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It worked for me quite well. In Oct 2009, I three-day-opted a non-flying remote to Iraq. I had 22.5 years of service, was a U-2 interview pilot, and evaluator in both the U-2 and T-38. I didn't want to retire. The three-day opt required me to retire 1 May 2010. I was determined to defeat the threat. I was working a number of angles, but nothing was panning out. By early 2010, I hadn't found a solution, but I did figure out that I could request a 6-month extension to my retirement date if my Wing CC wrote a letter asking for it. At the time, the Beale Wing CC was a 1-star. I presented my case that extending me 6 months was in the best interest of the 9th Wing and the Wing CC agreed. AFPC isn't going to tell a 1-star to pound sand: I got the extension. Around that time, AFPC announced the VRRAD. In my first phone call with the VRRAD person at AFPC, I explained that I was still on active duty. "Will you be retired before 31 December 2010?" "Yes, I will be." "Then you are eligible for the VRRAD." Basically, one office in AFPC was requiring me to retire... and another office in AFPC was allowing me to return to active duty as a retiree. I never told the two offices about each other, and figured it was best if they didn't know my plan. My VRRAD got approved. So, on Friday, 29 Oct, I had a short ceremony in the bar and retired. The following week, I came back to Beale, to my old desk, which I obviously didn't vacate... turned in my week-old retiree ID card... went through in-processing with a room full of 18 year olds (at least I got a verbal waiver from the Vice to skip the Right Start briefings). I even submitted a travel voucher for my 33-mile drive from home to Beale AFB for my first day back on active duty. In 2013, after 3 years, the VRRAD was coming to an end... but I asked the Wing CC to write me a letter requesting a 1-year extension. He did, and I got it. Finally... I retired 1 Nov 2014. It was my third set of retirement orders, and the second time I actually retired.

We are literally de-evolving intellectually as a species. The entire point of The Enlightenment was the idea that humans could use logic and reason to transcend what had previously been tribal barriers to knowledge and understanding of other humans. That the human experience was common to all humans, and that personal experience (e.g. "my truth") could be understood and empathized with by other humans. People are now being taught from a young age -- not just through formal education, but through social cues and other informal learning, and in a wide variety of social and cultural groups -- that one's identity group is the most important characteristic of their existence, which is the diametric opposite concept. This is a road that has a bad end for human civilization.

That’s the only place that would actually make sense to increase outreach. Stop all this bullshit and simply increase awareness and education on officer/pilot opportunities in areas where there is likely zero of that going on. How many tens of thousands of kids in large cities even know being a pilot in the AF is an option? How many of those kids who even slightly mention the idea are told it’s “impossible” by some civilian who doesn’t know jack shit? The same can be said for a poor, rural area. If these kids are even approached by military recruitment, it’s to enlist, and even the recruiters likely tell them flying is such a long shot they should just get it out of their minds immediately. Someone with actual SA reach out to minorities/women and tell them how very doable it is to become an officer and pilot; we’ll actually see diversity increase the right way.

Wokeness training is cancelled. Signed - POTUS. https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/M-20-34.pdf

Keep in mind that I'm 33 years old, so it'll likely be inherently more difficult to get an interview, but let me offer my 2 cents: I've been at this game since I was 22 years old coming out of college...that's right, going into year eleven of this game in some form or fashion. I've applied to all of the following: 2009 - 2010: Air Force Active Duty (2x; non-select, then board cancellation) 2010 - 2013: 13 different ANG/AFRC units (12x non-select; 1 interview, 1 selection by a KC-135 unit...had to eventually relinquish my slot due to some tough family stuff that would have certainly interfered with successful UPT completion and more) 2013 - June 2020: Get the personal life situation in order, while everyday thinking about applying as soon as things were. And they are now. June 2020 - Present: 6 applications submitted (2 outright rejections due to age, 3 I've never heard back from, 1 that still has the chance to interview) I'm old, but have decent numbers: 96 Pilot, 87 PCSM (97 with 201+ hours), ~60 flight hours (post-solo) and on-track to finish my PPL this Fall, assuming CA wildfire issues don't keep grounding my flights. At my age, I've come to learn to learn two things: 1. Patience isn't just a virtue, it's the ardent protector of sanity. While life is indeed short and years certainly do go by fast, unless you're already in age waiver territory chances are you've got several years to make this happen. I know we'd all like to be picked up on Application #1, but man, patience is key. We're all pursuing a career that is as cool and as fulfilling as it gets, and part of that career is the process: Enjoy it! Don't let impatient steal the happiness that's found in all of this! I know it seems like, if after 13 applications it hasn't happened that it may never happen, but I promise you: keep at it, improve in someway every month, quarter, etc., and simply don't stop pushing. It will work out. Be patient, and let the math (i.e. # of apps submitted over time) work in your favor. Eventually, even after years of applying, there's gonna be a unit that's gonna be like, "Ya know, this is the 3rd year in a row this guy has applied, he's visited several times, and wow, he's now got his PPL, instrument rating, and his PCSM just hit 99. Let's get him in here to interview." 2. Be yourself. ALWAYS. And when you get that interview, come more prepared to this interview than you have anything else in your life, and be yourself. Take it from someone who's done it: pretending to be anybody else but yourself is incredibly difficult, a cancer to the soul, and I have no doubt squadrons can see it coming from around the corner. My granddad used to say, "I can tell by the way that joker walks what he had for breakfast," and I'm sure these hiring boards are no different. I highly doubt you'll secure a pilot slot simply saying everything the board wants to hear, and if you do, you're likely to be eventually be weeded out, one way or another. So be yourself--and always strive to be your best self, but that's a different topic--and take comfort in knowing that, whether or not it worked out, it did or didn't based on you being you. There's solace to take in that, I promise. Eventually, it will work out. And in the off-chance it doesn't, and, somehow, it's become official that being an ANG or AFRC pilot wasn't in the cards for you, you'll be able to look yourself in the mirror knowing you didn't sucker out, and you'll likely have some awesome civilian flying and ratings to sustain your love of aviation as you move into the next phase of life. Best of luck to all, and as many others have said, don't stop improving, and don't stop applying!

Because we aren’t a nation of people. We’re a nation of states. Quick primer on the past: In 1777 we created the Articles of Confederation, during which the states largely acted as their own countries, with a small federal government for the purpose of war and certain aspects of trade. They actually used the term “League of Friendship,” to describe it. Didn’t last long for people to see issues with it, and by 1789 we replaced it with the Constitution, which still is a union of states (United States, after all), but with a stronger federal government. So the states, in their sovereignty, gave a little more (but not all) of their power to the federal government. Check enumerated vs reserved powers if you want info on that. Back to the point, that history is why each state has to elect a candidate for President via the electoral college, not a simple plurality of the population. Because the states allowed for the government to exist. Not the people. A worthy compromise is taking away winner-take-all states in the Electoral College. But a direct vote is a dissolution of federalism. “But it’s not democratic!?” Is the typical response. We aren’t a direct democracy. There hasn’t been a pure one since Greece (and look at how that one worked out). We have a Constitutional republic.

She will be voting by mail from now on.

Recently declassified photo we have in the squadron. 2020-09-09 14-57.pdf

My two cents as a first generation immigrant, this is a stupid idea. I'd imagine you'd want classes to have the opportunity to get viewpoints and bond with minorities, not throw them all in one class and separate them. I get that the AF demographics aren't representative of the population as a whole in the Air Force but how does this change anything? They should focus on outreach, I never considered joining until I was a senior in college and it was by chance I had a professor who was a retired AF Officer. They should also streamline the recruiting process for OTS. I was a non-select the 1st time I applied and after I got picked up the second time around, it took 1.5 years from application to attending OTS which is quicker then most. Some people don't have the luxury of waiting around 6 months for a board decision then waiting to go to OTS.

I'm missing the relevant data about military operations in there. But, more importantly, "diversity is our strength" has *nothing* to do with your search terms. That statement is, and always has been, a reference to diversity of immutable human characteristics. I'm all for diversity of thought being a force multiplier, and there's plenty of evidence in the social sciences for that...but that's not what people mean when the term is used.

You can’t say aliens. Indigenous Venetians.

The liberal media is getting this entirely wrong, as usual. The mayor of SF, when asked if Pelosi violated the city health order: "So look, Nancy Pelosi has done so much for this city and even this country and in the midst of this pandemic and all the stuff that’s happening amidst this election, she is in Washington D.C. fighting against a tyrant every single day," Breed said. "We need to be focused on the issues and the fact that over 180,000 people have died in this country and we have a president that continues to divide us." YGBSM. Can democrats just have some integrity and condemn that she did the exact opposite of what they've been saying? Why doesn't she just admit guilt and apologize? Why is the political system so broken in this country? What choice is there for a rational voter when it's just Republicans and Democrats? Every day further convinces me that constitutional amendments are in order: ranked choice voting and term limits for people in congress.

Republicans did. Twice. George Bush was easily a good man. They called him a Nazi. So then, a few years later, they picked Romney. Maybe the most ethical person to ever run. Biden accused him of wanting to re-enslave black people (metaphorically), and then he was called a sexist for having resumes from females. I believe that most politicians are corrupt, but the final straw was the Kavanaugh hearing. The (D) party tried to paint a good man as a serial rapist on absolutely zero evidence. I do not blame Democratic voters for buying into the bullshit; I expect no complex thought from the average voter. But the Senators and Representatives who knowingly participated in that smear campaign are evil people, who did evil things. So yeah, the Republican party is a bit tired of being lectured about "human decency." There aren't many parallels. The highest levels of (D) party leadership enthusiastically lied about the characters of good people. Not just one or two random representatives. The whole damn party.

