Hal, Are You Guys There?

[Bill Greenwood]

Are you guys at EAA headquarters and who run this forum there?

The reason that I am asking is I don't see anything on this forum about the pilots rights bill and being able to fly without needing a 3rd class medical.

Is this an important issue? Or just something like non smoking which doesn't seem to matter to many at EAA?

Well, judging by the editorial in the April EAA PILOT magazine, it it pretty important.

But I don't see any reference to it on this forum.

Hal, or someone, how about posting the reference which I believe is EAA.org and then the Rally Congress section so that members, hopefully all of them, can take less than 2 minutes to send the electronic letter to their Congress person asking support for this bill.

Thanks, Bill Greenwood

[Hal Bryan]

Hi Bill -

Yes, we're here, and, yes, this is and has been the number one priority of our government advocacy group.

We've had some great discussions on these forums about medical reform as well as the specific PBoR2:

http://eaaforums.org/showthread.php?5522-Drivers-license-medical

http://eaaforums.org/showthread.php?...ll-of-Rights-2

In addition, here's the direct link to our Rally Congress page where you can add your voice to the 18,000+ letters already sent:

http://govt.eaa.org/17422/support-pilots-bill-rights-2/

Cheers -

Hal

[Bill Greenwood]

Thanks, Hal, many of us did this last summer, but as per the recent election which changed some Congress people, and the slow progress with the DOT obstacle, as per Jack Pelton's editorial we need to write/call again. What we are specifically asking support for is the Pilot Rights Bill Number 2 which includes the medical reform, along with the rights from the version one.

By the way, if you don't believe in miracles, like the govt doing something good for private gen aviation, take heart.

It is a long shot, but how likely is it that U of Wisconsin, would be reaching the final four, not is football or ice fishing or brat eating or curling, BUT IN BASKETBALL!!!!!!!!

Not only that, but some people think they might actually upset Kentucky.

[Floatsflyer]

Hal, I greatly admire your ability to demonstrate constraint. That's why you're the moderator and not a prison guard.

To Bill, UW is a number 1 seed and has been a dominating team all year. Pretty good for a bunch of white guys! :-) Anybody can beat anybody in a one-off tournament but I think Kentucky is destined to go undefeated. UW's Frank Kaminsky is projected to go in the top 4 in the NBA draft.

[rwanttaja]

It really boils down to what the EAA Forums *are*. I see them as discussion areas for EAA members, with Hal here to make us keep everybody neat and pretty (like the Mickey Mouse Club, but with less rodentia).

I'm happy when Hal, Charlie, or Tom make announcements as to major occurrences or clarify points being discussed...but I, personally, have no interest in seeing routine press releases posted here. "Medical reform approved" is a great reason to post, "EAA continues to discuss medical reform" really isn't. EAA has a whole web page (http://www.eaa.org/en/eaa/eaa-news-and-aviation-news) dedicated to that sort of thing.

Keep in mind, too, that Hal isn't really involved in these events, so complaining to him isn't much help. A better approach might be to PM or email Charlie or Tom for the current status. I've gotten pretty good response when I've done that...then again, I know where the bodies are buried. :-)

Ron Wanttaja

[Bill Greenwood]

Ron, "a better approach might be to pm Charlie or Tom" . None of that is going to get Congress to approve this bill. Maybe you didn't read the editorial in this months Pilot magazine, or maybe this is an issue that you just don't care about, but it affects a lot of pilots and if you won't take 2 minutes to send the electronic letter for yourself, maybe you will do it for your fellow pilots or private gen av. I don't know who "Charlie" is either, don't see a Charlie on upper level EAA managers.

I wasn't looking for just a news update or release and that is not going to get us to the goal, Just saying that I put the wrong thing on the forum or shouldn't complain to Hal may be satisfying for you, but again what we need is action, AS PER JACK PELTON'S EDITORIAL, and not critisizing each other.

How about taking the action to send the letter and then you can start another topic about how bad my post was?

This forum is certainly for discussion, major issues and a ton of minutia, but when there is a major effort by EAA, not just my major effort, and it calls for some action by members, then it should be a highlight of this foroum.

I am not surprised that someone took it upon themselves to nit pick and nay say what I wrote. I have read your opinion and I think this issue is bigger and more important.

And, I bet Hal and I are still friends, at least I hope so. And most of all, note that Hal quickly posted exactly the reference that we need to send this mail, just as I had hoped.

[Hal Bryan]

And, I bet Hal and I are still friends, at least I hope so. And most of all, note that Hal quickly posted exactly the reference that we need to send this mail, just as I had hoped.

We're all still friends as far as I'm concerned.

Now how about all of us redirect our energy toward contacting our Representatives in Washington and encouraging them to act. If you haven't used our Rally Congress tool yet, please do. If you have, tell your friends to do it, and consider sending a more personal email or letter or making a phone call to the appropriate politicians.

The passion is there; let's focus it on the mission at hand!

End of sermon.

- Hal

[rwanttaja]

Ron, "a better approach might be to pm Charlie or Tom" . None of that is going to get Congress to approve this bill.

Nor are pointed complaints towards Hal or anyone else at EAA. I understand your need to know what's happening, but if things aren't happening, then things aren't happening. Repeating "Are we there yet?" over and over again generally doesn't get you to your destination any faster, especially when you say it to someone who doesn't have any control over the process.

As has been reported by EAA (and, for that matter, me), the issue is hung up at the Department of Transportation. One would hope that EAA is on them like a bad rash, but the kind of lobbying being done is probably something most of us would find pretty boring. It probably consists of phone calls along this line:

"This is XXXXX from the Experimental Aviation Association. We were wondering what was the status of the Third-Class medical reform?"

"The issue is currently under study."

"When do you anticipate the next step will be taken?"

"It's hard to say."

Lather, rinse, repeat.

This would also probably be pretty close to the transcript for when EAA's Government Contact Specialist physically goes to DOT headquarters to push for action.

The problem is, there is no formal process defining what the DOT is doing at this stage. Every party with a dog in this hunt is pushing the same way. As EAA's lobbyist is leaving an office, the AMA's lobbyist is going in, urging delay and, hopefully, complete rejection of the program. Again, there's nothing formal right now...no one is on the record. The AMA's lobbyist can say WHATEVER he likes about the program, invent all sorts of dire consequences if it goes through. Want to bet they've mentioned the Germanwings crash?

And who has more money for lobbying...the EAA or the AMA?

The problem is, either the EAA actions are boring (e.g., repeated contacts) OR they're sensitive enough that they don't want to bandy things about. If a staffer at the DOT gives the EAA's lobbyist a hint on how to speed things up, we certainly shouldn't expect or want an EAA press release blabbing what the guy said.

It's understandable being upset about this, but it's far more complex than most people realize. "If you like laws and sausages, you should never watch either one being made," said von Bismarck, and the old Junker was right.

Ron Wanttaja

[Don January]

The wife and I sent our letters, x-our fingers. Don and Vickie

[Frank Giger]

It's times like this that makes one almost nostalgic for the day when effective lobbying could be concluded with hookers and booze.

(Which is how Atlanta became an airmail route hub and Birmingham didn't...note the difference in airport size and traffic today)