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Pilot is OK.

Serious question…are all white people the same? If so, I understand the argument for selectively recruiting non-whites. Last I checked, though, we all have our own DIVERSE life experiences prior to service. If there are illegitimate barriers to entry into military service, we should get rid of them. Arbitrarily discriminating based on race or gender (yes, I went there…there’s only 2 and it was assigned way prior to birth) is bullshit. Saying that all white people are the same is just as much bullshit.

I normally agree with your posts, but I think you miss the mark on this topic. Of course people's experiences affect their view of the world, their outlook, how they approach problems, and how they think. BUT, the left loves to use this as a substitute for their actual argument, which is that people with different skin colors necessarily have different experiences, and are necessarily different from each other. This is unequivocally untrue. Put another way, it's the argument that gets trotted out anytime the left wants to increase participation of group 'X' because of some reason, but they need a reason that sounds legitimate because of course the actual argument is racist. How do I know this? Precisely because of the argument you just made. No one - not one politician, not one general officer, not one pastor, not one poster on an internet forum, and not you, has ever been able to articulate why someone of a certain race has an essential characteristic that makes them fundamentally different from someone of a different race. Because of course, such arguments are inherently and correctly recognized as racist; hence the deferral to substitute arguments. The left makes an argument for including certain races based on characteristics that aren't tied to those races, and then justifies it with an appeal to different 'experiences.' Katie Hobbs' most recent hum and haw session in this Univision interview is exhibit #1. A 'true believer' was completely unable to describe why she thought so highly of her extended Hispanic family (as she should be unable to because of course she's not actually racist, she just plays one to her constituency). So we learned what she loves is "hanging out with them" and "practicing her Español". M'kay. What is glaringly obvious in this interview is that she doesn't believe a word of what she's saying, knows it's bullshit, but has chosen to say it anyway. Our society is endangered when our politicians are so willing to go there. This is not an indictment of Katie Hobbs. It's an indictment of everyone who thinks this way. It's effing poison. It's cowardly. "Yes" to the woman question. "No" to the Hispanic and black question. Women are different from men. Men are different from women. Regardless of the current social discourse. Blacks, Hispanics, and whites are not fundamentally different from each other. I know the left thinks the right is missing "context" in how our society operates. What the left is missing is that there is never a reason (good or bad) to discriminate upon the basis of race. Somehow we once knew this, but we seem determined to forget it and regress. Sigh.

Hey how's UPT Next going? We lost the thread about a page-and-a-half ago... What I want is an 18X -> 11X pipeline. ~4-6 months should do it. DA-20 refresher then maybe T-6 only or even straight to the T-7. If you can supposedly make a brand new 11X pilot off the street with UPT Next in ~6 months, shit, you can certainly make an 11X from an 18X who already knows chock-to-chock AF flying, AF pubs, tons of mission stuff, etc. The AF says it's short of pilots, the airlines say they're short of pilots, well the MDS with the most pilots is the MQ-9 and with satellite landing & recovery / ATLC / LEO satellite ops coming online now, those people are doing everything from engine start to shutdown, including killing our country's enemies. It's one weird trick to having more Air Force pilots (also CC the FAA please 🙏). I'd love to see a TX pipeline for getting the (typically) younger, more motivate sub-set of 18X MQ-9 pilots into manned platforms and frankly that should lead to shutting down the 18X career field entirely. It was a stop-gap in the first place and everyone who is an aircraft commander should go through UPT, learn the same skills and have the same wings IMHO. Especially with the only remaining RPA platform eventually sunsetting, 18X is kind of a death sentence for a brand new LT on active duty because there is absolutely not a plan for what to do with you when the Reaper is put out to pasture.

Nice dig. I can assure you I grew up treating people fairly. And wtf does inclusive even mean?! If you can do the job I want you. Period. Inclusive is socialist jargon. DEI is not about treating people fairy. It’s about quotas, pushing the right people thru training, and pleasing the new woke mob. Diversity by itself doesn’t make anyone stronger or better. That’s inherently a racist idea. we need diversity of THOUGHT and skills, NOT diversity just of race and sex. From my small corner of the AF diversity of thought and skill is sacrificed on the woke alter of sex and race quotas. And yes don’t kid yourself higher leadership does have quotas and all your above examples are bull shit. Look at who is the lead DEI person at the pentagon. It ain’t the picture you paint.