Dissolving the electoral college is naive and will not solve problems, it’ll create more. We don’t need to do all of these significant system altering ideas, we simply need term limits. Don’t even give the Pelosis or the McConnells a chance to become “political rulers,” make sure the AOCs are just an insignificant stain on the political map for a few years, etc. This one change would absolutely crush the level of partisan politics we see nowadays. We’d also see candidates who are in line with the framer’s intent...rep the people for 6-9 years, then GTFO and go back to being whatever you were previously. Policy making and voting would be based on what’s best, not on how to get re-elected for the 10th time. Kickbacks, etc. would likely be less because nobody has enough time to make it “high” and stay there in politics...the return on kickbacks/bribes/back door deals would be substantially less, and so goes the incentive to do them.

Got my CMP 1911 today. I had honestly forgotten about it since I submitted the application almost two years ago. It's a 1945 S/N R&R field grade. It'll go well with my Garand in the heavy metal class whenever three gun opens back up.

You're right. This is absolutely a solution in search of a problem. I don't think there is any long term race or gender based washout data that exists, let alone any that supports this idiotic COA. But what's worse is that the people who this is geared toward are actively recoiling against it. The person who brought this dumpster fire to my attention is a female pilot. When I asked her if this initiative would help female student pilots feel more included and improve their performance, she said not only no, but f*** no. Turns out a good way of making people feel like they're part of the team is to not sequester them over on the side doing their own special thing. Women and minorities can do anything in the Air Force.. except avoid being pandered to by generals.

I'll bite on this (for context my wife and kids are all Native American, I've spent enough time on the Rez and one of our family members is the Director of the BIA so I've been able to learn a little bit about this ). What it comes down to is that many native populations are 1) extremely underprivileged - a lot of the communities struggle with just basic access to running water, schools, etc. And 2) the tribal populations have also been diluted significantly due to things like the residential schools, theft of children and people leaving "the rez". WRT #1, when your community can't give you the same baseline opportunities as say your average middle american WASP community then it's a naturally steeper funnel to climb out of. So you just get raw fewer numbers of people who are even remotely capable of getting selected for UPT by that age - I'm not saying Natives can't hack it but that often they start behind the goal post instead of at the kickoff line in terms of opportunities and the resources just aren't there to foster the the natural talents/inclinations/traits that Natives might have that would normally make them a great candidate had they grown up in other circumstances. The actual talent of many Native individuals I've met is impressive though - they are naturally extremely brave, sharp and witty. It's no coincidence that our tribe (Mohawk) is known for their steel workers - guys who built the Empire State Building without harnesses, ropes or anything - literally just scaled steel into the sky and then did roll call at the bar end of the day and cheered to the men who fell that day. Some real courage and skill. WRT #2, a combination of the residential schools and skin leaving the rez in search of better opportunity has ultimately bred out / white washed the Native population. From what I have seen and learned, there literally just aren't even the raw numbers to make this a viable recruiting opportunity. By the way this is not even to speak to ancillary points like the cultural challenges of the drugs, gambling, smugling and gangs that often funnel young Natives onto the wrong path (which itself is actually not a Native problem but one that 19th/20th century Americans have given them). I think when you have a competing source of work/recreation that also would help the USAF focusing on Native communities. By the way huge props to you for identifying and recommending Natives for this, a lot of people wouldn't even think twice about this group of people who has given so much to our Nation and really got the shit end of the stick in so many ways.

I don't envy the position those instructors will be put in. Washing someone out of that class for performance will be next to impossible, but don't worry, leadership will still insist they aren't changing the standard. And god forbid a student in that class develops an attitude problem. You might have to use your white male privilege to mansplain to them why they're on Mil Cap. But I think the real travesty here is what this is going to do to the students who did not ask to be in this class. UPT is hard enough without being forced into a contrived social justice experiment. And like it or not, the stink of being in the woke test case class will stick with these students long after their time in UPT.. much like the VR babies our wonderful banzai flights are churning out. I really resent that leadership is foisting their political insecurities on these young officers right as they start their careers. To the students: good luck, study hard, and fly safe. Try not to let this political nonsense distract you. To leadership: I cannot wait to watch this inevitable PR sh*tstorm blow up in your face.

