Let's get right to the point: The FAA has ALWAYS been of, by and for the airlines.
If there were no airlines there would be no FAA, pure and simple. General Aviation has always been a poor relation,
at best, in the FAA world. That's only reasonable--up to a point. After all, a lot more people ride the airlines
than fly their own airplanes. And while "I'm here to help" can be the last thing you want to hear from the FAA, until
a few years ago when they started into the "policing" business (i.e., ramp checks etc.) and went through all of the phony
"down-sizing" "efficiency" measures, in most cases, they really were there "to help."
But that's all changed.
This latest round of "user fees," this time being proposed AGAIN by the Bushies (they never give
up) in charge of the FAA, is just another example of economic class warfare being waged by the economically most powerful
against those with less power. In other words, its all about money. It has nothing to do with "modernization"
or "crowded" skies or airports or lost baggage or cancelled flights or poor service or delays. It simply another example
of the strong stealing from the weak for their own personal MONOPOLY economic advantage--facilitated and enforced by
their greedy, corrupt underlings (somehow almost always Republicans, but Democrats, too) in government. And then making
the weak pay for crumbs of what the strong have stolen! That's right, the tax breaks and corporate welfare subsidies
are paid for by you and me.
In other words, THEFT. But that's nothing. After stealing the store, they
want tribute in the form of "user fees!" The THIEVES want the victims to pay AGAIN for scraps of what was stolen!
And don't forget the billion$$$ in corporate welfare in the form of hidden subsidies and tax breaks pushed down for all of
us "little people" to pay for. Kinda sounds like something the mafia would do, doesn't it? It sure ain't got nothing
to do with a "competitive" market place.
Theft? Extortion? That's pretty extreme! Yes. And they're very clever
how they go about it. Reagan and both Bushes "privatized" major potions of
the government, including the FAA, major portions of the services provided by many now hollow-shell government departments
and now the military, too, all in the name of "efficiency." They ran into such fierce opposition from the public (rememer
the plan to privatize Social Security?) they were forced to adopt a more subtle strategy, i.e., the "eat-the-elephant-one-bite-at-a-
time" and the sleight of hand, hide-what's-really-happening so nobody will notice strategy. Democracy? Hardly!
This is how corrupt officials implement welfare for the rich the public wouldn't stand for if they knew what was happening.
And they are relentless in their determination. It has nothing to do with "efficiency"
or the "beauty of un-regulated competitive market forces." It is THEFT. Of, by and for the biggest corporations
and wealthiest people in the country.
Still think that's too strong? Remember Katrina? The reason FEMA, the government agency
charged with responding to disasters didn't respond was simple: it really didn't exist as a department any more.
It was just a hollow shell. Everything had to subbed out to "contractors," mostly through the mega-department of Homeland
Security. Not that they ever had any intention of "responding." As one Congressman said, "God did what we could
only dream of," meaning destroy both PRIVATE and public property, doesn't matter which, whatever, just so long as it gets
those damn Democrats out of town. Now they can sell off the condemned homes and
land to casino and hotel operators for a dime on the dollar and turn New Orleans into what they've always wanted: a
theme park, complete with imported "actors" from concentration camp trailer parks located outside of town where none of the
tourists will be have to see the slums they live in.
Having seen exactly how "Homeland Security" operates I hope like hell we never have an emergency
that involves a REAL enemy, instead of just unwanted US citizens, who happen to mostly vote Democratic. Would you vote
for a Republican who wanted to make you a homeless refugee or an inmate in a concentration camp trailer park, complete
with razor wire and armed guards? That's where all those dispossessed folks are today, years after the fact, living
in concentration camps right here in the USA, administered by, not the government, but by grossly overpaid sub-sub-sub-sub-contractors.
