I seriously considered UAL in 2007, but I had some family circumstances and it wasn't a good time to take a big chance...if I had been single I probably would have gone for it. But I think we all realized it was a risky bet...

 

Why don't you hit up our X President for passing age 65 OVERNIGHT.

 

Careful, you might get your wrist smacked for typing that name.

 

good call. we can't all be 40 year old RJ pilots that speak 4 languages...somebody has to do it.

 

Uh, wasn't this regulatory change years in the making? I know there was time for ALPA to poll the pilots and to have time to come down on both sides of the issue, anyway. You know, they were against it right up until they were for it.

ALPA pretty much changed it's position on the issue post 9/11 when everyone's pensions were destroyed in bankruptcy and it looked like a lot of old farts needed to work 5 more years to have some kind of retirement. I actually think this made a whole lot of sense.

 

You think raising the retirement age to 65 made a whole lot of sense?

So, you and ALPA's fix of working until you die, instead of shutting the country down, or going out fighting and kicking, or screaming to bring to light the injustice of losing your pension after working for a company for 30 plus years, like these "victims" of the Madoff scandal are doing, is really what you support?

Great. Do you want to give up 30 & 7 or minimum rest requirements, too? That way the over 60'ers can really make more money and quicker, too!!!

New K Now

(Yeah, I'm just going to mess with you until you respond to me in the other thread.)

 

Other thread? Man, if it's the iMac vs. PC thread, I give up! Mercy!

As to the age 65 extension: of course trading a pension for 5 more years of work isn't an equitable trade. Please don't throw out ridiculous "sraw man" arguments like that . . no one is suggesting anything of the sort.

However, I merely wanted to note that:

1. The preceding president didn't do this with the stroke of a pen in the dark of night. It followed the normal process of rules changes that were posted in the Federal register and could be contested in the usual manner.

2. ALPA surveyed this change in the rule, and even within ALPA pre-9/11, something like 40% of the member ship WANTED THE CHANGE. (I was not one of them, FWIW)

3. Post 9/11, that 40% very likely went above 50% (for an age 65 rule) when pensions evaporated. We'll never know for certain, of course, but it seems a reasonable assumption.

Personally, I'd rather retire with a full pension after 20 years of service like a typical government hack, but private business can't afford it.

 

The thread about the NMB nomination, Mrs. Puchala. Was that not you?

 

Hmm. I don't get the Puchala reference. Yeah, I posted something there about some lovey-dovey water carrying for a certain politician, but didn't see the point in returning due to the no-politics policy of APC.

The temptation to comment, I'm afraid, would be too great.