I lived in a base only attainable at Mesa and didn't want to commute to a (at the time) only slightly better company with a bunch of kids at home. No, didn't upgrade at Mesa. Got out about the time I could have upgraded. I always say do what's best for each person's individual circumstances (minus scabbing of course). Mesa got me for 18 months of cheap labor. I guess if you say they used me and I used them that wouldn't be wrong. But i would have been worse off at any other airline I would have had to commute to. I drove to work, got the experience I needed to get on at a real airline, and flew with some good people along the way. Oh and I voted no and urged others to as well. My being there 18 months didn't really perpetuate the bad contract. Supply and demand, changing market conditions and a dynamic regional environment with the quick upgrade train and movement kept classes full. It's a house of cards that I consistently said wasn't sustainable without substantial contractual and pay improvements. Don't see the irony in it.