AOPA will never get another dime from me

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Exactly why I say the agendi don't match.

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No, I was an AOPA member once. It took awhile but I realized the GA agenda is not congruent with the Airline Pilot agenda.

I'm just not a fan of unrestricted GA.

I understand where your coming from here, but I've got a question that is related to this concept. If you think that restricting GA in favor of benefiting commercial aviation is beneficial, then why don't we start putting more fee's on Jon Q public who drives his corvette around for no reason? Lets tax the private individuals who choose to drive their own car, rather than paying for someone to drive it for them. Tax every car (aka toll roads everywhere), so that you shut them down. Seems like a similar concept to me.
 
Can we please not turn this into another user fee/unrestricted GA debate?

We have beat that horse to death on multiple occasions and all it results in are flared tempers and locked threads...
 
I'm still confused myself.... since when has a GA aircraft been in the way of an airliner. I have never had to go around for any size GA aircraft (152 up to G-V), or hold short for any size GA aircraft... I have had some heinously long lines behind other airliners. LGA and EWR are a great example of why those airports need to cap the number of departures and arrivals and auction them off.
 
It wasn't Cohen's association with AOPA that caused me to break ties with them. It was the fact they'd publish anyone's shiny, glossy add in their magazine for $$$. That, and I once read a "stellar" article on how Gulfstream was the future of aviation and a great opportunity for everyone. I'm sure the fact that GIA had a nice, one page full color ad next to the article had zero bearing on the article....
 
I'm still confused myself.... since when has a GA aircraft been in the way of an airliner. I have never had to go around for any size GA aircraft (152 up to G-V), or hold short for any size GA aircraft... I have had some heinously long lines behind other airliners. LGA and EWR are a great example of why those airports need to cap the number of departures and arrivals and auction them off.


I've had it happen to me. Almost happened again the other day.

In White Plains, airline traffic mixes with GA traffic at a fairly high rate. The results are often a bit unnerving, to say the least.

Back when I was mowing my flight instructor's lawn for flight lessons when I was 16, my Father weighed in on the subject.

I was to stay far, far, far, away from DFW, at all times. No questions.

Now that I operate in and out of DFW on a regular basis, I know why he felt that way. He was right.
 
Any airline pilot who supports AOPA is just saying his hobby is more important than his job. Not that there's anything wrong with that, it just seems their priorities are misplaced.

If you were a member of AOPA, you're priorities would be misplaced based on your desires. The AOPA members desire to be a member of AOPA for a reason, usually. Their priorities are right where they want them to be. Maybe that was the point you were trying to make, though...
 
It was the fact they'd publish anyone's shiny, glossy add in their magazine for $$$. That, and I once read a "stellar" article on how Gulfstream was the future of aviation and a great opportunity for everyone. I'm sure the fact that GIA had a nice, one page full color ad next to the article had zero bearing on the article....

It's pretty clear that pay for play is just fine with AOPA.

It is not fine for any publication with an iota of journalistic integrity.

Back when I was working for another publication focusing on the aviation industry, I got a little heat for combining an email with the rates for an ad that someone wanted to run with the contact information for the editors. And I made very clear in the e-mail that the person who wanted them to write an article would have to sell that on their own merits regardless of whether or not they bought an ad from me.

Well, it looks like AOPA has a different policy...if you can write a check for an ad, we're going to write nice articles about you.

I refuse to give my money to any organization like that.

Hell, man, as much as we bag on local media, know who their big advertisers often are? Car dealers. And guess who they go after when it's sweeps weeks? Yup, those car dealers who are robbing you blind according to the tease.
 
Ya know, if I no longer conducted business with every business, organization, etc with whom I disagreed with, I'd probably have a lot of money saved 'cause I wouldn't buy much of anything. No internet, no food, etc. I'd even have a hard time voting too.

But that's just me.
 
No, I was an AOPA member once. It took awhile but I realized the GA agenda is not congruent with the Airline Pilot agenda.
I'm just not a fan of unrestricted GA.

I've never been in a fight before about user fees! Yeah! Talk about aiming at the wrong target.