There is no way you can be taken seriously. You post a single picture from a complex situation (there are several videos of it which would completely debunk the spin you're putting on it), and attribute a narrative to it while intentionally leaving out numerous facts. Perhaps you missed your calling as a modern day journalist. Let's dissect your post. First, these guys weren't "victims". They were chasing an armed dude down who just defended his life, and Anthony Huber attacked him with his skateboard (on video), which 100% is a deadly object. He was shot in the chest and died. Gaige Grosskreutz did not have his hands up for more than a very brief moment, the he charged . He was joining in on attacking Rittenhouse, was armed, and was shot in the arm. The events immediately leading to the first shooting of Joseph Rosenbaum are very clear from several available videos. He was pursuing a retreating Rittenhouse with what any objective person would agree was an aggressive disposition, while shots were fired from a third party. He got to within touching distance of Rittenhouse and was shot and died. I agree with your second paragraph if Kyle took a gun across state lines. Looking at the second part of your post, though, I'll make a few changes to reflect the feelings of a growing number of Americans: Many RIOTERS crossed states lines to a city in which they didn't reside, ostensibly to destroy local businesses. They were young and old, immature, untrained in crowd control or use of force, and seemingly not scared. They had no business injecting themselves into the situation they created, and since armed Americans trying to protect others were present, the results were predictably tragic. Prozac, I find your post to be in poor taste and antithetical to American values. I don’t know you. The fact that you’re active on this board means that in all likelihood you are in fact a veteran who loves his country. I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you’re a decent human being who will take my comments as considered criticism and not a personal attack. That’s not what this is. But to equate American citizens rioting in the streets and attacking a scared young kid just trying to naively help protect innocent people to “victims” is abhorrent. We're talking about people trying to burn down Kenosha Wisconsin, USA, not Mogadishu. EVEN if some of these armed civilian business protectors were participating in illegal activities, they are US citizens entitled to due process, not foreign enemies to be attacked in the streets by a rioting mob of felons (all three shot had impressive records). With more calling for de-funding the police, crazy assholes rioting and wanting to take it to the suburbs, and local governments stepping back to let shit play out, this is the only logical outcome. The vast majority of people want to preserve America rather than destroy it while turning us into a lawless entity, and we will start to see more and more of these scenes develop. I also find it strange that you would call out another vet because they called a bunch of rioters "skinnies". I think you're offense to the pejorative is manufactured. The truth is the threat these rioters pose to Americans, on American soil no less, is far greater than any Somalian in Mogadishu, and they weren't shot down in the streets in the manner you implied. They were killed while acting as parts of a mob burning a city, by a dude defending his own life as they attacked him. A military member called them a name which, on this forum, universally ID's them as pieces of shit. While you may not agree, it's batshit crazy for you to not understand where Brick was coming from.

The latest: "Air Force moves to cancel contracts for training on white privilege" "The Air Force is taking the first steps toward canceling any contracts for diversity and unconscious bias training that include segments on white privilege and other controversial subjects, as called for by the White House." Etc, etc, etc. https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-air-force/2020/09/22/air-force-moves-to-cancel-contracts-for-training-on-white-privilege/

Welcome back to the GA world, I started back up last year and have been having a blast, while making lots of new friends. Was driving home from the rents today and stopped by an airport because I saw a Stearman inside an open hangar. Wandered up to the hangar to say hey and walked away with a bunch of ideas for my Stearman (plus their offer to help), and a planned 3-ship Stearman outing next weekend. As I was leaving I ran into a retired UAL Captain I know, so we took his Cub up and bounced around the local grass fields. Great people that just love aviation. Did you say air conditioning? Little bit too much AC this day...hoodie wasn't quite enough!

Personally, I’m just stoked for an administration that doesn’t do this: EXCLUSIVE: Trump administration secretly withheld millions from FDNY 9/11 health program To top it off, their admission of doing it is a dogshit insult and the best they can do is “try” to fix it/not do it going forward. It’s an abomination that Biden and Trump are the best choices this country of 330+ million can come up with. That said, only 1 party hasn’t made 9/11 first responders grovel for money for care as they pay the price for their service over the years. First Zadroga; now this. That alone will keep me voting D. Anyway... 🍻 to all those lost that day 19 years ago today that went to work that morning with expectations of coming home that night. I’m pouring a little more out for the 343 brothers lost that day and the nearly 1 in 8 that have gotten cancer from being down there; folks that rely on the very program this administration has admitted to withholding money from. Politics didn’t matter for those helping that day; why should they matter now?

If you don’t think we’re at war with Iran and their (former) leader of the Quds Force then you’re completely naive. That was a fantastic move to me. And I know I’m as jaded as they come, but IDGAF about what Trump says about how he feels about the troops. I don’t care if he doesn’t understand the deep inner psyche of military members and why we joined. Keep modernizing the force, stop cupping China’s nuts, empower the leaders in the military, and make our “allies” do their part.

I think it’s fair to say I’m on the side of “COVID-19 is being overblown.” However, it pains me when people throw out the 6% number based on a reading of death certificates. My girlfriend had COVID and it really messed her up. Today, (nearly 6 months later) she can’t walk up more than a few flights of stairs because her lungs just won’t get the O2 needed. The doc has her on all kinds of things to try and help, and I think eventually she’ll regain her ability to breathe like before. I mention that because if she died today, say from just going too hard in a workout or straining herself, what would the coroner put down? Probably something pulmonary-related, but there’s a decent chance he/she would see COVID in her medical records and add that too. And you know what? They wouldn’t be wrong. COVID started the problems. For a parallel that might help, people don’t die only from HIV. That virus simply opens their bodies up to death from other things, such as infection. Should a coroner not note HIV alongside death by sepsis? Put simply, there’s far too much variability in what a coroner can put down on that paper to read too deeply into it. I think the death toll is significantly less than the 180,000 number, but it sure isn’t 0.

