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Friend of patient: "What is it doc?" Doc: "It's cancer." Friend of patient: "Oh crap. Well we can't tell him that." Doc: "What? Why not?" Friend of patient: "Well you can say whatever you want, but that won't play well. He has made it clear that he doesn't think it is cancer and trying to convince him otherwise is not going to be a good use of time. It won't be an effective message for this audience." Doc: "Uhm. It's cancer."

#4 fire, #2 throttle stuck at 12k in/lbs.

So if I believe our tax code is broke then I can intentionally not adhere to it (i.e. not pay my taxes) and progressives will support me in doing so? Haha--fat chance... Progressives want illegal immigration for future votes because they know that historical data clearly shows that immigrants (once they are given amnesty/apply for citizenship) and their children are much more likely to vote for politicians that support an increase of social programs. Plenty of research which discusses this in detail--let me know if you need the links. Businesses obviously support illegal immigration because of the cheap labor...something the traditional GOP always supported until the issue was made to the lower/middle class Americans.

Patriotism is what gets you to serve a 10-year ADSC when you are young and single. Money is what helps keep you in past your commitment once you have a family. All the General’s I’ve been exposed to seemed to think that no amount of money would affect people’s decision to stay. I think they have it backwards. The people who are going to stay regardless don’t care about the money. For plenty of folks on the fence money is a huge factor in their decision I’ve talked to plenty of guys on a bro level who will readily admit that a $50-60K annual bump in pay (without stupid long ADSCs attached to it) post ADSC would likely have gotten them to stay in. It’s not that the AF ever had to match airline pay, they just needed to provide a decent increase to make pilots continue to put of with the BS and lower QoL inherent in military service. Hell, even just making the $35K annual professional pay would likely get a few guys to serve an extra year or two.

I applied twice (once for a sq/cc job I was competitively selected for) and was denied release by the Afrc/cv. 11F When they denied me the second time, I dropped retirement paperwork that day. So they lost yet another 11F....in this case one who was actually willing to continue serving.

Please. Let’s not play the race card.

Do tell

How about you respond to his question regarding income taxes?...you're intelligent enough to know the difference between income tax vs FICA taxes.

They might pay $9 Billion but what do they cost in local, state, and federal dollars? https://www.fairus.org/sites/default/files/2017-08/USCostStudy_2010.pdf Answer: A hell of a whole lot more at $113 Billion.

Upmass. It's really expensive to put stuff into orbit. Check sarcasm detector bro

Here’s my 2 cents... during exit surveys and during talks with the CSAF (saw this with my very own eyes), pilots who get out/want to get out state that extra pay wouldn’t have changed their mind and that it’s about QoL. With that said I’m not sure if money not being a factor really is completely true. First the exit interview I saw back in 2016 asked if an extra $10k/yr would have changed your mind on a scale of 1-10 ie 35k/yr. They never asked if a $50k/yr or 100k/yr bonus would have changed their mind. But even if they asked the question I believe the data would be skewed as i believe it’s human nature especially for most pilots to say this is the decision I made and I’m not gonna change my mind based on a survey question. They say to themselves I invested time, money, and energy prepping for interviews, getting my ATP, etc and I wouldn’t have changed my mind for anything in the world. This is their new goal and path and nothing’s gonna change my mind. Just human nature. IMO people see the bonuses offered a year or two a head of time and start making a decision to pursue the airline option and by the time the bonus comes out they are pretty well invested in their new path. So to break the cycle they need to put out a substantial bonus to increase retention and WAIT 3 years. But senators and USAF leadership also have made up their mind based on poorly made surveys that money won’t help and just like the pilots who get out and say it’s not about the money they are firm in their convictions. The other issue I see is that in the heavy community QoL equals a slower ops tempo. Correct me if I’m wrong but I don’t see the CSAF specifically mentioned to Congress/Senate that we must reduce ops tempo. So if extra money and lower ops tempo are off the table. What’s left qeep? I can’t see retention increasing until airlines slow down hiring. But even if we have a recession, mandatory retirements will be happening. So all the USAF has left is increasing pilot production, try to recall to AD, stop loss (hopefully off the table), pray for a massive recession and reduce qeep. As more and more people get out, if I were them I’d try a $70/yr bonus and see what happens before it’s too late... if it’s not too late already.

I admit total ignorance on the topic, but your comment shamed me into some reading on the article IV outer space treaty. So why haven’t we been dropping tungsten rods on white bongo trucks the last 15 years? I want the next JFIRE to have calls for fire TTPs for a damn space gun.

