Originally Posted by
Duke Beamer
I appreciate your honesty and your perspective in the midst of the usual suspects of Eeyores, Naysayers, Miserables, and DoomsDayers.
F Scott Fitzgerald said, “
The test of a first-rate intelligence
is the ability to hold two
opposed ideas
in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.”
Because some people point out where our contract falls short and that it is entirely possible with some education, a little gumption, and some backbone that our pilot group could improve the lots of ourselves, our families, and our profession does not mean that we cannot simultaneously recognize that we pilots, and for that matter most Americans, have it better than the vast majority of people who live on this planet.
After all, earning more than $118,000 per year (most pilots at SWA) puts a person in the top 10% of income earners in the US. Moreover, if a person earns more than $32,400 per year (likely > 99.99% of SWA pilots), they are in the top 1% of income earners globally. The jobs we have here at SWA (or nearly any airline) are truly something to be grateful for. Our jobs provide us with an income, and a lifestyle, that most people on Earth can only dream about.
Should being able to recognize all that we have to be grateful for stop us from advocating for better? Or must we fall exclusively into one of two camps: complaining, never-satisfied Eeyores or grateful, always-compliant Pollyannas?