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How did you mentally prepare yourself to become such a badass?

Aircraft fly all the time, every second of the day. Unfortunately, sometimes they crash. Does it happen often? Statistically no, but it does happen. When one crashes are all aircraft grounded forever and redesigned? No. Historically the benefits outweigh the risk of flying. But statistically if aircraft continue to fly, they will also crash. If people still use voting to elect officials, you will have voting fraud. What surprises me is that supposedly educated individuals on this forum are shocked that a system created by humans is not infallible. As someone said previously it’s almost like it’s willful ignorance. Does the election system have voting fraud? Yes, it happens every election. Is it rampant enough to swing an election? Historically and statistically the data tells us no. It’s only being highlighted by a false narrative because of a sore loser of a president. If it was as rampant as the president, and his supporters said it was, then some of those legal challenges probably would’ve not been tossed and rendered moot. If the tables were turned and the Dems were bringing up the same voting fraud narrative, Trump supporters would be laughing all the way to Inauguration Day commenting how strong and fair the voting system is. If you don’t believe that, again willful ignorance. Good luck in 2024.

Nah, just people who actually care more about the country than we do about Trump's ego. I wasn't rooting for Biden...but the man won the election. Everything that's happened since is just serving to erode faith in the election system. All to serve the whim of someone who has always played fast and loose with the rules. I've benefited from the Trump presidency and I'd have been happy to see four more years...but it's time to let this one go, my man.

Last time I ran from a burning jet I ran away at a medium pace for 1.5 miles straight off base. Then I did 80 pushups to impress the locals.

As the above said, you don’t need to have MEPS to get hired and a unit supporting you through MEPS will cut through red tape. That said, the more boxes you have checked going into an interview, the better you’ll look. MEPS is something that can stop people in their tracks, depending on what is in your medical history/what the docs wanna see. So, having that done by the time you send apps/interview is just another hurdle out of the way that will give the unit more warm fuzzies they won’t hire you and have you kicked back due to something out of their control. Many hire backups/alternates for situations like that, but still; better to keep trying to get it done before you’re hired, if you can.

Thanks. Still doing some work trying to get the old iOS and Android apps updated and working again. No promises.

Enjoy your disability later ...

This is a fantastic point. If he stays on message (which if you check his twitter...he will) the left will have that to point to for distraction for however long it lasts. His lackeys will also cause this to happen. The fracturing of the Conservatives will continue to weaken the voting base. It's not that weak now (re: House seats gained, kept Senate), but at some point there will probably be candidates Donny doesn't like..what happens then? These folks are clamoring for either Trump to run again in 2024, or his kids to. That's an automatic no from me and a lot of my friends. We all need to get involved in local government. Go to you city council meetings, volunteer at polling places, help with the elections. Most of the "fraud" is based on ignorance of the process. Saw the news that the "Dominion server crashed again!?!?!? maor fraud!" Nah, servers crash all the time. Hell all of Google was down a couple days ago. Being an educated citizen isn't just knowing the facts on here, it's getting involved in what impacts you locally.

I wish I had a track close by because I'd definitely do more interval training. I like that the Marine Corps balances our tests. In the spring we run the PFT (3 mile run, pullups, situps) and in the fall we do the CFT (880m run in boots, 35lb ammo can presses, and a 2:45-5 min, dependent upon fitness and strength, maneuver under fire dill with sprints, buddy carries, ammo can carries, a grenade toss, and some low crawling). The skinny dudes typically do pretty well on the PFT - Not too many 200lb + dudes running 3 miles in 18:00 to max the test or doing 23 strict pullups, but those little guys tend to struggle in the fall when those 200lb dudes carry those ammo cans and other people like they're nothing. Bottom line, do a combination of dedicated strength based training, crossfit-like workouts, eat healthy and you'll be fine on pretty much anything.

