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We are literally de-evolving intellectually as a species. The entire point of The Enlightenment was the idea that humans could use logic and reason to transcend what had previously been tribal barriers to knowledge and understanding of other humans. That the human experience was common to all humans, and that personal experience (e.g. "my truth") could be understood and empathized with by other humans. People are now being taught from a young age -- not just through formal education, but through social cues and other informal learning, and in a wide variety of social and cultural groups -- that one's identity group is the most important characteristic of their existence, which is the diametric opposite concept. This is a road that has a bad end for human civilization.

You're right. This is absolutely a solution in search of a problem. I don't think there is any long term race or gender based washout data that exists, let alone any that supports this idiotic COA. But what's worse is that the people who this is geared toward are actively recoiling against it. The person who brought this dumpster fire to my attention is a female pilot. When I asked her if this initiative would help female student pilots feel more included and improve their performance, she said not only no, but f*** no. Turns out a good way of making people feel like they're part of the team is to not sequester them over on the side doing their own special thing. Women and minorities can do anything in the Air Force.. except avoid being pandered to by generals.

What is insane is that so many people accept without question the theory that in a truly fair and equitable world, every career field would reflect the US population's statistical spread of (insert immutable human characteristic here). There is lots and lots and lots of sociological data throughout history and spanning many societies that counters that theory. It is very, very sad that supposedly smart people in the Air Force have bought into a worldview that yields tokenism over competence.

They must have forgot that Coast Guard tankers are painted white and orange. It's a common error.

So do you have a refutation for the post, or just gonna run away with your feelings hurt appealing to some supposed future moral superiority? It was well laid out, even had pictures for our presidential types, and has sources. Dude's not a robot, and is passionate about it. "It" being not killing old people with our selfishness. But whatever, you do you from 6ft away and/or with a mask please.

Roughly 1/3 of those hours/sorties are trips to and from OshKosh.

This post is unfortunately more condescending than I like, but I guess it is what it is. Your analysis is, at best, fallacious and, at worst, intentionally misleading. I'll trust in Hanlon's razor and just assume incompetence over malice. Also, you'll note that these graphs have websites at the bottom. It's a thing called a "source." You still are ignoring excess mortality and arguing that COVID has had marginal total effects, all with no actual data to back it up. Your stats for Flu/Chronic Respiratory Disease/Diabetes show... nothing? They don't compare apples to apples. You would need to have TOTAL deaths for FLU/Chronic Lower Respiratory Disease/Diabetes in 2020, including both COVID and non-COVID - and it would need to be extrapolated to December - to compare the two datasets. Tons of people, literally the vast majority of them (>99%), live with and through those diseases every year. The fact that there are cases where they died with COVID only really proves that COVID does what has been said: causes death in the population. Literally nothing more. It just shows that deaths happen. Now if you could extrapolate the data from everyone that got COVID, then you could possibly compare the outcomes of the population without COVID that died from those diseases to the population with COVID that did, but that's not even close to what you did. Your argument that they had a pre-existing condition and would have died "regardless" is also absurd. Do you know how many people have pre-existing conditions in America? 40% of the country is obese for god's sake. The fact that a huge percentage of society has pre-existing conditions should be ASSUMED in discussions like these. The population of America is at risk health-wise, no duh, but that doesn't mean they are going to keel over and die year-to-year. 1) What do you think caused the 200k excess deaths up to this point this year? And how exactly does it matter what is a CF or a RC? When it comes down to death statistics, there is a reason why they don't put CF/RC on the death certificate: it usually doesn't matter because it's a combination of health effects that causes mortality. And before you go there, of course people with COVID that died in a car accident did NOT die of COVID, I'm not arguing that. But what's the difference from this year to the last decade? These people died because of something different. What could it be? Spoilers: It's the coronavirus combined with a naturally vulnerable population that ALWAYS EXISTS based on how humans age. 2) Here's the one other logical fallacy I'll dig into a little more (feel free to have me address more later). Your argument that folks with pre-existing conditions would have died "regardless" is horseshit. I bet even you or someone in your family has a pre-existing condition, based on the statistics. Or at least your VA claim will show it here in a few years. I'll put down money on that one. The number of Americans that have a pre-existing condition is up to 86% by insurer's definitions for people age 55-64. 48% of them have a no-shit health high risk pre-existing condition. They don't even report on those older than that, because it's basically assumed that the majority of the aged population has something significantly wrong with their health. "Sorry grandma, I know you have diabetes and high blood pressure, which you could probably live with for another 10-15 years with simple treatment, but the economy must open up. Although COVID disproportionately kills those over the age of 70 - and if you get it you have a high chance of hospitalization and a 5-10% chance of death - that is a sacrifice I am willing to make. Ignore the fact that we likely will have a working vaccine in the next year which would stop all of this, my mutual funds need to go up NOW. FAKE NEWS. DON'T TREAD ON ME." Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-02483-2 It's not that hard. Wear your stupid mask, stop hanging out with all your friends, put your travel plans on a temporary hold, get over the fact that national sports and colleges aren't gonna be on TV, and understand that society isn't actually powerless when it comes to battling infectious disease. For all the shit conservatives give liberals over being babies, they have a real problem toughening up and adjusting their lifestyle temporarily for a global catastrophe. Literally FOX News hosts in the height of the deaths in April ran a segment about how hard it is to not be able to get your hair done, while, at the same time, medical teams across the world from Italy to Spain to the UK to the US were delivering bodies to morgues at a weekly rate 5-15 times higher than normal. Want to know something? Those countries don't have the magnitude of problem we have now. They learned and their societies adapted. Numerous other countries and societies haven't F'd this GLOBAL DISEASE away like we have. BLAB (BOTTOM LINE AT THE BOTTOM): Stop arguing about whether or not COVID causes deaths. It does. If you want to argue that 100's of thousands of deaths aren't that bad in the big scheme of the population and we can accept a few 100 thousand more, then that's your prerogative. I disagree, but at least now we are arguing about opinions. Out.

