I am a private pilot with 1600 hours and IFR rated. I was never tempted to fly for pay. I figure that I paid something like $150,000 to fly. It was fun, but to do it I gave up a lot. Now I'm 72, no longer flying (too expensive), and watching cold hard reality strike the US. Each of us is only worth what our replacement will work for. No one has a right to high pay no matter what effort and privation he or she has gone through. My greatest source of income is SS, so I am in the same boat as everyone. This reduction in expectations and income is hitting unevenly, but it will hit everyone. The last ones it will hit are the friends of the current administration, but it will hit them, too. Workers in the airline industry are unlucky to be among the first. Some of the writers to this thread want to Feds to bail them out, but they don't mention that someone else will have to take the hit so they can have the good life. We're all in this together, except for those who (temporarily) are using the government to protect them. As a high ranking representative of the Chinese Gov. said the other day, Chinese work seven days a week, Americans five, Chinese work 12 hours a day, Americans eight. Unless we're a lot smarter (we aren't) or have a better system (temporary at best) we will meet them somewhere in the middle if we're lucky. I believe that the overhead of our society is too high, too many service workers, and too many high paid professionals. It could self-correct, if the privileged don't screw things up with their greed and short-sightedness.

Let me start by saying that I always vote for a Democrat, and not one of them ever gets elected. I live in Idaho. If the state were more evenly balanced I'd probably vote for both Democrats and Republicans. But I am disgusted with the national democrats. They are no less corrupt than the Republicans. The war in Iraq is being fought for the benefit of Texas oil oligarchs and their Saudi buddies. Republican and Democrat politicians both know this. It is easy to understand why the Republicans lie about it, but why do Democrats? Texas and Saudi oil money control our politics, that's the long and the short of it. Since I am more libertarian than I am liberal, I detest the Democrat support of corrupt labor unions. A case in point is the Democrat aversion to Health Savings Accounts. It is not based on care for the poor and uninsured. It is based on the huge amount of slush funds available to corrupt labor unions due to their management of many health insurance plans. Much of that money ends up supporting Democat politicians. That is just as evil as the Republicans methods of getting money. Until the Democrats start supporting policies that truly benefit the middle class they will not win elections. Freedom of economic choice is very important to the middle class, that is why lower taxes appeal to them, even though the Republicans lie about everything.

I'm 72 and living in modest comfort. Many in my age cohort inherited modest to large amounts from their frugal depression era parents. We weren't that lucky. I never cease to be amazed at the spending habits of younger people. It is incomprehensible to me that so much credit card debt exists. One of my daughters (now 35) came out of college with a debt of $1200 (she went to a state U that cost $6000 a year-total). That shocked her so much that she never did it again. Both our daughters found modest jobs and lived modestly, and were able to contibute to 401K's. No expensive vacations or toys. We had always taught them that recreation that costs money is to be avoided. A few simple rules are: don't eat in restaurants, don't take expensive vacations, don't buy expensive toys, drive cheap reliable cars. And be an utterly reliable employee. As a consequence they are both financially reasonably secure.

I agree that our present system of funding health care and retirement for us old folks is not sustainable. A consumption tax should be enacted to fund those costs, and it should be divided relatively evenly among us. If consumption goes down, our income goes down, and the money for our health care does too.

As a nation we have to start making things for ourselves, or that we can sell to other countries so we can buy from them, without borrowing. By borrowing from China, Korea, Japan, and others to fund our lifestyle we are depriving our young people of the jobs they need. We are going to end up a nation of oligarchs (mainly in Texas) and serfs. Luckily, the law of unexpected consequences will probably upset the Bush-Republican plan to do that to us. And the Democrat plan to make us all into low-paid civil servants living in a socialist paradise.

You are right, when the downturn comes you will be screwed. But you might be marginally less likely to be screwed if you are "utterly reliable". And when the boss needs a person for a new or better job, you just might be chosen. And, habits like being an "unreliable" employee will see to it that you never have the opportunity to do better. The world owes you nothing. Your boss owes you nothing, except your wage. If you deliver value you just might have a chance in this world. Both my daughters rose rapidly because they delivered value, and did not complain about the unfairness of it all. And they lived on what they made, no matter how little, and saved money, and did not take expensive vacations or eat in restaurants. If you can't pay off the card every month, cut it up. Again, the world owes you nothing. As a printed motto peopular in business offices of the '50's said: "Change or Die".