right candidate for 2024. Trump loses, but the rest of the Republican political class wins, keeping the senate and gaining in the house, as well as picking up some state legislatures. That's a clear repudiation of the man, not the party. Keeping the senate means effectively zero progressive wishlist items will happen in the next two years. Biden, let's not forget, is a fool who was not-too-long-ago frustrating his party as VP for always trying to make deals with Mitch Mcconnell. I see that continuing. Biden's win was small, so not a mandate. And amazingly, Trump gained in all voter groups *except* white men. If you don't think there are some (D) strategists right now melting down over that, I've got something to sell you. A black Republican who speaks Spanish would obliterate what's left of the democratic coalition. Mail in balloting is here to stay, and even with the most mailed-in election in history, by far, Biden barely won. The previous (D) advantage in early and mail-in voting will evaporate once the (R) figure out they need to embrace it. No more crazy Trump tweets is a win for the country. I'm concerned about foreign relations, which was unfortunately Trump's strongest area, but at least the split government will temper any gross reversals. As stated, China is the threat. And some California and NY seats flipped, which should indicate restlessness amongst the victims of the high-tax low-freedom regimes that have controlled state policy for decades. Could have been a lot worse

Neither does a candidate. No matter how many times he types in all caps like a Boomer.

I was thinking this morning Trump's like the Herc of politicians. Loud, lots of weird noises, not the most handsome on the ramp, requires lots of maintenance, probably smells bad... many people would say it's just generally offensive to most of the senses. But the capabilities! Anyone who bothers to look beyond the surface knows it does damn near anything you need it to do to protect the country. Prang it into the ground and it bounces back and keeps flying. Can take a bullet. Performs as well as anything else in the midst of chaos. It's why we keep it around. 😆

IF you're on a normal browser you can use "private" or "incognito" mode and get some more free views. That's your cyber tip for the day!

She's not going to. She's the embodiment of a Useful Idiot.

Kamala needs to sit down and have some serious mentoring under the direction of Dr. Thomas Sowell. It is ridiculous for any grownup to think this is rational thought.