Our
newspaper has an article about Southwest Airlines and the large number of
canceled flights. The airline claims that bad weather has caused the
cancelation of all these flights with great inconvenience to the traveling
public.
If we dig deeper, we will find a titanic
power struggle going on between the airline and the unions that represent its
pilot and flight crews. It is all about a mandate that all these personnel must
be vaccinated against Covid-19.
Before I go any further, please allow me
to disclose that I have had my two Pfizer shots to protect me from Covid-19. I
will get a booster shot in December. I feel that everyone needs to investigate
the issue and think long and hard before proceeding to vaccination.
A majority of the pilot's union
membership voted to resist this order to get vaccinated. A lawsuit has been
filed in US District Court to block this vaccination mandate. (These suits fail,
by the way.)
What is most disturbing is the education
and training of the people in this union. All union members have a minimum of a
bachelor's degree. A high percentage of them are former military pilots who
served an average of six years flying aircraft in the US Air Force, US Navy,
and US Marine Corps. I have personal experience with naval aviation. One first must
pass a rigorous test including a psychological test. Many applicants are
rejected. Then comes flight training and advanced flight schools where many
more applicants fail to meet the rigorous standards.
Once these
young men and women graduate, they become commissioned officers and start to
wear pilot's or naval flight officer's wings. They often fly combat missions.
Some are tragically killed in battle or in accidents. They go to all sorts of
advanced training. When they complete their military service, many join
airlines like Southwest Airlines.
As this confrontation continues, Southwest
Airlines will suffer massive financial losses. Those who resist the mandate
will get fired. They will not get unemployment benefits. I suspect that other
airlines will not hire them.
This whole story is disturbing. It
says one thing to me. The US government and the pharmaceutical companies that
developed these vaccines are not doing a very good job of educating the public
on the safety and effectiveness of these vaccines.
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