How much should our next Negotiating Chairman give away? Answering that [question] might help you decide who should be next. So far, the history of our MEC, the former NC (prior to FE), and the SIG have NOT been good. Without our FDA LOA, our CDG crews could have been subjected to EU/French labor laws. When they take a day off (strike), so would FedEx. FDX Corp absolutely needed those crews to be MEM domiciled, residing in CDG, subject to the RLA to avoid any labor issues. The CBA limits ground transport to 2 hours. YOU CAN NOT get from HKG to CAN in under 2 hours. So . . . [we] waived it. And now, we're waiving the non-public transportation restriction. Those two HUGE hammers were never used, and I'm not sure if they were considered. Want a few more give-aways? Read the last two FCIFs on VTO BLGs, and then show me in our CBA where there's a waiver to the 13 credit hour split. I'll help you - read 25.D.1 and 25.D.2. I know the Company is buying up lines - so . . . apply the 13 hour split to the low built line. I only have one 'rule-book' to work with - the CBA, and I have NO CLUE what we've given away, or what closed door agreement has been made. And, is there anybody that's been able to use the 'grid'?

We're apparently battling now on B-777 pay - and I've heard arguments going both directions. It's smaller than a B-747, and when we had them on the property, they were paid wide body pay. That was then - this is now. We negotiated a pay scale for a [new] aircraft - and we had to give something up for that scale. Is the Company going to give anything back to be able to pay the B-777 at our current scale? Doubt it!

I would be fearful now of what our ALPA leadership is considering to mitigate any reduction in force. The first answer should be NO. Besides accounting for all the hours now in our pairings - especially the MD-11 RFO and long range flights (over 8 hours), limiting carry-over, and narrowing the split temporarily from 13 (between low and high BLG) back to 8:30, or even less would certainly help. Or, as I eluded to earlier, start complying with the CBA.

'Things' are in the CBA because they COST. If [it] was free, I wouldn't need to negotiate [it]. Sitting at a ramp in a jet over two hours isn't operational - it's administrative and economics. It costs to split the segments. Putting in recliners, vending machines, bathrooms with hot and cold water isn't operational - it's administrative and economics. Stopping for gas in Fiji is operational. Typhoons and earthquakes are operational. Ice storms and snow are operational.

Please - PLEASE - pay attention to who becomes our next NC Chairman. Look at who our next MEC Chairman will be. And in your spare time, it wouldn't hurt to take another look at our CBA. Thanks, I feel better now.