Massive bail-out unlikely.

[Baret4]

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/busines...nefinances.html

 

[wts54]

Good they shouldnt paying any airline anything.

 

[apofurlough]

They won''t support the economy here in the US and help all of us get our jobs back but they can spend billions of our tax dollars to help reconstruck Iraq after the war. And if the media is right, the people of Iraq are ungrateful for what we are trying to help them with. I would rather see our tax dollars help our economy and let Iraq deal with their economy. Spend our tax dollars here in the US.

 

[PITbull]

Airlineorphan,

Even though I realize many have their opinions on the war effort/initiative, I have serious mixed feelings, slanting mostly on, "why in hell would we invade Iraq and tell the people we came to liberate them from tyranny"? I am sorry, but did someone send a letter to Bush and ask for liberation?

You have expressed a reasonable analysis and postion, that I would find difficult arguing.

I guess this should be for another post.

 

[airlineorphan]

----------------
On 3/26/2003 10:28:14 PM apofurlough wrote:

They won''t support the economy here in the US and help all of us get our jobs back but they can spend billions of our tax dollars to help reconstruck Iraq after the war. And if the media is right, the people of Iraq are ungrateful for what we are trying to help them with. I would rather see our tax dollars help our economy and let Iraq deal with their economy. Spend our tax dollars here in the US.

----------------​

With all due respect, if Iraqi people are "ungrateful" after:
2 wars
a dictator propped up originally by the U.S. and the U.K.
repeatedly being stabbed in the back by the U.S. after
former Pres. Bush told them to rise up
11 years of sanctions which mainly hurt the most vulnerable Iraqi civilians

....well, I''m not surprised. We''ve "helped" the Iraqi people quite enough over the last 23 years.

But you are correct, the U.S. is sinking itself into deep financial commitments here that will wreak havoc here. Of course, remember, W. forgot to even include any $ for rebuilding Afghanistan in the new budget, so perhaps the same will be the case after the war with Iraq.

Lord help my brother, our soldiers and the Iraqi people whom Bush has put in harms way. In the long run, the only ones who this government is likely to bail out are the wealthy (and it will be a bipartisan effort).

-Airlineorphan

 

[DB Cooper]

Many airline employees are Guards & Reservists fighting in Iraq. When the war is over and they return home ONLY to find their airline job no longer exists how will they react? The very same Gov''t. that sent them into battle could provide some of the tax/security cost relief being sought by the network carriers.

 

[Dea Certe]

Airlineorphan,

Amen! I''m praying for all our troops sent in harm''s way and all the innocent people sure to suffer from this ill-advised war.

Dea

 

[airlineorphan]

----------------
On 3/26/2003 1115 PM DB Cooper wrote:

Many airline employees are Guards & Reservists fighting in Iraq. When the war is over and they return home ONLY to find their airline job no longer exists how will they react? The very same Gov't. that sent them into battle could provide some of the tax/security cost relief being sought by the network carriers.

----------------​

Hear hear!

The sad fact is, that while our governement and the press brays about "supporting the troops" our country has a pretty bad track record of doing so. Once the people have been sent off to fight, they are generally tossed off like used kleenex. A sort of "Go away kid, ya bother me!" attitude prevails in the governement towards veterans after most wars (with the exception of the photo-ops politicians like to take with War Heroes).

Cuts to VA benefits, denial of Gulf War syndrome for years, what will be the legacy for this group of soldiers? I know more than a few Gulf War and Vietnam War vets who live on the street here in my city. Fortunately, the budget cuts haven't hit the subway system too hard--they can still warm themselves on the steam grates in the winter.

The shameful treatment of veterans goes back all the way to the founding out the country. Revolutionary War vets attempted to pay their rent with the worthless scrip they were paid with for their service to the new nation. Their land began to be confiscated, they rose up in what became known as Shea's Rebellion, and were put down brutally by George Washington's regular army.

So, the sad thing is that many of these folks will return to lost jobs, and have difficulty finding work because jobs may be gone, employers often stigmatize vets (not likely to bow down to a petty supervisor after surviving the savagery of war). Higher level career officers will likely make out okay (not unlike the corporate world) but the grunts will be forgotten, underfunded, and conveniently ignored.


... But we now stray far off topic, so I will attempt to bring it back. There is a parallel between the priority our government gives the soldiers (relative to upper officers, chickenhawk politicians like Rumsfield, and the war-profiteering corporations that will benefit from this war) and the priorities made in the bailout schemes. Any bailout that is likely to be passed will likely further tilt the playing field in favor of management.

Keep in mind that the airline bailout last time had only one thing in it about the people who actually do the work at the airlines: To get a loan guarantee, airline employees have to be squeezed. So rather than doing nothing for airline workers, the bailout did worse than nothing.

I spoke to representatives of the House Transportation Committee, and asked them if this provision was going to be revised to level the playing field (after all, Oberstar's legislation proposes re-upping the loan guarantees for fuel). I was given the excuse by the Democrat I spoke to that the Republicans wouldn't let anything through that removed that provision. So we can count on the Republicans to make sure any bailout only helps management, and the Democrats to be spineless and collusional.

-Airlineorphan



"Support the soldiers, bring them home!
Bush can fight his war alone!"
--heard at a local peace rally