WILTS - you make some valid points; you should consider standing as a rep and throwing out the old lot to achieve what you suggest, if you are as passionate as you appear.
The only point I will pick you up on is as follows:
People seem to be quick to damn UNITE (BASSA/AMICUS) for wanting to explore negotiation to it's nth degree before announcing strike dates.
That is not what appears to be the case with Unite - if that were the case, fine, but apparently informed reports have been made on here of meetings lasting just half an hour per day with BA at the TUC (edit: not ACAS) in the last week.
I think most educated contributors here think it is ridiculous that you are represented by people who seem not to have worked for some time in the role, and appear unable or unwilling to actually negotiate.
So long as you do not subscribe to the ridiculous mind-control mantra of some unions, being that an attack on one is an attack on all, then I doubt most reasonable crew would find the above critique of those reps in any way objectionable, if they were informed of the facts that are apparent on this thread.