Avius,
Understood and agreed with a lot of your post. The bit at the end about Bill Gates and the Helpdesk went over my head entirely but not to worry.
I was looking for a bit of perspective on this issue from a pilots viewpoint and hadn't factored in some of the less obvious issues such as long haul, more complex weather, overnight stop overs, greater responsibility etc. The argument made in the article I quoted made the comparison between commuter jet guys and widebody guys appear more apples to apples than perhaps it is.
I guess the relationship between # PAX carried and Captains renumeration is not as linear as proposed in the article.
You should see what the article went on to say the West Coast Longshore men earn, it is unbelieveable. From memory its like $113,000 per year for an unskilled guy off loading cargo, $120,000 for the office clerk and $130,000 for the union supervisior. I guess thats what happens when there is no competition and a stranglehold union.