You missed out. Had you become a pilot you could baselessly speculate with the rest of us, instead you actually know WTF you’re talking about.

I work in the pigging industry on the inspection side. I'll add my.02. Never thought of a pig as a delivery vehicle for a bomb but it could happen. However, I believe the line was idle and not making deliveries? The pig would have to travel with the pressure of the gas flow. So Germany would need to be taking deliveries. If the line was idle they couldnt push the pig since the displaced gas had no where to go. I found this site when I was trying to be an AF pilot. Now I am posting on my post military career. Baseops has now become full circle.

Russia was Ukraine’s second highest trading partner in 2019. Hopefully that’s recent enough. The enemy gets a vote. 99% of the U.S didn’t know Osama Bin Ladin was their enemy on Sept 10, 2001. As I said in a previous post and others have alluded to, China has declared the US it’s greatest adversary for the past 70 years. You may not view them that way but that’s how they view us, and they get a vote. Luckily a few ppl in the DoD/gov know this and are preparing. To your question on the president and energy/inflation, which has no bearing on this conversation, I’d say don’t put much stock in someone losing their senility. I’m sure stopping trade with a primary trading partner would create uncomfortable implications for the US. However, in the examples I listed above the mass deaths of thousands of US soldiers usually outweighed the rationing of tin and copper for common folks.

I’ve been flabbergasted with the racist comments the DEI crowd in the military has been able to get away with the last few years. The most racist people I’ve met are far from white. God help you if you are a White Male in the military. FWIW: I’m not

Let me know when I love lamp.

Guard weptac next week would be a fitting location...

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CjwvVc6rBIR/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y= Sent from my iPhone using Baseops Network mobile app

Have you look at their economy lately? They have SERIOUS issues the are already causing a lot of internal turmoil and it will only get worse. Yes we helped their economy grow but they tried to help themselves through artificial means to sustain that grown and adopted an economic model what was actually just not unsustainable. Holding GDP growth north of 9% was a function of currency manipulation and artificially stimulated domestic demand (google "China Ghost Cities" or watch the 60 minute special on that topic below. They are in a serious economic situation that will likely impact the whole world. Their one child policy didn't help the situation and long held societal preference for male versus female heirs has led to an uncomfortable balance. It is a long held worry that a couple hundred million angry and unemployed young men is difficult to control and the only way to maintain power is to focus them on an external threat. The big question is do we view an attack on Taiwan as an attack on us (under your theory), or do we honor our treaty promise? Bigger than that if they do decided to attack Taiwan (they already have) and they hit us at Guam kinetically and use Cyber on the homeland, how will we respond. For me as a knuckle dragger I have a far simpler view shared by the great Lt Col Andrew Tanner who said "Two toughest kids on the block, I guess. Sooner or later, they're gonna fight."

Yes, they’re great. They also have never locked my card while traveling, which USAA seems to do on a frequent basis. You can also get the Schwab Amex Platinum, which allows you to redeem points into your account. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Anyone try Schwab for checking and savings? I already have a brokerage account there and adding banking seems better than USAA. Website says the brokerage and checking link up. Says unlimited ATM fee refunds, free checks, billpay, etc. Basically everything USAA already has and better in some areas. Just asking if anyone has used them and any feedback. Thanks

“We” as in the American people…everything I have been commenting on is wrt the American people, not as military members. Because that is who ultimately matters when discussing policies with China. And you’re mentioning bad leadership as one of the main causes of failure in Afghanistan but yet you are citing opinions of the same leadership on the threat China imposes/what to do about China.

We probably share very similar opinions on China. I’m just of the opinion that we would ever get militarily involved with China, unless of course they physically attacked us, which is very doubtful. As for those who are upset that China is becoming so powerful that they can push nearby countries around and thinking we can do something substantial to stop it…that ship has sailed. We strengthened their economy (which has allowed them to grow militarily) in order to strengthen ours, and now we’re concerned.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2022/10/20/russian-missile-launched-near-rc-135w-raf-aircraft-black-sea/ Malfunction? Sure it was.

Nah I got Jan dates like a month ago Sent from my iPhone using Baseops Network mobile app

Pre Charlie Sheen Denise Richards was very nice.