FEMA and DHS (and now DoD, too, with FAA next in line) are just empty shells, contracting agencies whose job is to shovel
taxpayer money into private "contractor" bank accounts (repeat after me: just say "Halliburton, Halliburton, Halliburton,
Halliburton," the prime contractor to both FEMA, DHS and DoD, too, with subcontractors ten deep for every task, grossly running
up the cost.) That's OK. In fact its the whole idea: no-bid, cost-plus covers it all. Just send the
bill to you, me, our kids and grandkids. That friends is THEFT, on a grand scale, in the name of "public service" and
"efficiency."
This FAA user fee thing is just more of the same.
Let's take a closer look at what they're doing to the FAA--this is nothing new--they're already
well down the road. It didn't start with Flight Service. That's just the first really visible evidence of what's
been going on for almost thirty years, and fits the model for what will follow.
Flight Service is just the camel's nose under the tent. The real prize is the whole ATC system.
It is huge profits, tax breaks and subsidies for a private ATC corporation that is the real goal. All paid for by mandatory
"user fees" and cuts in services. But one bite at a time, can't let anyone connect the dots to see what's really going
on. So now its Flight Service. And busting the controllers' union (so they can pay minimum wage with no benefits)
is part of the prize!
Here's what they've being doing since Nixon, accelerated by Reagan, have nearly completed with Bush and
are now doing to Flight Service:
Step one (which you may not have noticed): Reagan, Bush I and the Republican Congress during
the Clinton years (yes Clinton was an accomplice) and now Bush II slashed FAA funding. That meant FAA had to cut services.
That's why there are no more field approvals. That's why the controllers went on strike, got fired, the union destroyed
and is why ATC is such a mess. That was all part of the plan.
Step two: Bush II slashed funding some more, which meant more cuts in services.
Step three: Now that the FAA has no budget to perform the tasks they're supposed to, they've
become "another bloated, inefficient government agency." Big surprise! Can't have that! What to do, what to do?
Step four: Sub it out, no-bid, cost-plus, complete with tax breaks and huge subsidies.
So Bush II, in the name of "market efficiency" turned Flight Service over to Lockheed, one of Bush's biggest contributors.
Lockheed has, predictably, slashed the budget, cut more services, closed offices, cut the staff etc., all in the name
of "efficiency," meaning "profitability." Now they provide even worse piss-poor service because they don't have the
necessary manpower to do a proper job. What to do?
Step five: Slash services some more and start charging user fees.
You can count on it.
Do I have something against profits? Hey, I'm a (really) small businessman--profits are what
pay my bills. No, the problem is, some services are desirable and necessary, but are so expensive its simply beyond
the means of most individuals to pay for them, which is why we join together to create government in the first place.
So we can have things like schools, roads and bridges, water systems, sewers, electrical grids, justice systems, individual
and public rights, police and miltary forces etc. Things we all need, individually and collectively, but that most of
us couldn't afford if left to fend for ourselves. You know, all the things you DON'T see in third world countries.
So, now Lockheed owns Flight Service. They want to make a profit, BIG profits. It is
a valuable, necessary service that benefits the entire air-traveling public, but one that costs more than the average individual
traveler or GA pilot can afford. The budget and services have already been cut to the bone. Lockheed isn't making
"adequte" profits. What to do? You can be absolutely sure Lockheed will start charging "user fees" for services
they're already amply demonstrating they don't know how to provide.
And FAA will make their "services" MANDATORY if you want to fly.
Remember, its now required by law that we check notams before every flight to make sure we're up
on the latest security data. Suppose you had to PAY for that briefing and it was (and is) MANDATORY--no briefing, no
pay, no fly. Would that affect how much you fly? Suppose you had to pay $25 or more, every time you called Flight
Service to get that briefing, get weather or file a flight plan. More fees every time you talk to ground, the tower,
departure, center and approach, get flight following, get a clearance, landing and takeoff fees etc. That's what's coming.
All in the name of "cost-cutting," "free" market "competition" and "efficiency."
I call it extortion and theft. And its what we're gonna get if we open the door to user
fees.
It isn't about "service" or "efficiency" or "pay for what you get" or "free markets" or any of the
other misleading slogans they hammer us with. It's about MONEY. Private corporations want to take over government
services so they can make money, lots of money, MONOPOLY money (the government is monopoly).