Roughly 1/3 of those hours/sorties are trips to and from OshKosh.

The kid shouldn't have been there. Neither should the rioters. Neither is in the right. However, the kid didn't start the fight or riots. The kid will undoubtedly face firearms charges, as well as the murder charges he currently has. The numerous videos available show him being chased, repeatedly. They show him being attacked after he tripped. Skateboarder guy was wailing away on him with the board and trying to take the weapon. That, too, is on video. The video prior to him tripping records shot(s) that aren't from the kid's rifle. The "hand's up" guy with the pistol then pointed it at the kid and tried to take the weapon. He is also on video at the hospital acknowledging that he "wished I'd emptied the whole magazine into him." Self-defense will most likely beat the murder charges, but the underage firearm thing and across state lines (if true) are gonna be a problem for him. I don't know him. But no 17 year old should have to deal with taking other lives, fearing for his own, and being stupid. The rioters knew better. But they largely haven't been held to account. I believe the masses are about tired of that. My comment, as dark as it was, related to the kid's ability to take out threats to him. I don't feel regret for that notice nor the term I'm using for the antifa rioters/anarchists. They aren't seeking "social justice" or a better America. They are seeking the end of America. I have no respect for that view nor those that hold it. Therefore, derision is one way I deal with it. I also noted that both sides are armed and it's not a game any more. But it's human nature to say "enough's enough." Two-way violence is only going to increase. I don't rejoice in that, but I certainly understand it. How many months have the good guys had to endure the destruction of cities and towns? Eventually, the good guys fight back.

Fake news. This example is clearly systemically biased and false. The only way to get 7 garbage attack plans out of a group of fighter pilots would be to have a diverse group consisting of 1 Hog driver, 1 Viper driver, 1 fat Amy "driver" and 7 Mudhen crew.

Russian PA image of the SU-35 that got the kill.

Stop for a second and think about this. California already has 53 members of the House of Representatives (more than any other state) and two Senators. Wyoming has 1 member of the House and two Senators. 1) California’s voters have a much greater impact on Federal legislation than Wyoming does due to their population giving them 52 more House members. 2) California‘s voters are much more likely to get budgetary dollars with that much representation. ... and you want to add in direct popular vote for the presidency on top of that? What in the world does Wyoming get out of the deal? Why would they sign up for that? You clearly haven’t read the Federalist papers, and they were in their mid 30’s when they wrote them. They advocated for the Electoral College and the representative system we have as a give and take between states... with a clear aim to prevent the “tyranny of the majority.” Why aren’t all the elections for every office held every 2 or 4 years? Why are judges lifetime positions? To prevent a tyrannical overthrow of the system in one election. Bottom line, it’s designed for stability. The founders were smart enough to know that time cools heads, but didn’t make it so aggressive to prevent change over time. We have 17 amendments and God knows how many political changes as proof that formula works.

Term limits. You have people that have been in DC politics for 30-45 years. They’re are crooks, D’s and R’s. After 20 years, you’re done.

If you think for one second that Obama wouldn’t have filed a SCOTUS seat, when his party had controlled the Senate, at the end of his first term; then you’re not being intellectually honest. Parliamentary procedure isn’t about “fairness”, it’s about what party’s in control. Just like Harry Reid in 2013, when they changed to rules requiring 60 votes to approve federal judges and executive branch nominees, to the now accepted simple majority. https://www.heritage.org/political-process/commentary/5-years-after-going-nuclear-democrats-have-reaped-what-they-sowed This RBG wrinkle is going to make the first 9 months of 2020 look relatively peaceful...

You guys have any experience with this training? At my org (group level), we went around the room and, if you were white, you basically had to admit how you have been privileged and how you have internal biases. Super not awkward and fake, let me tell you. And this wasn’t optional. Literally every person had to talk. If you were black, you had to go around and tell the room about your experiences being oppressed based on your skin color. One of the TSgts didn’t know what to say and started rambling about how she’s never had a bad experience or felt scared until the last week when a rent a cop pulled her over on base for speeding. She went on to say that the cop was super nice and did nothing wrong, but that she felt like she should be scared so she was. We are creating victims and people with victim complexes. It also amplifies any sort of racial divide that existed before. The whole training takes away from the fact that there really are race bias problems out there, and that is what we should be focusing on.

What is insane is that so many people accept without question the theory that in a truly fair and equitable world, every career field would reflect the US population's statistical spread of (insert immutable human characteristic here). There is lots and lots and lots of sociological data throughout history and spanning many societies that counters that theory. It is very, very sad that supposedly smart people in the Air Force have bought into a worldview that yields tokenism over competence.

