This ^^^^ attitude is the biggest difference I see as a DALPA subject rather than an NWA ALPA member. "Whistling past the graveyard" is going to do nothing to alter reality. NWA ALPA always went into negotiations fully expecting to have to bet our jobs in the high stakes business of labor negotiations. And they did. Multiple times. Post 911, the company successfully linked pension legislation in Washington with the BK contract and divided and conquered.
DALPA, on the other hand, clings to the perception that we are "All in this together" with management, and "Our Special Relationship" will bring us an equitable response. If we can only let someone else go before us, then we can get Unical, or SWA plus __%. While this pattern bargaining was successful in the past, in case you haven't noticed, the current guys on the "other side of the table" are the same ones that we had to go eyeball to eyeball with at NWA. Until we elect representation that sees opportunity as opposed to danger, all we are doing is waiting for our masters to serve the scraps. It doesn't matter here if you are a widebody CA, LCA, "throne king" on Virginia Avenue or a Mad Dog FO in NYC, every one of us is still in bankruptcy, and the only solace anyone is taking is that they are at least doing better than someone else. We are and have been "flatlined", and hoping that someone else's "turn in the box" changes that, is "whistling past the graveyard".