I think a spirited debate can really help to expand everyone’s knowledge base to enable optimum input to the MEC and NC for the upcoming JCBA. And not everyone is GOING TO AGREE, because commuters have different things that affect them than people who live in base do, people with young kids have different needs than those without, people with spouses who have great family insurance plans or a spouses career geographically fixed jobs…, we’ll, you get the drift.

Eventually we are going to have to all compromise - suboptimizing what we each would really individually like because of the the needs of our fellow pilots. But that educational process isn’t going to work as well if we get into personal attacks and name calling nor does it help the negotiations if management believes we are fractured and divided as a pilot group.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m as opinionated as anyone, but let’s keep it cordial if we can and be ready once we are done to all come together and push for the best deal we can get. JCBAs give the unions involved a lot more advantage than a CBA that the company is just as happy to let drag out for months or years. Let’s give everybody’s ideas a fair hearing and in the end come together in union for the best possible JCBA.