smartcol,
You shouldn't let people provoke you into responding on these boards. Your first post was very reasonable, and as you found out, people are not always reasonable in return. Such is life on a bulletin board.
I guess you are still a young lad/lass. You have now joined the real world, the 'school of hard knocks', 'university of life', 'lifes a b1tchh and then you die' are all phrases you will hear bandied around. It's a pity, but nobody does owe you anything, and you have come across more mature people who have probably found that out themselves, but now think they are hot shots, and have forgotten about it. Coming out of pilot school with your hard earned qualifications, into a slowdown, you are no different from any other lad coming out of university who are now not getting the job they thought they would when they started. Don't worry, things will pick up, and before too long you will have the job you dream of. Ignore the people here who will knock you down, that's also just part of life. You persevere, be flexible, believe in yourself and you will do fine.
Another phrase you might hear out there in the 'real world' - "Don't let the b@stards get you down" - keep that in mind too!
Best of luck.