Dan, as usual, great posts. Pilots are often placed under terrible pressure by inept , gung ho management. I admired a buddy of mine who claimed that he would never "risk innocent lives placed under his care, and/or, knowingly break the law. But, having the misfortune to work for a rotten charter outfit by default, I pitched up during some East Med crisis where notams suggested "avoiding" a certain airspace. My flight plan took me right through the crisis zone. I requested a new routing. Denied. Next, CP on the phone with his ex Cranwell -"problems old boy " ? He pursuaded me that there was no crisis, the CAA had shot themselves in the foot & that all our competitors were "twerps, old boy". I went. The only one in the crisis zone. I did put on my landing lights & secured the cabin. FO thought I was a Wooze !
Got home, poured muself a Gin & asked; Did I endanger safety of my pax ? YES. Did I break the law.......not really. Was I happy/ NO. I left.
My heart goes out to those professional pilots who are regularly uncomfortable complying with very dodgy interpretations of safety regulations in order to place food on the table. They are not as fortunate as myself for being in that position at a time when professionalism was awarded with a job offer.