Leaderboard

Fair statements but in the airlines you are never going to be asked to review or contribute to policy memos with wide ranging effects on the joint force, negotiate with foreign partners, issue UCMJ actions, or embed with a SOF unit conducting culturally sensitive missions in austere parts of the world the US isn't officially involved with. I think the desire to see masters degrees in officers was originally penned on those task, which are task any officer can be asked to undertake, rather the primary duty which is flying an aircraft. I'm not saying a BS masters at AMU makes you better at that stuff--but the DoD somewhat has its hands tied where it is incapable of distinguishing a degree from for example, Northwestern University Chicago, from Trident Online. So long as both are regionally accredited, and they are, the DOE recognizes them as peer institutions, even though in the private sector a Kellogg MBA will get you into McKinsey or BCG, where as a Trident MBA is going to land you a cashier position at Navy Federal.

I *feel* you bro, but do you realize it's cheaper to fly from DC to NYC than it is to take the train??? A train ticket from DC to Manhattan can cost >$400. AYFKM? The only *cheap* travel option along the eastern sea board (that I've found) are the various bus companies (Megabus, etc). Also. No. Flying is 1000x times better than taking a train as far as convenience goes. Period. Were you serious with that? Spend 2.5 days to get across the country or do it without even taking a leak...yeah I'm going with option B.

Let’s lighten this thread up a bit…

We promote peacetime managers who make organizations numbers look good, for the most part. Sometimes we get lucky and those managers are also good leaders. This isn’t new. There is a reason we fire a bunch of our senior leaders every time we have a major war. Luckily we haven’t had a major war in a long time. That also means we forgot what we want in a wartime leader.

Ohhhhhhh ok. So what you were really saying is that in your *hypothetical* world, train travel would be more convenient than air travel. Missed that part. So much here. 1. If you're arriving at the airport 2 to 2.5 hours early, you're wasting your life. No shit. Only my grandmother shows up that early. And even she is wasting her life when she gets there that early. 2. I went to Europe after having last visited 10 years prior, and lets just say, train ticket prices are now exorbitant. You might be able to catch a cheap fair between London and Paris, but if you want to *see* Europe, well, it aint the early 00s where your gonna grab $250 Eurail pass and see the continent. Sorry to break it to you - those days are long over. 3. Ryan Air is cheaper. 4. German Wings is cheaper (as long as their pilots don't run you into the Alps). 5. Sweet spots might exist in Europe, but in the US (places like LA), you might need to fly from Compton to Huntington Beach to achieve the 2.5 hour *pressure* relief you're talking about. Last I checked, there's not many Compton to Huntington Beach flights available to the general public. You're comparing apples and oranges. You got to take the 405. There is no other option. Those are facts. I don't know what you're talking about. Yeah, there is room for rail and trains in this country. Why the F we have so many big rigs going coast to coast is beyond me. All that shit should be moving by rail. Get the fuck off my interstates. But yeah with your theme: trains should be a thing in this country. The point is, right now, they are not. They could be, they should be, but they are not.

My 2c is the AF has always had an identity crises balancing between the technical proficiency of it's flyers and the officership, a casualty when we deposed of warrants and enlisted flyers. We want our front line fighters to be policy experts, strategist, leaders, and technical experts. You can't simply ask people to be everything. When I'm doing my own travel vouchers and personnel actions as well why even have other careers? Why not just make everyone pilots? 😂

I agree with you FLEA. But......lol Isn't PME supposed to take care of the education? Edit: I'm only a tactical level dude but shouldn't new Lts focus on flying? Not a a BS degree that means nothing.. it only takes up more time away from their aircraft and personal time. Why get a useless degree as an aviator unless you are in the plan? The AF has PME to educate future leaders. They should use it. Making your officers get an additional degree kind of says PME isn't as good as an online masters from Dip N Dots.