Same, june hire and yet to see MEPS

Afghanistan

The best is when w/dep goes up and w/o dep goes down. The man hates them some single peeps! Anyway, in my area, we're down across the board. Houses are selling at ridiculously high prices, taxes were just bumped up big time and rents are at an all time high...so it makes sense that we get a cut this year lol. Not a huge deal if you stay on continuous orders, but we'll have a few guys get the shaft and get bumped down in BAH next year. I'm just hoping they'll actually unfuck the part-timer flight pay clusterfuck some day soon...I hear the new pay system will roll out "early 2021." Checks in the mail!

If the UPT commitment wasn't 10 years already, then it might make sense. A good UPT IP would point out to the studs that those extra 3 years would likely puts you in a non flying assignment at the end of your commitment, and that they shouldn't expect to fly for all 13 years of their ADSC. A cynical person would point out that drops you off at the 14.5-15 years of service, and would probably cause those that take the +3 years ADSC up front for assignment choice probably won't be offered a retention bonus. Even though an experienced gray beard IP brings value to line squadrons, line fly billets can be filled with young guys (produce your way out of the shortage), and the longer ADSC already allows the AF to fill it's needs for experienced pilots in non flying jobs, driving down or eliminating the need to offer an aviation bonus. So the AF gets the retention it needs to fill it's requirements for much less cost (increased ADSC is basically free), while studs that take the deal may not really know what they are committing to. ETA: 5 year promotion opportunity, and eliminating the 2x passed over exit option means someone could serve that entire commitment as a captain, and can't get out earlier due to being passed over for major.

I have no idea what is done today, but years ago that is how it was done... minus the additional 3 year thing.

And on August 30, 2003, she became the first woman to score in a Division I-A game when she kicked two extra points against Texas State University in the fourth quarter of a 72–8 New Mexico win. So technically she is the first woman to score points in a P5 game (the term, not officially "recognized" by the NCAA, started around 2006)...

My APR was 2.266% with everything possible rolled in and 10% VA. You don't need 100%.

I suppose I basically agree with you, if the only way forward for NK was welfare... Another perspective, though, is that there are companies that are DYING to invest money into NK because what it actually represents is massive, latent economic output which is currently handicapped because of its government...never mind the hundreds of thousands of SKs that have relatives in NK they'd like to reunite with. While it would take "trillions" to repair it, I think the ROI would be positive. Take a look at SK for two seconds...what makes them so different? Nothing. 0. Currently, we're "investing" much more in Africa, which has two things: far more potential, and far, far more cost to getting up to the modern world...yet no one scoffs. NK is NOT far behind what East Germany was post war - they are a nation that currently has the ability to produce nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles, yet most of the population lives off of rotten cabbage and a little tiny rice bowl three times a week. They have every bit of potential to be as productive as SK given the opportunity. A lot of trade and "economics" already happens between the two states. Their problem is 100% political. The problem isn't how much it would "cost" - the problem is letting a festering wound continue to fester. Worrying about a 1.2 trillion dollar "hole" misidentifies the root cause. Here's an article calling Corona a $16 trillion dollar event (https://edhub.ama-assn.org/jn-learning/video-player/18553761#:~:text=The costs of the coronavirus,costs%3A the %2416 trillion virus.). Do you really think Corona is going to end the world...really?.. REALLY? Get some perspective. 20% of all money has been "created" in the last year (https://moguldom.com/310861/strategist-almost-20-percent-of-all-u-s-dollars-were-created-in-2020-alone/). Worrying about cost is cute, but that position has to ignore the broader context. What is the cost of continued conflict in that region for the next 350 years? Hint: far more than 1.2 trillion.

Not as much an imminent threat as the recent Russian Cozy Bear, but appears the Chinese are conducting more widespread mobile phone intelligence gathering. https://www.yahoo.com/news/china-may-tracking-intercepting-americans-170926880.html https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/dec/15/revealed-china-suspected-of-spying-on-americans-via-caribbean-phone-networks

Because it's not. You did what any good citizen would do, and most would do. Do you use the credit card applications you get in the mail with other people's names? Do you have any evidence to send to team-Trump that this is the downfall of our election? Ya'll want a perfect, and 100% secure process...we're humans, and democracy is dirty. There will always be issues.

