The always entertaining Bill Maher interviews Captain Sullenberger. He talks about the airline industry cutting corners and how they are using unsafe pratices. Interesting and funny interview.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnnUsw-UYMA

Didn't take the unions long to co-opt ol Sully...

I just can't believe how much of a celebrity this guy has become. But good for him! What a guy.

Go SULLY!

Didn't take the unions long to co-opt ol Sully...

Why do you assume he was "co-opted" and didn't already feel the way he does about things? A heck of a lot of airline pilots I know say the same things he said here about the industry.

Why do you assume he was "co-opted" and didn't already feel the way he does about things?

Certainly my comment was presumptuous and next time I'll include the appropriate emoticon to indicate my flippancy :(

A heck of a lot of airline pilots I know say the same things he said here about the industry.

I'm sure you are correct. In fact, regarding wages, I'll take your comment a step further and say with 100% certainty that I have never met a single adult (regardless of industry) who didn't think they "deserved" or at least desired a raise :LMAO:It turns out I'm not a big fan of Maher or unions. After watching the interview, all I got was that pilots don't get paid enough and that's what caused the Colgate crash. To me that's a bit of a stretch...Cheers!Buddy

Certainly my comment was presumptuous and next time I'll include the appropriate emoticon to indicate my flippancy :rolleyes:I'm sure you are correct. In fact, regarding wages, I'll take your comment a step further and say with 100% certainty that I have never met a single adult (regardless of industry) who didn't think they "deserved" or at least desired a raise :LMAO:It turns out I'm not a big fan of Maher or unions. After watching the interview, all I got was that pilots don't get paid enough and that's what caused the Colgate crash. To me that's a bit of a stretch...Cheers!Buddy

You don't think being overworked and underpaid, resulting in fatigue and stress could have a factor in an accident? No one said low pay caused the crash, by the way. I think you'd have a different perspective if you had your pension taken away and took a 40% pay cut.

You don't think being overworked and underpaid, resulting in fatigue and stress could have a factor in an accident? No one said low pay caused the crash, by the way. I think you'd have a different perspective if you had your pension taken away and took a 40% pay cut.

RE: Overworked = The FAA has "regulations" in place to take care of this.RE: Underpaid = As I mentioned earlier, everyone I know believes that they are underpaid. So we're all stressed. Certainly the FO was willing to take a salary of $19,000 (or whatever it was). Nobody forced her to take the job. She could have been a schoolteacher and gotten twice as much and worked 8 months out of the year... but she didn't. Her choice. RE: Pensions/paycuts. I create my own paycheck and my own pension, so I will eventually succeed or fail based on my own merit and I "eat what I kill". Trust me, you can't imagine the stress of not having a 9-5... I'm done with this one boys! I can see this thread turning into a political/ideology debate which will blow up like the Hindenberg!Cheers to all!Buddy

Please, I'll just pretend I didn't read that one of my beloved fellow FSers isn't a big fan of unions! What would you know if you work for yourself? What a horrific statement, especially in the context of the aviation industry. Get a bit of perspective.Cheers,RudyPS I never should actually post this, but my blood is boiling too much! Sorry.

Certainly my comment was presumptuous and next time I'll include the appropriate emoticon to indicate my flippancy :rolleyes:I'm sure you are correct. In fact, regarding wages, I'll take your comment a step further and say with 100% certainty that I have never met a single adult (regardless of industry) who didn't think they "deserved" or at least desired a raise :LMAO:It turns out I'm not a big fan of Maher or unions. After watching the interview, all I got was that pilots don't get paid enough and that's what caused the Colgate crash. To me that's a bit of a stretch...Cheers!Buddy

While I agree, some people say they deserve to make more and it's simply not true; like bank CEO's. But in this case the argument was that pilots don't get paid enough to cover the expenses of their job. Its not right when you work for a company and spend more to do your job than what you make for doing it.

RE: Underpaid = As I mentioned earlier, everyone I know believes that they are underpaid.

I'm sorry. As an educator that made less than $10,000 last year, there are some of us who really are underpaid.

As an airline employee and a union member who's been taking it in the shorts while the executives give themselves raises, I'm going to behave myself. This isn't the place for this conversation. BTW, I work for the same company that Captain Sullenberger did.