Light Attack was an ACC led initiative that had an experiment between the AT-6 and A-29 with the ultimate plan of ACC receiving 305 aircraft and AFSOC receiving 55 aircraft. What really came from this is that ACC is receiving 3x AT-6’s and AFSOC is receiving 3x A-29’s. Armed Overwatch is a SOCOM led initiative that is scheduled to have an experiment this November between 5 different strike/ISR aircraft. The ultimate plan is for AFSOC to receive 75 aircraft to support SOCOM ops.

oh, you mean writing "MAJCOM" on some obscure link on AMS in 8 pt font wasn't the feedback you were looking for? /sarcasm 😂 btw, that was also all the feedback about where I stood that I ever got as well.

You’re right. Absolutely f*&k MSM that says it’s okay for protestors to be outside but it’s not okay for churchs to congregate. Seriously. I 100% agree that CNN and MSNBC have contributed just as much as FOX as to why our nation can’t have a unified approach to this natural disaster. I am personally not for any news organization; I am equally against everyone that is anti-science. Turns out that’s the majority of the government press and mainstream media. I believe that Dr. Fauci and the CDC are some of the last bastions of integrity and rational thought when it comes to public health, and it pisses me off to no end when news organizations cherry pick/misrepresent data from their reports to support political positions.

Masks to hide identity, while they mass together with no regard for spacing. You’re rather obtuse if you think they give two shits about Covid.

You’re right, Trump never is incoherent... Why do people continue to make this stupid point. For every video of Biden (I’m no fan of Biden BTW) you can probably find 2 or more of Trump allowing hot air out without making a single point. Except maybe how awesome he is and how unfair the media is. Also, super great slam on someone trying to show actual leadership and set an example of what leadership is requesting people do... What a tool for trying to do the right thing. He should make fun of someone with a disability instead, or refuse to condemn extremists that support him. That would make the Trump crowd happy. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I'll bite on this (for context my wife and kids are all Native American, I've spent enough time on the Rez and one of our family members is the Director of the BIA so I've been able to learn a little bit about this ). What it comes down to is that many native populations are 1) extremely underprivileged - a lot of the communities struggle with just basic access to running water, schools, etc. And 2) the tribal populations have also been diluted significantly due to things like the residential schools, theft of children and people leaving "the rez". WRT #1, when your community can't give you the same baseline opportunities as say your average middle american WASP community then it's a naturally steeper funnel to climb out of. So you just get raw fewer numbers of people who are even remotely capable of getting selected for UPT by that age - I'm not saying Natives can't hack it but that often they start behind the goal post instead of at the kickoff line in terms of opportunities and the resources just aren't there to foster the the natural talents/inclinations/traits that Natives might have that would normally make them a great candidate had they grown up in other circumstances. The actual talent of many Native individuals I've met is impressive though - they are naturally extremely brave, sharp and witty. It's no coincidence that our tribe (Mohawk) is known for their steel workers - guys who built the Empire State Building without harnesses, ropes or anything - literally just scaled steel into the sky and then did roll call at the bar end of the day and cheered to the men who fell that day. Some real courage and skill. WRT #2, a combination of the residential schools and skin leaving the rez in search of better opportunity has ultimately bred out / white washed the Native population. From what I have seen and learned, there literally just aren't even the raw numbers to make this a viable recruiting opportunity. By the way this is not even to speak to ancillary points like the cultural challenges of the drugs, gambling, smugling and gangs that often funnel young Natives onto the wrong path (which itself is actually not a Native problem but one that 19th/20th century Americans have given them). I think when you have a competing source of work/recreation that also would help the USAF focusing on Native communities. By the way huge props to you for identifying and recommending Natives for this, a lot of people wouldn't even think twice about this group of people who has given so much to our Nation and really got the shit end of the stick in so many ways.