WTF did the flight doc tell you to suck up any of that? I would have told him to shove it and write me a waste only profile. I mean, good for you for doing it, but how much more damage did you risk doing to your back, especially on situps, because, from what it sounds like, they didn't buy that you had the pain you said you did.

You know what actually surprises me, that there are dudes on here who apparently don’t see shit like this as a big deal. To the extent they either ignore it, or are incredulous to the fact it happens. To that point, you and others actually are trying to argue a well educated adult who has voted in many elections doesn’t know the difference between a ballot app vs. sample ballot vs. actual ballot. It’s laughable and sad at the same time, but enjoy keeping that cranium buried deep in the sand.

Washington DC Metro area significant increases at the O-3 through O-5 levels.

I guess she's ripe for a book deal and a made-for TV movie at this point...

This exactly. I voted for Trump twice and still think he was the best candidate in both elections. However, I haven’t seen anything that shows me there was actually widespread voter fraud. I do think there are some weak points in our system that need to be shored up, including a consistent system for mail in voting and a good way to track absentee ballots. I know of a case of someone voting absentee in a state they no longer lived in because they were lazy and hadn’t changed their ID or voter registration. Were things like that enough to sway the election? I don’t think so and haven’t seen any real evidence of it that convinces me. But, I do think we should always be striving to clean up even minor election discrepancies to ensure that all citizens can have faith in the process. Beyond that though, it’s not hard for me, even as a Trump voter, to see him losing. I personally know three women who voted for Trump in ‘16 and Biden in ‘20, based almost completely off his personality. It’s not hard to imagine there were millions more just like them. Trump’s greatest weakness was always his inability to STFU. I liked many of the things he did but frequently found myself cringing as he would immediately put his foot in his mouth seconds after a solid achievement. It’s time to turn the page and let the democrats lay in the bed they made themselves. Biden-Harris is still, imo, one of the worst pairings we’ve ever put into the White House. A half assed offering of a moderate who is likely losing his mental capacity and an unpopular leftist that comes from the most poorly run state in our country. If Trump would just exit the stage for a bit we might actually get the chance to see what a terrible offering this next presidency is going to be.

Seems an interesting time was had by all... "Regrettably, Clarkson got off to a bad start with Yeager as the host arrived late for the interview due to a last minute changes in his schedule.The host shared: “He was standing there, looking at his watch and, as I climbed out of the car, he said: ‘You’re 15 minutes late.’ 'Naturally, I assumed he was joking, so I replied: ‘That’s nothing. You were three years late for the Second World War.' The Airforce officer clearly showed how annoyed he was at Clarkson. He spun on his foot, stormed out, and slammed the door."

@tkownedu5 I hear you on money being tight, it sucks right now. If you need to, grab a second job and find a way to make it happen. We're in odder times than usual. From my layman's perspective, it would still be in your best interest to get the certificate anyway to boost your chances. Apparently the number of applicants has been skyrocketing even before the pandemic. Bogidope's website has made it easier than before to see what units are hiring and how to contact their POCs directly. Also as I mentioned earlier with C.W. Lemoine, his videos are getting a lot of views. I had an interview last year and I think the squadron's POC said they had around 150 applicants for one slot. When I was hired in March of this year I think the squadron had around 250 applicants for what ended up being two slots. People are becoming very interested in applying! However, if all you can muster financially right now is the solo, then get 'r done! If you open the file with Adobe PDF Reader [not an internet browser], on the left side in Reader there is paperclip icon you can click for the attachments. Sure we can direct message or continue on this thread, either or. The forum is showing 235+ views for this thread so apparently there's quite a few interested lurkers in what we've all been saying. 😎

Yea, the President can stop saying it was stolen and express confidence in the system with caveats for the non-election impacting amount of fraud that takes place. Otherwise, nope. Trumpists will continue to claim for all time that it was a robbery otherwise. Same as when you get a toxic leader anywhere, it sucks until they're actually gone, but if they've convinced the minions to be toxic...it last for a long-long time.

