Originally Posted by
Albief15
2000 + hours in fighters, combat on the ground during Desert Storm...
I won't wear anything BUT an ALPA lanyard. I didn't wear my FedEx stuff into my squadron when I flew in the ANG, but guys there knew I was proud of being an airline pilot. I don't wear military stuff into FedEx, not because I am not proud of what I did, but because I respect the profession and the work many did before me to get us where we are today in the industry. Fred Smith may have built FedEx, but the contracts we have--modeled after contracts at other airlines--came from years of effort, collective resolve, and sacrifice. I respected the culture of my service, and was proud of it. I certainly respect the culture of the US Marine Corp, and think the whole Quantico indoc process creates a damn good officer.
But like Huck--I know trip rig, duty rig, per diem, TCAS, GPWS, and a host of everything things we take for granted all came because somebody else helped bring them to us. ALPA has done a lot of us individually and collectively.
Wasn't it Patton who famously railed on troops for improper minor uniform infractions? "If I cannot get them to wear the right socks, how can I expect them to die for their country?" I feel the same way at FedEx. How can I trust you to have my back when the chips are down, when I cannot even get you to wear your lanyard?
Its your call. I'll never try to "intimidate" anyone. But if the University of XXX or flashing your old service is more important to you than showing a little unity, noted. I can't fix that. But I know what I will be wearing...
I thought Patton wanted other dumb bastards to die for their country?
And while I understand and appreciate your argument, we differ when it comes to the heart of the issue, which is whether or not a man can be trusted simply by something as arbitrary as a lanyard. Or whether unity is to be derived from such a litmus test. If only it were that simple, and therefore it seems unreasonable to reduce the essence of our collectivity to an item that we use to hold our company credentials.
Truth is, if there ever comes a time, God forbid, when the chips are truly down, I believe that many would act in accordance with our union directives, but that many, far too many, would not, lanyards be damned. That's all that really matters, a situation that hopefully we will never have to face.
In the end, this lanyard stuff is nothing but fluff. That it bothers people so dearly is something that I will never for the life of me understand.
Again, while I do appreciate your argument, we just differ at the heart!