RE: Overworked = The FAA has "regulations" in place to take care of this.RE: Underpaid = As I mentioned earlier, everyone I know believes that they are underpaid. So we're all stressed. Certainly the FO was willing to take a salary of $19,000 (or whatever it was). Nobody forced her to take the job. She could have been a schoolteacher and gotten twice as much and worked 8 months out of the year... but she didn't. Her choice. RE: Pensions/paycuts. I create my own paycheck and my own pension, so I will eventually succeed or fail based on my own merit and I "eat what I kill". Trust me, you can't imagine the stress of not having a 9-5... I'm done with this one boys! I can see this thread turning into a political/ideology debate which will blow up like the Hindenberg!Cheers to all!Buddy

I agree 100%Like he stated, she could've had another job, where she was making more money.We all know that aviation is a costly adventure, and if you want to succeed in it, you have to WORK your way to the top...a stressful job with many sleepless nights and low wages are just ways to get there...or you can join the military, who pays for it, but is even more stressful then civilian flying. Either way, to get to be a major airline pilot, it is gonna take hard work and dedication. Period.I hate when people blame the Colgan Accident on low wages...because it isn't. It was the pilots' inablitiy to keep SA and know what is going on around them...and also the Capt. who "pulled up" in a stall, which is a huge mistake that nobody (with proper training) should make.Sure, I will admit they didn't make much, and didn't get much sleep, and were pressured at their jobs. But really, thats not the cause of the accident. The cause was pilot error.

Ok, I said I was done... but I feel compelled to defend myself.

Please, I'll just pretend I didn't read that one of my beloved fellow FSers isn't a big fan of unions! What would you know if you work for yourself? What a horrific statement, especially in the context of the aviation industry. Get a bit of perspective.Cheers,RudyPS I never should actually post this, but my blood is boiling too much! Sorry.

Horrific statement? Come on Rudy, I expect more out of you than that! I'm a real estate developer, so guess what? I have interacted (at least have in the past) with unions my entire career! I won't consider hiring a union electrician/carpenter/plumber if I have the choice. In fact, a colleague of mine who develops on the east coast prefers working with the mafia (that's right.... the Tony Sopranos of the world) over unions... Simply because "At least the mob has honor". Asserting that I have no perspective because I disagree with alleged marching orders without providing any basis... is in fact horrific. I'll think for myself thank you!

While I agree, some people say they deserve to make more and it's simply not true; like bank CEO's.

The Wall Street CEO's are effectively unionized by the federal government (i.e. bailouts).

I'm sorry. As an educator that made less than $10,000 last year, there are some of us who really are underpaid.

Congrats. We're in the same boat. Not many people are building buildings like crazy... You actually made about $7,000 more than me. And yes, I do think I'm worth much more!

As an airline employee and a union member who's been taking it in the shorts while the executives give themselves raises, I'm going to behave myself. This isn't the place for this conversation. BTW, I work for the same company that Captain Sullenberger did.

Fair enough. Eventually, on a long enough time line, the opportunity cost of "taking it in the shorts" at the expense of management salaries will cause one of two things: 1) You'll look for a new job, or 2) You'll continue taking it in the shorts. The sky is the limit amigo! I wish you the best of luck.

I agree 100%

Thanks for chiming in. It was getting awfully lonely in here...Finally, to everyone... I'm not here to light anyone's fire. Just thought I'd throw in my $0.02. If you agree, great... If not that's cool too. However, please don't assume that I am ill informed, misguided, or worse simply because I don't share the same beliefs. Please leave the personal attacks on the sidelines!Cheers!Buddy

Didn't take the unions long to co-opt ol Sully...

To come away from that interview with that comment being the first reaction is a really sad indicator of our national discourse....Not because I'm Pro-Union, but because I think we can all agree that the unions have absolutely nothing to do with the zero sum game our airlines find themselves in right now. Sully's first comment about not wanting his kids to get in the profession is the most telling. Ask most parent's who are successful in their particular chosen industry if they would recommend it to their kids and they would mostly say "yes". Ask that same question to a successful airline pilot, and chances are the majority would say, "not for my kids, no."

Sully didn't even say anything overtly political in that interview - he actually dodged the question when Maher asked about any broader context.I'm gonna lock this thread if it just turns into political crap - there's a bazillion other forums on the internet where you can have that debate.