Thank God, now racism is solved!

Yeah bros, I just thought we were better than that. Copy your rights to be dickheads. Still makes you dickheads. Call me a Pu$$y all you want and fùck you too.

so stunning, so brave

@tkownedu5 In that case since you’ve got your bachelor’s degree with a good GPA, get your certificate done, because you’ll need it to stand out whether you’re going Active/Reserve/Guard. Especially in this high retention time the AF is experiencing. I included a PDF in this post to you. Open it only on a desktop in an Adobe PDF viewer so you can open the attachments. One of the attachments has the Officer Accessions Recruiter for your geographic location that I think only handles the aviation related officer accessions. Be advised, the PDF may have been revised since I got it in the spring of 2020. Regardless if you’re going Active/Reserve/Guard, start calling around to “local” Officer Accessions recruiters (even if they’re not listed on the PDF I sent) about scheduling to do the AFOQT and the TBAS examinations. I was able to do them about two years prior to me being sponsored at a unit. I called a recruiter a state away, exchanged information, and she got me on a local base to do the examinations. (Get your certificate done first before the TBAS because more flight hours you have equals a higher PCSM score, to a point). From the outside looking in, the whole process for the AF getting pilot applicants into the AF seems broken and inefficient as there’s no one really batting for you until you’re sponsored by a unit, which to my knowledge only happens in the Reserve/Guard where you then have a POC who knows what strings to pull and has access to do so. AFRC_UFT_Guidebook.pdf