This post is unfortunately more condescending than I like, but I guess it is what it is. Your analysis is, at best, fallacious and, at worst, intentionally misleading. I'll trust in Hanlon's razor and just assume incompetence over malice. Also, you'll note that these graphs have websites at the bottom. It's a thing called a "source." You still are ignoring excess mortality and arguing that COVID has had marginal total effects, all with no actual data to back it up. Your stats for Flu/Chronic Respiratory Disease/Diabetes show... nothing? They don't compare apples to apples. You would need to have TOTAL deaths for FLU/Chronic Lower Respiratory Disease/Diabetes in 2020, including both COVID and non-COVID - and it would need to be extrapolated to December - to compare the two datasets. Tons of people, literally the vast majority of them (>99%), live with and through those diseases every year. The fact that there are cases where they died with COVID only really proves that COVID does what has been said: causes death in the population. Literally nothing more. It just shows that deaths happen. Now if you could extrapolate the data from everyone that got COVID, then you could possibly compare the outcomes of the population without COVID that died from those diseases to the population with COVID that did, but that's not even close to what you did. Your argument that they had a pre-existing condition and would have died "regardless" is also absurd. Do you know how many people have pre-existing conditions in America? 40% of the country is obese for god's sake. The fact that a huge percentage of society has pre-existing conditions should be ASSUMED in discussions like these. The population of America is at risk health-wise, no duh, but that doesn't mean they are going to keel over and die year-to-year. 1) What do you think caused the 200k excess deaths up to this point this year? And how exactly does it matter what is a CF or a RC? When it comes down to death statistics, there is a reason why they don't put CF/RC on the death certificate: it usually doesn't matter because it's a combination of health effects that causes mortality. And before you go there, of course people with COVID that died in a car accident did NOT die of COVID, I'm not arguing that. But what's the difference from this year to the last decade? These people died because of something different. What could it be? Spoilers: It's the coronavirus combined with a naturally vulnerable population that ALWAYS EXISTS based on how humans age. 2) Here's the one other logical fallacy I'll dig into a little more (feel free to have me address more later). Your argument that folks with pre-existing conditions would have died "regardless" is horseshit. I bet even you or someone in your family has a pre-existing condition, based on the statistics. Or at least your VA claim will show it here in a few years. I'll put down money on that one. The number of Americans that have a pre-existing condition is up to 86% by insurer's definitions for people age 55-64. 48% of them have a no-shit health high risk pre-existing condition. They don't even report on those older than that, because it's basically assumed that the majority of the aged population has something significantly wrong with their health. "Sorry grandma, I know you have diabetes and high blood pressure, which you could probably live with for another 10-15 years with simple treatment, but the economy must open up. Although COVID disproportionately kills those over the age of 70 - and if you get it you have a high chance of hospitalization and a 5-10% chance of death - that is a sacrifice I am willing to make. Ignore the fact that we likely will have a working vaccine in the next year which would stop all of this, my mutual funds need to go up NOW. FAKE NEWS. DON'T TREAD ON ME." Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-02483-2 It's not that hard. Wear your stupid mask, stop hanging out with all your friends, put your travel plans on a temporary hold, get over the fact that national sports and colleges aren't gonna be on TV, and understand that society isn't actually powerless when it comes to battling infectious disease. For all the shit conservatives give liberals over being babies, they have a real problem toughening up and adjusting their lifestyle temporarily for a global catastrophe. Literally FOX News hosts in the height of the deaths in April ran a segment about how hard it is to not be able to get your hair done, while, at the same time, medical teams across the world from Italy to Spain to the UK to the US were delivering bodies to morgues at a weekly rate 5-15 times higher than normal. Want to know something? Those countries don't have the magnitude of problem we have now. They learned and their societies adapted. Numerous other countries and societies haven't F'd this GLOBAL DISEASE away like we have. BLAB (BOTTOM LINE AT THE BOTTOM): Stop arguing about whether or not COVID causes deaths. It does. If you want to argue that 100's of thousands of deaths aren't that bad in the big scheme of the population and we can accept a few 100 thousand more, then that's your prerogative. I disagree, but at least now we are arguing about opinions. Out.

I met the board as the Deputy IG, so at the Wing, with a P. 5/10 eligibles. I made my peace with being a major for the rest of my career soon after I got passed over the first time. I am definitely not in the 1% of people who are going to get promoted APZ with a P. I got a nice assignment now...that's all I can ask for. I can be done volunteering for one-off projects and additional duties trying to earn a strat...just do my job, to the best of my ability, and let the young'uns knife fight over strats.

