Wino,
I think what you called stupid (for the AMR pilots not wanting to fly smaller airplanes) is directly attributed to arrogance. It seems that some pilots wear the airplane they fly as a symbol of their manhood or something.
Of course, some pilots call me stupid for going from the B747 to the CRJ. It's not a manhood or a money thing for me. Just a choice in life-style. By the way, I have plenty of the affore mentioned, so I have nothing to prove to anyone but my family. I think I will prove it to them by being around for them.
As far as merging the lists, I'm not certain if that will be a good thing. It could work for NWA if the pilots are smart about it. But, as you posted, there will be some stupid, arrogant pilots who will want to be paid 747 wages to fly a CRJ into Amarillo, Texas. There has to be common sense and concession by both pilots and management because I know NWA would like to pay that same crew less than a McD's burger flipper.