It's about ELIMINATING competition so they can gouge us but good. And they way they start down that road is with huge tax cuts and subsidies for a few, cutbacks in services and
"user fees" for the rest of us.
When the FAA starts talking "user" fees, what they mean is another subsidy and tax cut
for those who the politicians have anointed as the blessed ones. Like Lockheed. The airlines think they're cutting
a fat one. They're fools. Yes, airlines are the real users of the services, who don't need, but will get tax
cuts and subsidies, all at the expense of those less able to pay (the public and general aviation). But that's
just part of the clever strategy to turn over FAA services to private corporations, MONOPOLY corporations, who will charge
way more than the cost of letting the FAA keep doing the job. The airlines are gonna get screwed, too. That's
why they're screaming about gate fees taht are supposed to improve airport "efficiency."
Bullshit.
The "market" economy politicans, the bought-and-paid-for running dogs of the greedy corporations
who want to take over government for their own benefit, are very sneaky about it. They NEVER say anything about
profits for their benefactors, it's all about "efficiency." They don't call it a "tax," they call it a "user fee"
so it sounds more like you're getting something for your money. Of course, we already own and pay taxes for Flight Service,
the airspace and the FAA--except now they want us to PAY some "contractor" AGAIN for what we already own! Of course,
the airlines--by far the biggest "users"--and the biggest contributors--won't pay a thing (they think), only GA will be subject
to the fees.
The FAA is small change. What they have in mind is the biggest hostile takeover, the biggest
theft and income transfer in US history, but they have to keep it quiet, one bite at a time, so nobody will notice what's
going on.
Bottom line: folks like you and me will simply have to forego flying if we have to pay a fee
every time we have to get a MANDATORY weather briefing, file a flight plan, get a clearance etc. That's what they call
"efficiency." I guess we're just not "competitive," we're just some of the unfortunate "losers" in the game of rapacious
cut-throat monopoly capitalism.
"Stuff happens," to quote Rumsfeld. Looting isn't a problem--it's the whole idea!
It's all part of a systematic PLAN to destroy public resources and turn them ALL over to private
monopoly interests at a huge discount to value so they can re-sell them to us at enormous profit. They've already
"sold" FSS to Lockheed, next they'll sell the rest of the FAA and the airspace to the airlines. Imagine where us Cessna
and Cherokee pilots are gonna fit into their scheme of things, who is going to be numero uno for all of the benefits and who
will get the hindmost, albeit paying for it in the form of escalating "user" fees.
The user fees now proposed will pale in comparison to those the airlines will charge once they own
the FAA outright--which is exactly what Reagan and both Bushes proposed.
Ever notice that, somehow, the biggest beneficiaries always seem to turn up as the biggest campaign
contributors? Coincidence? Lockheed is one of Bush's biggest contributors. Don't think that's "corruption,"
that the administration is just being "efficient," trying to save us all some money? Funny thing, Ken Lay (Enron CEO)
was one of Bush's "best friends," was THE biggest single Bush contributor and had visited the White House more than 400 times.
400 times! They must have had a lot of really important things to talk about, eh? Funny thing, but after Bush
de-regulated utility companies, like Enron, they suddenly became hugely profitable. Of course they had to slash services
to the public who paid for the electrical systems etc. in the first place and raise rates through the roof. That's just
"market" forces at work in a "competitive" (i.e., MONOPOLY) world, "efficiency" etc. It was only when Enron got caught
doing exactly what they had always intended and were expected to do (rig the system to cut services, create "deficits," power
"shortages" and gouge the public--nothing new for utulity companies and the major reason they have been regulated since the
Great Depression), after Bush de-regulated them, that they became exposed as the corrupt bunch they always were--and after
all the big-shots sold their stock at hugely inflated prices.
They went to prison because they were CRIMINALS.
