Originally Posted by
Funky Twins
Call me a socialist or even a commie, but maybe the government should chip in to solve this problem. The bottom line is that none of the regional first officers can afford reasonable and legal (which meets all the fire codes and building codes as ABC NEWS pointed out) accomodations in many of these places while supporting a spouse and a couple of kids, so we are being forced in to situations like these. This problem is real, it is here, and the government should do something about it now.
I get it. I see what you are saying. You want the government to come in and change the conditions you so readily accepted on day 1 of training. So, to be frank, what you
really want is for the government to control your life, your job, your pay, your benefits, etc. Basically, you want the government to cease all of your personal property and possessions and provide you with what
they consider to be "needed." Yeah, I'd say that is about the essence of Socialism. I hear Vietnam is quite nice this year. You should check into it. You might find that....it sucks!
That rant being said, I still stand in awe at home many people out there believe that they are being screwed by their airline's management and that they literally are being "forced" to be subject to such harsh work conditions. Every single aspect of your life is dictated by the choices that a person makes. The amazing thing that this country, and the free-market capitalist system our country was founded on is that we are (supposed to be) 100% FREE to make our own choices. In our country, nobody ever stands before you and FORCES you to make any decision. In our industry, the conditions suck as much as you allow them to suck. By CHOOSING to accept a job with such conditions is a result of nothing but your OWN DECISION. When you get offered a job with crap pay, or without knowing where you are going to based, or without knowing all the little details that you want to know, you are consciously choosing to accept the conditions as presented.
Finally, when I accepted my flying job, I accepted it knowing knowing exactly what I was getting into and exactly what I was subjecting myself to. The reason why I did such a think was plain and simple..... because I chose to!
John Galt once said, "Every man builds his world in his own image. He has the power to choose, but no power to escape the necessity of choice. If he abdicates his power, he abdicates the status of man, and the grinding chaos of the irrational is what he achieves as his sphere of existence – by his own choice."