The first time I applied for the afrotc det/cc board and was selected. I thought Afrc would be thrilled for the representation not to mention everyone had told me for years to do awc, get a masters, deploy and command. (I’ve done all but command) Second time I applied for a rated staff job I knew had vacancies. If you know what you want, tell them. If you want to see what’s available apply and afpc will give you a call. The whole process takes an incredible four months. Amazingly, the process goes through Afpc for all the staff work before Afrc decides if they are going to release you. It was pretty embarrassing to have some great people at Randolph spend a lot of hours staffing all of this only to have Afrc say no. Twice.

Why should they not arrive properly through a port of entry and use the immigration process?

Because it's never a good use of time to express the truth. /sarc

I understand you have an answer for my observations of hypocrisy. When the same people tell me Christian bakers must celebrate a lifestyle their conscience opposes, then turn around and say it’s ok for a restaurant owner to deny service to folks whose beliefs they oppose...I see hypocrisy & none of your rationalizations are convincing. Our left/right bickering increasingly sounds like a married couple right before they divorce. Every small disagreement is war; which side will be the first to suggest an amicable separation? California seems poised to try. You can say you don’t like Maxine, but as our political polarization increases the moderate voices will be squashed in favor of brash assholes. I almost commented something similar to your FB post of the George Will article; George is definitely a relic from the era of compromise and he hates the anger of the GOP base. But folks are pissed on both sides and we can’t compromise. I don’t believe in the concept of a protected class, how can we even start to have this discussion? tough times ahead bro. I wish we could agree on more.

I assume you’re talking about the group of pilots that met with Senators Cotton and King last year. If you’re not, I apologize and take the rest for what it’s worth. There’s a lot of misinformation going around about that group, what they did and didn’t say, and what they were told going into the meeting. My buddy was in the group, and I was in DC that week so I went with him to a meet and greet where the SAF/LL dude met with them to go over expectations. They were never told they had to say X or couldn’t say Y. They WERE told that going in with guns on the money issue would not play well, specifically with senator Cotton, who had made it clear he thought that the 20K bonus was plenty large enough, and that people should want to serve out of pure patriotism. Spending the meeting trying to convince him otherwise was not going to be a good use of time. They were told about initiatives that HAF was working on to improve QOL in case they wanted to talk about those issues. My understanding is that some of the folks went with a hybrid approach, talking about how low QOL + the airline pay/hiring frenzy, made it difficult to choose to stay. They seemed like a good group of guys and I’m sure they said what they thought they should to improve things. I wouldn’t crap all over them because they didn’t go in demanding more money. It wasn’t going to be an effective message for that audience.

Homosexuals are a protected class and people with seriously held religious convictions aren’t? Do we get to vote on who is a protected class? Do I have a say in who is allowed more equality than me? And can anyone reconcile the idea of a “protected class” with a society of equals? The hypocrisy in your viewpoint is staggering. Business owners either can or can’t dictate who they serve. In my opinion, they can and I’m fine with Sanders being tossed out. But your opinion apparently is that rules can change to enable outcomes you like. i enjoy listening to the debates in this thread, and I think the group here does it with more civility than anywhere else. So it’s interesting to cut to the heart of these debates on both sides, it allows us to understand the logic driving other viewpoints. That’s cool. But without standards applied equally this whole form of government falls apart.

Geezus, just more hypocritical stuff from the left. I guess “tolerance and compassion” in 2018 aren’t what I thought they were. And as far as the cake thing. The guy doesn’t bake Halloween cakes or any other thing his conscience doesn’t allow him to glorify in art per his religion. He happily serves anyone cupcakes etc. Who comes to his business. I thought he sounded like an A—hole too reading CNN til I saw his interview and heard his beliefs. I’m quasi left in my social views but I can’t stand the left being a—holes then playing the “we are doing it on the name of tolerance!” The progressive left are the hateful, bigot racists in reality if you examine the raw data. Look what happens when a black or woman speaks out of turn. Look how they treat people who don’t hold their views. 2016 really exposed the true character of progressives.

I would never voluntarily leave my family for more than a few months... the military will involuntarily force you to leave them a lot more than that over the course of a career and that is time you will never, ever get back. And then you die. Better to be on your death bed with kids you raised and had the joy of watching grow up. I would say try to find a way to keep them with you. If you can't do that... stay with them.