Amazingly, after all of the campaigning Bush had done for "de-regulation", and it became clear what
a scam it all was, he just couldn't seem to remember who his buddy "Kenny-boy" was. Hmmm. Cheney is one of the
biggest share holders in Halliburton, who just happens to be getting the biggest slice of the cost of the Iraq war.
Coincidence? Odd that they never have to bid on anything, and, in fact, simply sub-sub-sub-subcontract most of their
"services" to others, grossly increasing costs to us taxpayers. That's what they mean by free-market (monopoly) "efficiency."
It's not about "bloated, inefficient big government," it's about stealing public services so MONOPOLY
corporations can then use them to gouge like crazy!
Since when do National Parks and wilderness belong to concessionaires? Since when does the
airspace belong to the airlines? Since when do we have to pay for vouchers for wealthy students to attend private schools?
Since when are public schools and hospitals not only disposable but for sale to private companies at a huge discount (see
post-Katrina New Orleans etc.) Since when is the military a private force, i.e., Blackwater etc.--MERCENARIES?
Since when is torture SOP? Since when does the government have the right to continuously spy on the public? Since
when do we employ totally unaccountable armed MERCENARIES (Blackwater again) for "policing" within the US (New Orleans, again)?
Since when does the government conspire with private companies to create unregulated monopolies so they can gouge the public--Enron etc.
Since when is it our government's right to threaten or overthrow non-threatening soverign governments, destroy their infrastructures
and economies and then conspire with banks and private companies (i.e., big contributors) to steal their resources (many examples,
not just Iraq) opening the door to bankruptcy, chaos and puppet dictatorship (Pinochet et al) government? Since
when do public utilities belong to private companies? Since when are publicly chartered and insured lenders (banks
and mortgage companies) virtually unregulated--loan sharks in other words--so they can sell worthless securities to ignorant
investors, charge hidden fine-print time-bomb predatory fees knowing full-well their customers will have to default and
thereby threaten the economic well-being of the entire world? Since when does (favored, big-contributor) private
industry have the right to pollute at will with government complicity and then say there really isn't a problem with pollution,
that market forces will magically make it all go away?
Since when does the government keep their activities secret and then LIE LIE LIE about what they're
really up to, claiming "Executive Privilege" or some other specious flagrant horse shit? I remember the Cold War very
well. That's when we called the Russians our enemies because they were doing the very same things we now do in the name
of the "unitary Presidency." Ever notice that many of the Bush crew are holdovers from the Nixon administration?
Nixon's "Imperial Presidency" was chump stuff compared to what Bush has been doing. After all, when Nixon said "I'm
not a crook" (which was tecnically correct, he was just an ordinary "criminal"), he at least acknowledged that the Congress
and the courts still had some relevance beyond rubber-stamping the foisting of a "permanent majority" (that's what we
used to call "dictatorship") on what we used to call "democracy."
It's been the same old story for more than thirty years: tax breaks and huge "subsidies" for
the (really, really, big-contributor) wealthy few to run up huge deficits and thereby create a false sense of impending economic
doom, slash services and charge "user" fees to "balance" the budget, cut taxes some more, create huge deficits, more doom,
more "user" fees, repeat, repeat, repeat etc etc etc. Then finally sell the service providing government agencies
to profit making monopoly corporations who will then cut services even more, fire the remaining staff, disband the union,
ship everything of to some low-wage off-shore country, get another big tax break and subsidy payment for off-shoring and
raise the fees some more! Since when does our government make it more profitable to fire US employees only to replace
them with sweatshop (and even SLAVE) labor in foreign countries, gutting the industrial base of the country? Since when
is it our government's job to protect the Chinese and other sweatshop economies at the expense of our own? Why
is the Air Force considering buying tankers from Airbus?
BULLSHIT!! ENOUGH!!!
The airspace does NOT belong to the airlines. The FAA does not belong to Lockheed. The
government is not a private, for profit corporation!