Here’s a photo. It’s disturbing and I debated posting it here but I think it’s relevant and appropriate in response to your post: The photo appears to show a couple of Kyle Rittenhouse’s victims. In the foreground, clutching his chest, is Anthony Huber who was “armed” with a skateboard and apparently attempting to disarm Rittenhouse. He collapsed in that spot and died shortly after this photo was taken. Standing in front of Rittenhouse is Gaige Grosskreutz. It’s hard to see in this picture but he was apparently armed. Still, in the photo he is in a clearly unthreatening stance with his hands in the air, perhaps attempting to talk Rittenhouse down. He was shot in the arm. The events surrounding Rittenhouse’s first shooting event, which resulted in the death of Joseph Rosenbaum are less clear but reports are that someone other than Rosenbaum fired a gun into the air, after which Rosenbaum lunged at Rittenhouse and was shot in the head. I have not seen evidence indicating that Rosenbaum himself was armed. Kyle Rittenhouse took a firearm that he apparently wasn’t authorized to own across state lines to a city in which he didn’t reside ostensibly to defend local businesses. He was young, immature, untrained in crowd control or use of force, and probably scared. He had no business injecting himself into that situation and the results were predictably tragic. Brickhistory, I find your post to be in poor taste and antithetical to American values. I don’t know you. The fact that you’re active on this board means that in all likelihood you are in fact a veteran who loves his country. I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you’re a decent human being who will take my comments as considered criticism and not a personal attack. That’s not what this is. But to equate American citizens protesting in the streets to “skinnies” is abhorrent. We are talking about Kenosha Wisconsin, USA, not Mogadishu. EVEN if some of these protesters were participating in illegal activities, they are US citizens entitled to due process, not foreign enemies to be shot down in the streets. Celebrating and lionizing the actions of a misguided, scared, seventeen year old vigilante is beyond the pale. I never thought I’d see the day when a fellow veteran would refer to fellow citizens in the streets as skinnies and celebrate their murders. Pleas reconsider your statements.

I believe the feeling is mutual on the other side. So the question becomes: How do we bring politics back to something approximating the center in this country? I’m not sure as many political issues seem nearly insurmountable at present. Term limits and campaign finance reform would be a start, but those issues are a third rail for career politicians with too much to loose. I think the fact that you make the distinction between political actors and normal everyday folk is an important step that many, many keyboard warriors should consider.

It’s funny that you mention about the definition/perception of leadership. I’m in a group on Facebook for USAF O’s (long story...) and there are a TON of posts in there about leadership development techniques, styles, etc. Every one that I have seen is generated by and subsequently flooded by a bunch of medical and MSG O’s. I posted one time that my leadership philosophy and mentorship program was primarily getting young guys to study and be good at killing the enemy (tangible results). They looked at me like I had 3 arms because I didn’t want to take the time to sing kumbaya and get to know the feelings of every individual. To them, that’s leadership even if the ability to do their job suffers. To me, doing the job at a high level and producing results is what matters. I’ll admit that the President sounds like a dipshit very often but he produces some good results. The former president definitely made people feel better about themselves but was light on things that mattered (I know that’s a gross over-simplification). My $0.02

Hey, in all math I know, B 5-2 = B 3. Sent from my iPhone using Baseops Network mobile app

We should be focusing on the mission that UNITES us, not the race baiting academic trash that divides us. Diversity is not strength, unity is strength. And we’re strongest when diverse people have unity of purpose in defending our nation together, executing the mission, and crushing our enemies.

Shack. I don't understand why people struggle so much to understand that at face value on here.

A lot has changed since 2016. The left went all out assault and declared war with little regard to anything. I’m 100% for the right to counter-attack. Sent from my iPhone using Baseops Network mobile app

