That's just it, everyone that's currently in the industry thought they'd just work for regionals for like 2 years, then move on to majors. 7-10 years just at the regionals is becoming common. It's not as bad CFIing, but people can still spend 3-5 years doing that before having a shot at even regionals. Then factor in that the major airlines really like to hire ex-military pilots and that regional pilots are jumping ship for OTHER REGIONALS, the system is broken as far as the classic idea of getting a little time and moving on to "big jets". Traditionally regionals have been a very small part of the airline force and most pilots have come from the military (30 years ago). Now regionals are huge. Will this change? No one really knows. What can you do? Lots of things besides being an airline pilot. There are lots of ways to fly airplanes and experience aviation, while earning a decent income.