Total military time is about 7,300 hours. 4,100 sorties.

Ain’t this the truth! I’ve seen more “check out my long-time friend who is ________ “ videos from so many GOs as of late it’s nauseating and comes off as completely for show

Keep your options wide open. Maybe start rushing ANG or AFRC Rescue units. Do what you can, if you don’t it will eat you up. Keep the fight alive.

Hello pot...

You’re kidding yourself if you are believing the garbage coming out of Fox? What brawnie said about all MSM, liars and crooks out to make a buck. They push whatever narrative will drive viewership. Don’t do the whole, one side is lying more than the other shtick though because that’s disingenuous at best, dishonest at worst. Right and Left will lie straight to your face all day long. They do! Look at the president for goodness sake! This is probably what I hate most about politics, or I should say politicians; pot calling the kettle black! Blind to their own shenanigans while screaming about those of the other side of the aisle. Peddle your one side is worse than the other nonsense somewhere else. They both suck! Equally, sometimes for the same crap, sometimes for differing reasons. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Nailed it! Great personal attack when you have absolutely zero evidence to back up what you’ve just said. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Check sarcasm detector! 😄

0 seats that go bang. Bail-out procedure is: Stand up, hook up, shuffle to the door. Except you can only half-way stand up in the back. There's no hook-up, just remember to pull after exiting. The bail-out/main entry door is between flight deck and crew compartment. If the emergency happens quick, not many, if any get out. If it's somewhat controlled, then it's possible, but not a sure-thing. If they experience a cold cat, they try to escape via hatches over the two pilots and one in the back. Before 100,000 tons of steaming steel runs you over. As for the E-3, cost savings, baby! Think how much cash is saved by not having all those 'chutes (that the chairs were designed to hold and suck as regular seats) and all that extraneous life support shop.

Pretty sure they don’t have ejection seats; bailout only. Glad they all made it!

Jet pack guy: https://www.foxnews.com/us/los-angeles-american-airlines-pilot-jetpack-near-lax

Ahh, is that not one of the ideas of making a training program extremely tough, to get individuals to work as a team from different back grounds to achieve a common objective despite their differences? Most of my class had similar skin pigments besides the internationals, beyond that many of us had very few similarities, yet we had little trouble studying together and bonded over embracing the suck. I have no problems with the intent of getting more quality candidates from different back grounds and groups, but the execution is poor. If your aren’t helping someone that fought tooth and nail for their chance at their dream job because of their skin color, genitalia, sexuality or whatever then GTFO. And that’s a two way street. The middle eastern guys with a different flag on their shoulder, different skin color, and different accent had no issues hanging out and studying with us while we drank beer and ate bbq. If you can’t get along and be a adult with other Americans working toward a common goal of getting your wings you probably are going to struggle.

This is an interesting topic to me based on an interaction I had in my earlier flying career. My sister asked me to talk to her elementary school class about being in the military and specifically about being a pilot. A lot of these kids were Native Americans, Hispanics, or really poor whites. They all looked at me like I was some alien from outer space but when I mentioned some fellow aircrew that were their particular ethnic identity, they lit up. Me, being generic white man had basically zero impact, but stories of people like them doing the job really resonated and motivated them. I try to keep this in mind when I default to the positions laid out above (with which I agree). Last point that has always intrigued me. Native Americans are the highest per capita racial group that serves in the military and have been for a very long time. Many tribes are centered on a “warrior culture” and honor military service. Why isn’t there more of a push for that demographic in the flying business? I can only think of two that I’ve known in my career (naturally both had the Callsign “Chief”). I know the raw numbers of Natives are lower than other demographics, but I just don’t see that in the rated side. https://www.militarytimes.com/off-duty/military-culture/2019/11/15/a-warrior-tradition-why-native-americans-continue-fighting-for-the-same-government-that-tried-to-wipe-them-out/

Just be glad he didn't say air lines.

That's exactly the problem -- it is this kind of "begging the question", a statement that is made as fact when it has never been substantiated as being true. Immutable characteristics don't define anything about an individual's character, intelligence, skill, attitudes, etc. The layer after layer of self-selection that is required in order to find one's self in a UPT class virtually guarantees that there is a huge commonality of humanity, motivation, character, attitudes, etc., between classmates.

That’s the only place that would actually make sense to increase outreach. Stop all this bullshit and simply increase awareness and education on officer/pilot opportunities in areas where there is likely zero of that going on. How many tens of thousands of kids in large cities even know being a pilot in the AF is an option? How many of those kids who even slightly mention the idea are told it’s “impossible” by some civilian who doesn’t know jack shit? The same can be said for a poor, rural area. If these kids are even approached by military recruitment, it’s to enlist, and even the recruiters likely tell them flying is such a long shot they should just get it out of their minds immediately. Someone with actual SA reach out to minorities/women and tell them how very doable it is to become an officer and pilot; we’ll actually see diversity increase the right way.

My two cents as a first generation immigrant, this is a stupid idea. I'd imagine you'd want classes to have the opportunity to get viewpoints and bond with minorities, not throw them all in one class and separate them. I get that the AF demographics aren't representative of the population as a whole in the Air Force but how does this change anything? They should focus on outreach, I never considered joining until I was a senior in college and it was by chance I had a professor who was a retired AF Officer. They should also streamline the recruiting process for OTS. I was a non-select the 1st time I applied and after I got picked up the second time around, it took 1.5 years from application to attending OTS which is quicker then most. Some people don't have the luxury of waiting around 6 months for a board decision then waiting to go to OTS.

I don't envy the position those instructors will be put in. Washing someone out of that class for performance will be next to impossible, but don't worry, leadership will still insist they aren't changing the standard. And god forbid a student in that class develops an attitude problem. You might have to use your white male privilege to mansplain to them why they're on Mil Cap. But I think the real travesty here is what this is going to do to the students who did not ask to be in this class. UPT is hard enough without being forced into a contrived social justice experiment. And like it or not, the stink of being in the woke test case class will stick with these students long after their time in UPT.. much like the VR babies our wonderful banzai flights are churning out. I really resent that leadership is foisting their political insecurities on these young officers right as they start their careers. To the students: good luck, study hard, and fly safe. Try not to let this political nonsense distract you. To leadership: I cannot wait to watch this inevitable PR sh*tstorm blow up in your face.

Wouldn’t surprise me. Our priorities as a service and DOD is putting us on a clear tragedy our to lose the next major war. I wish I was saying that jokingly but I’m genuinely concerned about our time honored capabilities to fly, fight and win.

Yup but one company with their money has already done most of the homework

Go all in with pilot. It’s a bunch of nonners telling you this BS. If you’re not a DO or CC, you are a pilot first, not an officer. I don’t give a shit how well you write an MFR, I care how well you can kill the enemy that’s threatening the dudes on the ground, how efficiently you can AR the assets that need to get back to the fight, etc. If you’re not spending at least 50% of your work day on becoming a better pilot you are wrong. The nonners are officers first, your job is to actively participate in the fight, not manage those who do.

Recognize that when people feel compelled to say “officer first” they usually mean “aspire to be a leader,” and don’t understand how that works in the flying world. Also realize that the type of leadership that happens in combat aviation is inaccessible to those who haven’t spent years studying combat aviation. A non-rated Captain with many subordinates may see a rated Captain with none and assume that the rated captain isn’t a leader. They don’t see the briefs with hundreds of pages worth of information conveyed in 65 plus or minus five minutes. They don’t see the planning process in which the mission commander coordinates for every domain, service, and discipline of physics to achieve a goal handed to him by the Army four star. They don’t see the split second decision-making that will drive success or failure. They don’t see the meaningful eye contact when you go over something one last time because ing it up will be a disaster. They see a tired Captain with messy hair, who’s never officially supervised anybody and therefore can’t possibly be a leader. That’s not the non-rated officer’s fault; their exposure is movies about aerial combat that’s portrayed more like boxing than war. Give them time, and they’ll get it eventually... or they won’t, and they’ll be sent to tell you that aircrew aren’t leaders. Be a leader; scoff the people who want you to prove it in a silly way. Fly, fight, and win. Don’t apologize for it.