Since they're already calling ALL--including US citizens--who challenge their criminal strategy
"terrorists," or "foreign combatants," arresting them in the middle of the night and shipping them off to Gitmo or treating
them to kidnapping, imprisonment and torture in some "unknown" foreign country (Romania, among others, comes to mind)
via "extraordinary rendition,"--our own version of Pinochet-style "disappeareds"--I don't know how much more they can think
of on their way to creating a permanent dictatorship of the oligarchs, but count on it, they will.
But its actually even worse than that. How could it get worse? Let's talk about the
privatization. How about war? Blackwater is getting a lot of attention lately because they are completely run
amuck and beyond the reach of law--Iraqi or US. Ever wonder how much a mercenary costs? The US commander, general
Petraeus, makes less than $600/day, which is LESS than the average pay for a Blackwater mercenary. But that's only the
tip of the iceberg. Blackwater doesn't work for the US government. They're just a subcontractor. In fact,
they're a sub to a sub to a sub to the prime contractor, who just happens to be No-Bid, Cost-Plus Numero Uno, you guessed
it, Halliburton, in which our dearly beloved president in charge of vice just happens to own a huge number of shares of stock,
even though that's against the law. He has simply refused to divest himself (so did Rumsfeld) of his major (and increasingly
profitable) interest in Halliburton. Does that surprise you? The Bush administration is not only the most secretive
and repressive administration ever, its also the most corrupt. Halliburton charges more than $5000/day for a Blackwater
mercenary--who earns more (about $650/day) than General Petraeus! Pretty "efficient," eh? Isn't "competitive"
free enterprise a thing of beauty? Where does the other $4350 go? To say nothing of $20 billion--that's right,
$20 billion--that just, somehow, got "lost."
Ever wonder what a US infantryman makes while putting his/her butt on the line to serve his/her
county? It ain't more than General Petraeus makes, that's for sure! So much for "cost savings," "efficiency" and
"competition!"
But war isn't the only thing being privatized. Wonder why government keeps getting more and
more expensive while they're slashing services? More privatization is why. The feds (and states, too) have contracted
MANY, MANY basic services, often on no-bid, cost-plus terms, to private corporations who then sub-sub-sub out the work,
often to off-shore tax haven subsidiaries, grossly inflatings the costs so they can charge way more than any government department
could ever dream of budgeting for the same work. Just like Blackwater mercenaries making way more money than General
Petraeus. And of course it all done in the name of "free market economic efficiency." Did you know that right
now there are about 180,000 "contractors" (i.e., mercenaries) in Iraq costing us $5000 each per day. There are
"only" 160,000 US military--and they're being paid less than a tenth of what the "contractors" get. Do the math
and tell me what's more "efficient." Remember the hated Hessian mercenaries that fought for the British during the Revolutionary
War? Do you think the Iraqis feel any different about Blackwater than we feel about the Hessians?
I am NOT making this up.
Think I'm over-reacting? Just another soft-headed liberal nut case? If Iran gets bombed
in the not-so-distant future (got to create another crisis to drum up some more flag waving to hide the economic sleight-of-hand),
even if our surrogate Israel does the bombing (and then gets a big helping of congratulatory economic aid and military equipment),
if there are major demonstations here in the USofA (and around the world), don't be surprised if Blackwater gets called in
to disperse the crowds and Bush suspends civil liberties or declares Martial Law. He's got plenty of time to finish
the job he started.
This whole thing has nothing to do with "competition" or "bloated big-government inefficiency."
It's about money, MONOPOLY money. And you and I get the bill.
If we don't act now it will only get worse. What we need is not "efficient" "market-driven"
government, what we need is GOOD, honest government. The pulic at large is hugely in favor of retaining or expanding
almost ALL government services--that's why they have to use the excuse of deficits to create chaos and demand cuts in services.
Don't be fooled. This has been going on for a long time, behind our backs, based on LIES and is at root, CRIMINAL.
FAA user fees is just the latest attempt at budget sleight-of-hand designed to divert our attention from what's really going
on.
Call and write your Congress people. Don't forget to vote. Don't be just another bite
for the elephant.
Wild Blue Aviation