To Captain Claret and like minded folks, I would like to make the following points.
My post was not intended to boast at the misfortune of the Ansett staff (except the scabs).
It was intended to make the oft-forgotten point that we stood for something in 89. Against the howling rancour of our Government, Employer Airlines, Media and public at large - we were the voice that predicted all this.
At the time our airlines were mismanaged internally. The Government/IRC/ALP/ACTU were conspiring to affect their own survival at the expense of the national well being and the airline industry's profitability. Politically and industrially powerful individuals were running the industry and the Companies that we loved into the ground.
It was this - call it whistleblowing - that we tried to do in 89.
We got shouted down.
You got hoodwinked. Into believing we were bad and wrong while the other side were good and right.
The scabs facilitated the victory of the Hawke/Abeles axis.
The list above is intended to use hindsight to review these last 12 years. It's been damned hard for all concerned. But at the end, we are the ones who predicted it. And, more than any other group we tried to stop it.
Allow us the satisfaction of seeing that we were right all along. There have been some bleak moments in 12 years living abroad.
We should not be afraid of saying "we told you so" nor "we were right" in order to avoid offending the sensibilities of Ansett employees. Otherwise we will think you wish to perpetuate the hegemonic mantra of the past 12 years - which has it that the scabs are heroes and we were greedy, stupid and aggressive.
In the end, Ansett (the same as SN & SR) was destroyed by scullduggery and inept management. We stood up and fought against that scullduggery and those inept individuals in 89 and the scabs facilitated their victory.
That's all.
[ 02 March 2002: Message edited by: HIALS ]</p>