Ah Denise Richards..... time to do some googling

James Bond is either good at laying pipe or Hollywood is repetitive.

Has the US or UK made it illegal for an American veteran to go train with the Chinese military? If not, then why not if they’re our enemy? And I’m pretty sure it’s illegal to disclose classified information even after you’ve separated/retired. So in that case, that’s wrong whether they’re sharing that info with the Chinese or the UAE pilots. If you guys are upset that a couple hundred pilots are training Chinese pilots but not upset that our economy is so intertwined with China then perhaps I can make an analogy that might make more sense: This is the same as being concerned that a fentanyl/heroin/cocaine addict smokes a few cigarettes a day but not being concerned about the hard drugs he is using. The few cigarettes a day that he smokes isn’t good, but that’s not the larger issue here.

In 1914 Britain and Russia we’re Germany’s largest trading partners. In the years leading up to Pearl Harbor the US was Japan’s number one trading partner. Britain was the primary trading partner to the 13 colonies. They were also the primary trading partner to the U.S. prior to the war of 1812. Ironically, a war fought over, among other things, trade. I hope you’re trolling, because I can’t imagine an officer in the AF having such a short sighted point of view. Oh wait, yes I can, they’re usually the bobs.

Didn't the Bond film "Diamonds are Forever" also feature a mobile pipe inspector/welder thing? Maybe the pipeline bomber is a Bond film fan.

Dude maybe be the GOAT QB but he is still a complete douche.

DEI is racist and sexist.

Our Recce squadron finished off our last bottle a while back... before most of us heard the news. I'll find a bottle somewhere.

Somewhere behind DFRESH's account, there is 1000 OSI agents trying to honey pot the next Tail Hook '92. I'm really looking forward to this....

No clearer trap has ever been set.

And often.

That’s the funniest shit I’ve read on this site in a long time.

I know you HAVE to be acting intentionally obtuse, but are you aware of a document called the NSS? Or take a trip over to INDOPACOM and review their strategic mission documents. Just because we have intertwined trade does not make them not our strategic rival. We bought all the titanium for the SR-71 from the USSR. Were they our partners?

Flea you might have good motives. And I applaud you. But this administration doesn’t share them. They’re absolute radicals and the DEI that’s being pushed from the very top of the federal government is antithetical to our values as Americans. I could post literally hundreds more articles about how ridiculous DEI is

Christmas came early that year! Sent from my iPhone using Baseops Network mobile app

I mean… there’s several people I’ve flown with in my career who I would encourage to instruct potential/current enemies of our nation… it’d make our jobs a LOT easier. Know what I’m sayin?

The entire deck seems to be stacked that way.

Surprised this didn't come up earlier. It is 100% a James Bond villain plot. Boring 90's 007 movie plot reference: Here Hot 90's 007 Nuclear Physicist (Denise Richards) reference: Here

If I decided to teach the Russians our tactics during the Cold War would you consider me a traitor? I sure as hell would. China is our enemy. If you train them for financial gain, you are a traitor.

It’s a continent, not a country. I’m tired of the CT mission/narrative because it’s an unwinnable mission. Fuck it…let them have the desert.

Which is all the antithesis of the “DEI” movement today. “DEI warriors” are the most exclusive, close-minded, hypocritical, racist, sexist, shittiest humans in this country. I could add more adjectives, but those will suffice for now.

LOL the article says they're only paying these dudes ~$270k?! NFW that's all they're paying these dudes. That's chump change for betraying your country, risking your life and living in that shithole.

So is "being kind to your fellow man" and "honesty and integrity". But I see no need to have a dedicated office for each of those two wonderful concepts, run by a senior NCO who can provide programs on how I can do them better.

Found this gem of a website..our very own US govt CPI inflation calculator...wonder what analysis of AvB will reveal: good, bad, ugly, or fair deal? Spun it twice, and it wasn't so nice. Have a try yourself!! (Oct 2021 vs Oct 2022 comparison, lost $2,558.54 in value) (Oct 2017 vs Oct 2022 comparison....the bonus would need to be presently $42.1k/year for parity...lost $7,115.27 in purchasing power and it hasn't been addressed..that's 20.3% of its original purchasing power) Background data/ref' here: FY2017 was when it was made $35k

After 3 marriages it just becomes an expensive hobby.