My main reason for commenting is that I think it is ridiculous that a downgraded captain feels the right to wear 4 stripes because they are mad they downgraded. What would you think if your FO walked in with 4 stripes and said I should have 4 stripes because when i was hired it was a 2 year upgrade and i have been here for 6. You would most likely think he was a tool.
I actually pulled aside a guy I knew when I ran into him in DTW knowing he was downgraded and was still wearing 4 stripes. I let him know that it was entirely disrespectful, and even though he was dealt a bad hand with the merger he needed to man up and respect the guy in the left seat. His excuse was "I'm not spending the money on new stripes." To which. I replied "if you can't afford $5 for new stripes at the crew outfitters here go see the base manager and they'll hook you up."
That type of stuff I just flat out don't put up with.