Confident? Confident in what? That this guy will continue be incompetent if he’s re-elected? Let’s talk about that wall. As of the beginning of August, about 275 miles of wall had been built. Only 30 or so miles of new wall had been built where there were no existing barriers. Exact numbers may vary but I think you’ll agree that Trump has failed to come anywhere near achieving his vision of a big, beautiful wall spanning the length of the southern border. And no, Mexico has not paid for an inch of it. In fact, the military construction budget was pilfered to do it because, like with repealing the ACA, congress knows that a good talking point does not equal good government policy. If you want to call that a promise fulfilled, knock yourself out. The bigger, more tragic picture here is for all the talk about his stupid wall, there has been no meaningful discussion about real, effective, immigration reform. Want to curb illegal immigration? Maybe talk to the farmers and growers whose business model doesn’t work without cheap migrant labor. Back to repealing the ACA: N730 is exactly correct above. Republicans held both houses of Congress and the executive. They could have absolutely gotten that done, but in the decade since ACA was passed, conservatives have been wholely unable to come up with anything better. I would agree that the ACA has serious flaws. Republicans has their chance to fix it and abjectly failed. Trump could only offer the weak excuse: “who knew healthcare was so complicated?”. How about bringing law and order back to the apocalyptic cityscapes Trump so bleakly described in his inaugural speech? He’s been president for nearly four years. The streets that were actually bleak are bleaker and law and order is, in fact breaking down in places where it was previously peaceful. Trumps response has been to fan the flames and encourage his supporters to instigate further unrest. I do not believe for a second that The current or future Trump administration will make our streets remotely safer. The chaos he insists will be the result of a Biden administration is happening now, under his watch. What ever happened to infrastructure? Wasn’t that one of his “promises”? In four years his administration has been unable to get past initial talks with congress regarding an infrastructure bill, the one policy promise of this administration that had robust bipartisan support. The Democrats were willing to help him and he still couldn’t get it done. How about that Iran nuclear deal? Yeah, we pulled out of an imperfect agreement. Has that spurred any meaningful progress with the Iranian government. Is America safer because of it or has the region become even more unstable? Hint: it’s not the former. While we’re on the subject of foreign policy does anyone know what Trump got for spending the first year of his presidency fondling Kim Jong Un’s balls? Doesn’t seem like much has changed in Lil’ Kim’s people’s paradise. So let’s talk about something that’s one of Donnie’s strengths: The economy. It’s true that Wall Street seemed to love the man and his get out of the way policies. In fact, my own 401k swelled as a result of his economic policies. But, prosperity under Trump came in large part due to a tax cut that was extremely generous to big business, but is set to expire on average Joe’s like you and me. The real elephant in the room for those who would call themselves conservatives is that Trump is nothing of the sort when it comes to economic policy. So, at best he gets mixed reviews in this area. In fact, the only promise I can think of that the man unequivocally upheld was the promise to stack the Supreme Court with conservatives. I have to admit, the Republicans have played masterful politics here, basically stealing a nomination from the outgoing administration and putting a candidate in the White House with timing that got them another nomination and likely one more if they can hold the executive. If you’re a Republican, this is legitimate means to celebrate. But let’s face it: Any Republican candidate would have done just fine here. A Rubio, a Cruz, or a Bush would have absolutely put acceptable justices on the court. I fully expect a flurry of excuses from his supporters. Some may even have some validity buried in them somewhere. But one of his signature campaign phrases was “I alone can fix it”. He hasn’t. And all of this incompetence doesn’t even take into account the administration’s pathetic response to Covid-19, which I believe is a dead horse that I’ve already beaten in these forums. So if the ends justify the means for you; if another Supreme Court justice is worth the civil unrest, the decline of science and reason in our country, the abysmal global reputation we are fermenting, the further destabilization of troubled regions around the world, the jaded and cynical worldview one must accept to come to the conclusion that a man with no morals should be the leader of the free world.....if all of those things are worth it to you, then by all means vote to re-elect Donald Trump President of the United States for four more years.

They must have forgot that Coast Guard tankers are painted white and orange. It's a common error.

You’re right. Absolutely f*&k MSM that says it’s okay for protestors to be outside but it’s not okay for churchs to congregate. Seriously. I 100% agree that CNN and MSNBC have contributed just as much as FOX as to why our nation can’t have a unified approach to this natural disaster. I am personally not for any news organization; I am equally against everyone that is anti-science. Turns out that’s the majority of the government press and mainstream media. I believe that Dr. Fauci and the CDC are some of the last bastions of integrity and rational thought when it comes to public health, and it pisses me off to no end when news organizations cherry pick/misrepresent data from their reports to support political positions.

Ha haaa he said “feedback”. I think that’s the thing on your OPR where you just pick a random date and put it in the blank while you’re writing it for yourself.... Sent from my iPhone using Baseops Network mobile app

That's exactly the problem -- it is this kind of "begging the question", a statement that is made as fact when it has never been substantiated as being true. Immutable characteristics don't define anything about an individual's character, intelligence, skill, attitudes, etc. The layer after layer of self-selection that is required in order to find one's self in a UPT class virtually guarantees that there is a huge commonality of humanity, motivation, character, attitudes, etc., between classmates.

Considering nobody goes there that would be a dumb argument to make. How about highly globalized democracies such as South Korea or Japan which have much higher population densities, much higher at risk population demographic makeup, and have less cumulative deaths than we have had in 1 day with a lower loss of GDP over the last two quarters. There's economic research that shows the fallacy of the trade-off between economic outcomes vs preventative measures. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3561560 Our case fatality rate suggests our hospital system have done a good job at keeping people who are infected alive, but our casualty rate suggests we did not do a good job with preventative measures, and there was no economic trade-off in doing so as made clear by countries cited. It's not the end all be all of metrics but to say it's of limited value is disingenuous, especially considering we can compare economic and health outcomes to other countries. There is certainly a debate to have regarding federalism and individual liberty here, with countries like Taiwan adopting extremely concerning policies such as tracking people on quarantine via cell phone GPS and having officers search the public for citizens on quarantine. It is clear however this is not necessary to have an effective response, and the point stands that the leadership and messaging from the administration has been extremely ineffective. Examples include political pressure by tweeting to LIBERATE X state, endorsing mask use 5 months into the pandemic, budgetary cuts that eliminated programs dedicated to pandemic response from previous years, and a string of concerning tweets at the onset including "were going very substationally down, not up". And yes of course local leadership everywhere is also at fault, but I'm addressing the original issue of why we can't just ignore criticism towards the President because we have a federalist system.