Originally Posted by
Carl Spackler
You're not listening. Yes there would be additional political pressure on the NMB to not release Delta pilots to strike when compared directly to Spirit, but that's not the point. The point is ALPA/DALPA/tsquare saying the NMB is now a barrier to striking and using APA as your "proof." It's simply not true. The NMB doesn't operate that way.
If you make strategic mistakes in the process, then yes, the NMB won't budge in their process. If you do things correctly, the NMB will release you to strike. The fact that ALPA is using the NMB as the excuse to never be able to strike again is the salient point in this discussion. Why a union would actively be looking for excuses as to why they can longer strike is THE point regarding Mr. Moak's ALPA.
Carl
I prefer to not be in that position to prove that I am a badass.
So let's suppose you are right, and to a degree I actually agree with you that the NMB WOULD at some point in time release us. How bad would things have gotten to have reached that point? Yup. DAL is printing money right now, and yup.. we deserve more of it. The unfortunate fact is that there is no other airline out there that has made any significant leaps over us in this process. UniCal didn't. AAMRQ certainly didn't. SWA? in negotiations, and probably won't either. So how can you rationalize that we would be released in what most would consider a timely fashion? Or more to the point, how are the doughnut boys gonna sell to the membership that they can get us released quickly to "force" the company to pony up a LOT more money? I know you don't believe in the time value of money, but I do, and Warren Buffet does, and I respect his money prowess a hell of a lot more than yours or certainly Tim Caplinger's. I'll take a little now, a little more next year rather than a little more than that in 5 years. YMMV.