Specifically, in October 2000 when the Delta MEC excluded the ASA and Comair pilots' attempt at finding a single carrier status with Delta.

I wrote then that allowing an alter ego was teaching management that a separate airline within the airline was feasible. Separate standards for different divisions within Delta would undermine ALPA's work in safety and quality of life, because if a lower standard was safe at one division, it would be acceptable at mainline eventually. Today, Delta's contract is a lot more like ASA's 1999 contract than it is Delta's contract from the same period. The lower standard has been accepted, just as I wrote that it would.

Management is always looking to reduce costs and increase efficiency. The easiest way to reduce costs is to replace Delta pilots.

Maybe some people are finally beginning to understand what I've been working on for the better part of 15 years now. It is not about recapturing RJ's. This is about controlling the market for labor, top and bottom line. We, as an association, should work to control the Company's entire productive capacity within one MEC.

As you know, our MEC has been excluding players for a long time. We kicked Compass to the curb. We excluded Comair and ASA. Hell, for a minute the NWA MEC even feared we were going to do the same to them.

But, we did the right thing with NWA and we all benefitted from unity.

Our MEC's scope experts have been more inclusive of large aircraft flying, but we still build walls to separate pilots rather than build walls which keep us together. Delta is a large conglomerate and we are an ever shrinking percentage of what is relevant to Delta's productive capacity. Moving forward we have to build inclusive scope. We have to draw the circles so that they include, rather than exclude, or permit.