First point: A lot of those "unrestricted" GA a-holes are actually training to be in your seat one day. User fees will add a lot of cost to getting a pilots license - especially instrument/commercial/ATP/type etc. Its a lot more taxing to you pro-types than to us buzz around the field prop guys. I'm sure you don't mind though. ATP ratings are pretty cheap to get and compared to the LOADS OF GREEN CASH those professional pilots are going to be making in the regionals, I'm sure they can afford it.

Second point: The 172SP I buzz around in weighs 2550 pounds at gross and spends half of its time at uncontrolled airports (5% of airports in america have a control tower). I'm not in your way, I'm not destroying your turf. Controllers have the responsibility of keeping us separated, and they do a great job. Even if you occasionally run into an errant GA guy; everyone, including you, makes mistakes. This is aviation snobbery and I won't stand for it :)

Third: I get both of AOPA's magazines and I like them very much. No, I don't mind them doing an article on Gulfstreams; they are actually pretty interesting to me. If you'd like to make the argument that they are "paid off" to do some sort of subliminal messaging to get me to buy a G650 over the Learjet 85 I was considering, I'm all ears. I think its you who are more offbase than they... but thats just my opinion.

Finally: AOPA's arguments are to pay for the FAA out of the general fund. I can see how you can be angry if AOPA was asking for the FAA's budget to come out of your salary or maybe swipe your credit card to file IFR in your cockpit. But, overall, aviation, big and little, serves commerce in America and it is reasonable for our citizens to support safe air travel and regulations.

Good night, ladies and gents :)
 
Controllers have the responsibility of keeping us separated, and they do a great job.

If you'd like to make the argument that they are "paid off" to do some sort of subliminal messaging to get me to buy a G650 over the Learjet 85 I was considering, I'm all ears.

Well technically no,unless you're in class B or IFR, they're only responsible form keeping them seperated from other IFR traffic.

If you'd like to make the argument that they are "paid off" to do some sort of subliminal messaging to get me to buy a G650 over the Learjet 85 I was considering, I'm all ears.

You're thinking of the wrong Gulfstream.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulfstream_International_Airlines :)
 
All I get is my AOPA magazine and my renewal notice. That and an occasional letter asking me to contact my congressman to make sure the Airlines are punished for clogging the ATC system.

:yeahthat:

. . .and I do mean occasional.
 
No, I was an AOPA member once. It took awhile but I realized the GA agenda is not congruent with the Airline Pilot agenda.

I'm just not a fan of unrestricted GA.

Exactly what is an "Airline Pilot agenda?" We all know safety is first, but how in summary, how does it differ from a GA agenda?
 
Exactly what is an "Airline Pilot agenda?" We all know safety is first, but how in summary, how does it differ from a GA agenda?

He's talking more about the "airline management" agenda, than the "airline pilot" agenda. He must thing that what is good for management is good for pilots.
 
:yeahthat:

. . .and I do mean occasional.

We really don't get all that much stuff from AOPA. Me, Bill and my dad are all AOPA members (we consider it to be 3 chances of winning the yearly airplane give-away :) ). I think my two pilot uncles are members too.

We used to get two copies of the magazine (2 accounts in the house), but with my most recent renewal we elected to put a Flight Training subscription on my account. So now we get both the AOPA Pilot and the Flight Training. Yeah, they have some pilot mill ads, but they also have a LOT of good articles.

We get letters every now and then, but really not that much. It's a lot fewer mailings than we get from Macys.... What I wish I could stop are the multiple mailings of Christmas card solicitations from the ASF. We do order our Christmas cards from them every year, without fail. So send us one mailing with the sample cards.... not 5 or 6 mailings starting in September! Gotta look in to that one of these years....
 
Ya know, if I no longer conducted business with every business, organization, etc with whom I disagreed with, I'd probably have a lot of money saved 'cause I wouldn't buy much of anything. No internet, no food, etc. I'd even have a hard time voting too.

But that's just me.

There's different degrees to "disagreement." I don't shop at Wal-Mart unless it's the absolute last option and I NEED something at 4 am. Now that there's a 24 hour CVS 1/4 mile from my house, that happens a LOT less, too. Main reason being how they treat (unless things have changed) their employees. There are fast food places I don't patronize b/c of their food sources.

If you see the world in total black and white, then yeah, I could see your point. Reality isn't black and white, though. There are some things you need (like food) and some thing you want (like internet).
 
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