I didn't get my masters (didn't get promoted either lol). I think it's more important to leadership than knowing how to fly. Except, in the civilian world. Nobody cared about a masters for my multi-engine, ATP or type rating. In my limited time at the regionals, not a single Capt asked me about what degree I was pursing or if i did my SOS via correspondence or in residence. They were talking about how the airlines work, how to do the IRONMAN TWO into LAX and how to get into the Majors. For the most part, nobody cared about what I did as an officer, other than my aviation experience and hours. I got treated the same as the 22 year old CFII in my class. If I sucked, they let me know. My sim partner, a civillian who I thought was a good pilot, failed his ATP checkride in the morning SIM with the same Evaluator I was scheduled with in the afternoon. I didn't find out about it until the next morning when the Chief Pilot met with us to welcome us to Compass. He wasn't at the table with us and the Chief Pilot. 2 out of the 5 guys in my class failed their ATP/Type Rating. Once again, the civilian world doesn't care what you did before as an officer. They care about how to "fly" (manage the FMS and AP lol) not about how you were the General's aide with a Masters in butt licking.

The entire conversation is just so sickening. We are talking about mothers being able to kill their babies and if they don’t then the father being able to abandon them. These conversations slowly creep along until you are drowning in evil and don’t even recognize it.

Hah. It's required but just ease into it.

Here's a fun solar statistic. Power plant generation is rated by utilization percentages. A nuclear power plant in a well-run country usually is slightly above 90%. Germany, the icon of renewable nonsense, reported their annualized utilization percentage for solar at 11%. 11! And they just spent half a trillion dollars setting world records at reestablishing coal plants. In fact, in December they were one of the dirtiest power producing countries on earth. Solar is not a serious technology (for grid use), and if the central banks lose the ability to print unlimited money for similar government waste, solar is going to go down in flames.

Yeah, that's definitely where most of the savings are. It's amazing how cheap the LFP batteries have gotten. So much so that in my opinion the solar panels are now the secondary focus. Batteries + Inverters first, with a small generator. Because the Inverters cover peak load, the generator can be much, much smaller, sized for average use rather than peak use. Much less fuel to keep the home running during a blizzard. Then wait for a good deal and add the panels whenever. You can buy them used for a song, and they still put out a ton of power. Panels are about the simplest thing in the world to install, so it's almost criminal how much installers are charging people who don't know any better. But that's always the cost of having someone else do the labor. And you don't have to add them all at once either, the modern inverters handle a wide range of voltages so you can add panels onesie twosie without having to change anything at the power panel. And if you already have a whole home generator, depending on your setup, the batteries and inverter can still be a great investment. When we had the blizzard in Texas, the people with whole home generators were sitting fat dumb and happy until they ran out of propane. I think in most places the natural gas lines kept running, so those people were fine. But many were still shocked by just how much gas those things use at idle. With a battery bank you can fire up your whole home generator, run it at peak for just long enough to recharge the batteries, then turn it off again until the batteries are low. Fuel usage can be reduced by 75 to 90% this way. I'm a big Elon fan, and I'm hoping the battery chemistry ends up being another area he revolutionizes.

All these are false arguments: people with normal incomes don't routinely travel between DC and NY. Only the exorbitantly rich and professional protestors do that.

I don't know why, I just feel like proving you and @nsplayr wrong. Here are bus tickets, train tickets, and air travel from DC to NYC on Jan 25th. Do your own research if you don't trust me. Train is the LEAST convenient in terms of time and $. $25 for a bus, $60-100 to fly, $60-360 for the train.

I have a hard time believing Russia can do better in the winter than they have in the warm months. It appears the Ukrainians will fight for as long as we fund them, and we will fund them for as long as it keeps weakening Russia.

Lived in UK for 8 years. Was pumped to give trains a go travelling locally and across in Europe. We went north up to scottland and west to wales many times but could never get it anywhere close to worth it cost/time wise. It was ALWAYS much cheaper to fly from Stanstead up to EDI or Aberdeen and could be done from door to door in about 5 hours versus the minimum of 12. We did the Eurostar once to Paris but drove or flew the other times. Eurostar wasn't that much cheaper than flights but was a bit more convenient with the minimal security. I can def see it working for certain city to city connections here and its crazy that it hasn't been done yet. There are lots of cities where the "local" airport doesn't have many non-stop options so a 2 hour car ride can be justified for a cheaper direct flight but then you add in car gas/parking/time and it starts to not be worth it. Connections in that regard I can def see catching on.

Pretty incredible that UKR apparently hasn't lost a single HIMARS yet. Looks like they hit another target the other night with anywhere from 100-500 KIA and another big weapons stockpile.