I wanted to write this long post so you and others know they're not alone in experiencing these feelings and circumstances you expressed. I haven't been logging this information so it's all coming from memory. I was hired around March 2020. In about three months' time I think I was assigned around five Officer Accessions Recruiters. One of which was particularly worthless and admitted to me multiple times he didn't care about his job any longer because he was retiring in a few months. While I appreciated his honesty, it made the process suck even more than it already did because he was the current gatekeeper to my future. I think I had to talk with my sponsoring unit's point-of-contact about the recruiter because the apathy got that bad, which then made some gears start turning in my process. The pandemic shutdowns happened around this time and did not help. I then got another Officer Accessions Recruiter who seemed to both know his stuff and had the drive to get the process moving. While that ended up being true, he did tell me I was one of several hundred other applicants he was assigned. In June we sent the documents to MEPS requesting them to see me. A few weeks later, MEPS denied me, and said I had to get more records for something. I then scheduled a private physician appointment with the closest opening being several weeks out, spent several hundred dollars, then the medical record had ambiguous language due to the physician's software being used and by the fact the physician did not understand what I was requesting when I went there, despite me clearly stating it several times and him acknowledging it. About a week later, and with calling both his staff and the hospital which owns the clinic about ten times playing telephone tag, the physician got the record straightened out. My recruiter then sent another request for MEPS to see me. The recruiter then called me later on to say I had multiple things that needed serious waivers. I was shocked and asked him to check his information because I thought he had the wrong applicant. He checked his information (I think it took a few days for him to get back with me) and my belief ended up being true, he got me mixed up with one of the other several hundred applicants. That was a stressful few days. MEPS responded to the second request and said they wouldn't see me, so my recruiter had to request the Air Force Surgeon General's staff to override MEPS which forced MEPS to see me. I then went to MEPS and an ancient Chief Medical Officer misdiagnosed/disqualified me, and believed a separate prior temporary condition which hasn't affected for years was an issue and disqualified me for that too. I then scheduled another private physician appointment with the closest opening being several weeks out (sound familiar?), spent even more hundreds dollars, and thankfully got good medical records from the start this time, which showed the MEPS CMO was wrong. The new documentation was sent to MEPS by my recruiter, and I visited MEPS a second time in November 2020. While at MEPS for the second time, I thankfully was assigned a different physician to examine me (not the CMO). This physician asked me what I had done to improve my condition (which did not exist). I told him I was misdiagnosed last visit at MEPS by CMO so-and-so, the physician laughed and made comments about how the misdiagnoses happened frequently with that CMO. Oddly enough, that CMO was not there when I went the second time and it was actually a different CMO, who was much younger. Maybe the CMO I had the fist time was also experiencing retirement performance apathy and had since retired? Anyway, this physician then examined me and found me within parameters of what MEPS and the AF Surgeon General wanted. The physician scoffed at the idea that the separate prior temporary condition as being an issue and said it was no problem. He also told me he believed the misdiagnoses should be taken out of my file, but said he did not want to do so because it would be too much paperwork.... I didn't care because I fell within what MEPS and the AF SG wanted. I left MEPS literally fist-pumping in the parking lot (I don't care if it's cringe) and was then granted the official waiver by the AF Surgeon General this month. Now onto the wait for the initial flight class 1 physical examination. MEPS will try to railroad you at every step of the way. It's like getting your vehicle registered at your state government office on a Saturday. Go here, do this, you don't have something go away, now come back, your recruiter didn't send this or that, sit down now tell me... do you have records for that time you said you had the sniffles when you were four years old? No? Come back in two months when you do. Next! I had to articulate an on-the-fly request to the MEPS physicians to measure me a different way, sure enough they did and determined me to be within the regulations. I had to ask the eye examining worker to repeat themselves about six times because their thick Puerto Rican accent made it impossible for me to understand which line they wanted me to read letters from. MEPS is not recruit/officer training. What I mean by that is do NOT think down on yourself for thinking/acting about only YOURSELF at MEPS. Once you're at officer training, then you're a part of a team and what's best for the team comes first, but that team mentality does not exist at MEPS even though it seems like it due to how it's structured. There is zero practical customer service/satisfaction at MEPS and you'll be out the exit door with a disqualification faster than you even knew what they disqualified you for if you let them. Can you tell I'm jaded about MEPS? 😄 The whole waiting process is tough because I think, generally, those of us who have been sponsored by units have self initiative to take charge of our own affairs; which is probably one trait contributing to the fact we were sponsored in the first place. Having to leave this bureaucratic process in the hands of other people (recruiters, physicians, et cetera), who don't care about your future as much as you do, is tough. The wait and bureaucracy does, on its surface, make it feel as if the Air Force doesn't care about us. Except you have to take a step back and remember you've been chosen, among hundreds and thousands of other people to have the opportunity to pilot the coolest aircraft, in the best air force, of the best Nation on this planet, all paid for by the tax-payer. Pulling myself back and remembering that is something which keeps me motivated. Between almost every big step in my process has been about a month's wait. Sometimes less, but usually never shorter than two weeks. I've gotten used to it at this point, still heavily dislike it though. I'm expecting two years from hire date to OTS. Lean on your sponsoring unit's point-of-contact for help if you're legitimately stuck. Give requests to private physicians in writing if possible, they don't understand how MEPS works and what MEPS wants or doesn't want to see. Speak up for yourself at every step.

I met somebody who looked like that at a party once. Turns out that person was an accomplished economist who redesigned the banking system of Monaco to accommodate crypto-currency. 8/10 would hang out with again, but I’m not interesting enough to get the invite. Millionaire many times over. Their partner also looked like that... and was a total mess. Is there more context here? Is BO.net a place we go now to make fun of people for how they look and the t-shirts they wear? That’s some high-school lunch room bullsh1t. I think most here would be happy to engage in a discussion of “black trans lives matter” (and most would likely agree with what I’m assuming you think about it). I’d also be disappointed if this has become an acceptable place to just be plain mean to somebody in a random photo.

Not to brag but - U.S. Cyberforce Was Deployed to Estonia to Hunt for Russian Hackers

Some seem to forget. The 3 additional years is for the PLANE of your DREAMS. Will you bite as a YOUNG flight student?