That’s exactly right. There’s no connection between our system’s desired pedigree for career success and actually winning wars. And until our nation holds accountable for failure “leaders” like Miley and Austin, this practice will continue.

I honestly don’t see what the problem is. I mean, the three dudes grilled on Capital Hill about the Afghanistan pull-out/debacle/abortion have a very impressive graduate education resume, and I think they showcased that higher level critical thinking during the withdrawal operation. It’s common knowledge more degrees make a better leader. /s SECDEF He holds a Master of Arts degree in counselor education from Auburn University, and a Master of Business Management from Webster University. https://www.defense.gov/About/Biographies/Biography/Article/2522687/lloyd-j-austin-iii/ Chairman of the JCS In addition to his bachelor’s degree in political science from Princeton University, General Milley has a master’s degree in international relations from Columbia University and one from the U.S. Naval War College in national security and strategic studies. He is also a graduate of the MIT Seminar XXI National Security Studies Program. https://www.defense.gov/About/Biographies/Biography/Article/614392/general-mark-a-milley/ CENTCOM Commander at the time Gen McKenzie is an honors graduate of the Armor Officer Advanced Course, Marine Corps Command and Staff College, and the School of Advanced Warfighting. He was selected as a CMC Fellow in 1999, and served as a Senior Military Fellow within the Institute for National Strategic Studies at the National Defense University. He has a Masters in Teaching with a concentration in History. https://www.centcom.mil/ABOUT-US/LEADERSHIP/Bio-Article-View/Article/1798987/commander-general-kenneth-f-mckenzie-jr/

Could not have asked for more than that!!

That was how I read it as well. Males do not enjoy equal protection under the laws we have passed.

When people figure out how to do this, they usually have a better life. We think we're so important. A lot of people forget that we are all going to die. In the end, none of this bullshit matters. We're on a spinning rock, floating through an expanding universe, which at this moment, I'm not thoroughly convinced that anybody knows how the universe got here in the first place. Drink a cold Busch Light and relax. Life is short. You never know when you might hit the dirt upside down.

Lloyd, I think we're all on the same page. Nobody is advocating for abortion and deadbeat dads. We're highlighting the hypocrisy of this issue in America. A woman can kill her unborn child and go to Applebee's right after. She's not held to the same standard as a man who doesn't want his child. If a drunk driver kills a pregnant woman and her child, they can charge the drunk driver for 2 counts. Why is one murder/manslaughter and the the other not? That is the question.

Don’t feed the troll…

So what? Men should just remain powerless to the system knowing their entire lives can be ruined by a spiteful or vengeful ex-girlfriend at any time? Did you know you can be ordered to pay child support for a child that is DNA proven not to be yours? Look it up. Also worth noting that selective service registration failed to make it into the NDAA for like the 7th year in a row. Radical feminists' argue for all of these rights but want to take none of the responsibilities that go with them.

Where were all these people complaining about Ukrainian aid when we spent 20+ years of blood and treasure fighting the boogey man with no strategy or will to "win"? We're now destroying what we thought was a peer enemy without any commitment of American blood....yet.

Easier said than done, but the sooner you can adopt a nihilist view of the AF "system," the better. Allow me to wax poetic as an old guy for a minute. I don't mean unprofessionalism towards our craft. I don't mean disrespect for your wingman. I don't even mean insubordination. If you want a masters, great. Get it. If you don't want it, don't get it. The AF might kick you out as a passed over Major at 20 years. Ok. Your check of the month will be $600 less and the gate guard might not salute you quite as crisply when you go to the commissary during retiree hour. Or don't wait around to find out and get out at 12 years. I'd encourage you to go to the ARC, but if you don't want to, don't. If the AF is a lifelong calling for you, great. If it's just a job for your 20s, great. The system doesn't care which camp you're in - it'll be just fine without you and you'll be just fine without it. Your work ethic, intelligence, and expectation of success puts you heads and shoulders above your workplace competition. Unless you go looking for that hot girl Molly, you won't end up homeless on the streets of Portland. If you're panicking about your promotion opportunities with this new bait and switch, I encourage you to go create a LinkedIn account. Seriously. Go look at who's doing ok in the world. Find and follow the people that you think have made it. Masters or not. Promotion or not. You'll be ok.

I was skeptical at first, but the Tapatalk app is working fine and I'm able to see all of the content as if it were on the computer. Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk