National Board Live Video Feed

[Skyray]

^ Kidding right?  Was it a Booze Cruise?  Anyone "fall overboard"? 

I didn't go because it was way too expensive, but from the reports I got from those who did go, it was a very productive conference.  Cruise ships have a lot of assets like meeting rooms, ballrooms, etc.  If anyone fell overboard it was adequately silenced.

[DrDave]

DocSpur,

Am replying privately, congrats on the new specialty track rating.

You are an IT god, so I'm not surprised.

Dr. Dave

[RiverAux]

So, how many people did the walkout that our buddy predicted would happen when Gen Courter took the podium? 

[JC004]

So, how many people did the walkout that our buddy predicted would happen when Gen Courter took the podium? 

I hear she persuaded them to stay with donuts.  Then they unanimously re-elected her.

[Psicorp]

Krispy Kreme...the ultimate bribe...err, persuasion.

[capchiro]

Countrymen, give me your ears, I come with news.  I attended the Conference today and I do hate the keyoard on my wife's laptop.  First Flash, Air Force attendee left today to return to Virginia in a 172 (Not CAP), landed in NC to refuel and attempted to take off.  I believe he crashed on take off, maybe ran out of runway??  No confirmation, but rumor has it no one was hurt.  Now for all of the wannabe doctors, Head Doc re-affirmed that we are not treating personnel and no-one is authorized to do more than basic first aid.  Re-affirmed by SE region JAG.  Also in the plans to re-write 160-1 (medical) and set up a specialty track with tech, senior and master ratings.  Maybe Master rating wil require special research or project. Sounds like this may slow some people down in progression.  Next was the Strategic Mission.  A lot of neat stuff going on with missions with Coast Guard in FL.  What happened RiverAux?  Some missions requiring all night flying and four day deloyment.  Also some good stuff with Archer with more requests than we can handle from 3-letter agencies.  Also border work.  Also we are doing interdiction stuff with the Air Force in several locations.  Looking at having trained teams for Archer more than 2 hours away, could fly down in two hours would be okay.  Looking for a few good people.  Appears everything is calm and very little if any talk about our National Commander.  A lot of Air Force people here.  Vanguard here with all kinds of stuff.  I think they brought down everything that you all ordered in the lat six months that they haven't sent to you.  Some neat shirts on sale for $10.00.  Nice blue CAP dress watch for $15.00.  I found out that I do need a really large TPU jacket, but with the situation, I will hold off temporarily.  Dinner lat night at Trader Vic's $115.00, Tonight at Hard Rock Cafe $96.00.  Buffett breakfast is $22.00 in the hotel, but there is a Chic Filet not far.  Metsome great National CAC cadets, one from Alaska and one from North Dakota.  All cadets today looked realy good and you would have been proud.  Some went on the Delta tour and got to fly the 737 and 767 simulators.  Too cool.  Well, my carpal tunnel I shot from this #$#% keyboard, which is also missing the top of the "b" key.  I wanted to make sure I got the maximum out of my $13.00 for the internet.  Also parking is $24.00 a day.  Oh, by the way, in professional development, it was discussed that Knowledgebase may not come back with the ask a question part.  What's with that?  Also the Air Force can't figure out why we aren't all whipping through our professional development by completing all five levels.  Average age of CAP member is 52.  Back to levels.  Maybe they forget that the Air Force pays them to take and pass their levels.  Level 4 and Level 5 require us to not only pay for the privilege, but also to use a weeks vacation.   Plus very few people want to go to Region or Wing because the fun and action is on the squadron level.  News release, if you are trying to complete level 5 and need to teach a level 1, you can request that your squadron commander let you do the interview/exam/questionnaire with the new member as credit for teaching the level 1.  More later..          

[BlackKnight]

Thanks Harry,

Great report.  Got some of the same info when my better half got back from HOT-lanta tonight.  'Cept she paid only $6 for parking in a nearby day lot and walked because I'm a cheapskate. 

And lest I get criticized by everyone for not giving a "spy report" during the day today, my "spy" failed to report in!   Guess that's why she works Mission Base during SAREXs.   

[bosshawk]

Harry: thank you for the info: it is likely the only bits of information that most of us will get from this National Board until our reps return home.  Being in CA, that means a long plane ride and maybe not much  info after they return. 

We are indeed fortunate to have Gen Anderson in the Strategic Planning Directorate: he is a tough act to beat.

[RiverAux]

A lot of neat stuff going on with missions with Coast Guard in FL.  What happened RiverAux?

What do I have to do with that? 

I've been saying for a few years that the CG Aux air program needs to be shut down and CAP should take up all their missions, and should make room for privately-owned planes to do the off-shore missions now down by CG Aux Air. 

The CG could save a bundle by calling on CAP to do these missions as they would only have to pay reimbursement rates to us -- for CG Aux Air they have to pay the reimbursement, pay to train the pilots, and now, help pay for more of the maintenance on the private planes.  Why not dump all that hassle and work with us?  We've got plenty of coastal units that could pick up the slack, again, providing that CAP accepts the private planes that can do the extended off shore missions we don't want to do in 172/182s.

[capchiro]

RiverAux, sorry, I thought you were always comparing us to the CG Aux and saying that they did a better job than us.  I must have misconstrued something.  My apologies and I agree with your sentiments about the fact that they should use us more.  Did I understand you to say they pay to train their pilots?? Is that just for the mission or flight training?  We just spent a bunch of money to train our personnel for Archer missions.  Supposedly we spent about $5,000.00 each for the week of Archer training. 

[JCJ]

So, how many people did the walkout that our buddy predicted would happen when Gen Courter took the podium? 

I hear she persuaded them to stay with donuts.  Then they unanimously re-elected her.

Actually all voted for her except one abstained and one voted "yes"

[RiverAux]

RiverAux, sorry, I thought you were always comparing us to the CG Aux and saying that they did a better job than us.  I must have misconstrued something.  My apologies and I agree with your sentiments about the fact that they should use us more.  Did I understand you to say they pay to train their pilots?? Is that just for the mission or flight training?  We just spent a bunch of money to train our personnel for Archer missions.  Supposedly we spent about $5,000.00 each for the week of Archer training. 

There are some things the CG Aux does better and some things CAP does better -- thats why I'm in both organizations.

I meant CG pays for mission training in the way we do, though probably not as much -- they don't do as much "training" since they do a lot of routine mission patrols so it isn't quite as needed, and they don't really ask their folks to do as much as we do.  They also spend an outrageous amount of money sending their pilots to spin and puke training on a regular basis. 

[JC004]

So, how many people did the walkout that our buddy predicted would happen when Gen Courter took the podium? 

I hear she persuaded them to stay with donuts.  Then they unanimously re-elected her.

Actually all voted for her except one abstained and one voted "yes"

voted yes on a multiple choice test?

[JC004]

I guess nobody else got any good info from the town hall meeting?  ::sigh::  We should have arranged for spies before the conference started...

[MIKE]

I didn't bother to wake up for the Awards Ceremony.  Why do they have to start so early?

[alice]

Just checked the cap.gov homepage to see if there is any news there from the Summer meeting.  Interesting.  There is the news release about the suspension of CAP CC in two places - homepage and the newscenter PR page.  Some local activities news.  A blurb on the news center PR pages about a former CNN person speaking at the Summer meeting.  And that's it on the Summer meeting there.

Did anyone from our paid staff or the volunteer PAO meeting do a daily hardcopy newsletter for conference attendees as Jim Tynan and crew used to do in the past?  If so, is it online anywhere?  Keeping the troops informed at one of the two annual National Board meetings is not rocket science.  And, given the fact our cap-talk folks who got up at o-dark-thirty to watch the webcast but saw and heard very little makes me think the NHQ report of 20,000+ viewers is a bunk.  Maybe that many were pinging *trying* to get in...

And why haven't we gotten a summary of the town meeting's substance yet?  Let's face it, only a very small percentage of our active membership has the time and money to go to these things.  Why have a town meeting at all if it's going to be effectively in a sealed-air room?

The International Monetary Fund publishes extremely timely the full transcripts of all its press conferences which are the equivalent to our town meetings.  If the IMF can have that much transparancy, why can't CAP?

I had the pleasure of hearing BG Courter at a CAP meeting in Boston this past June.  I echo the comment of another poster in saying if anything "inappropriate" was said at the town meeting, she could handle it.

Alice

[RiverAux]

Don't recall seeing any press releases on CAP News Online about any of the meetings for the last few years. 

I am also very suspicious about the 20,000 viewers number.  That would mean that more than a third of our members either stayed home from work or would imply that a whole lot more cadets were watching during their summer vacation than I suspect would be interested in it. 

[Skyray]

Be careful, Alice.  I am living proof that no matter how justified your indignation, expressing it can be detrimental to your organizational health.  I agree with you about BGen Courter.  Looks like she can handle most anything.

[alice]

Doug: I couldn't worry about such things since two thoughts come to mind:

(1)  We are 'twould seem destined under the current leadership to wait a couple of weeks or months for the paid PA HQ staff to tell us "what we deserve to know" in the national glossy magazine.  (Anyone know the name of the current volunteer National PAO?)

(2)  Thinking of the meeting's local in Atlanta reminds me of a saying by one of its famous sons:
      You must be willing to stand for something or
      you will fall for anything.  -MLK Jr.

Alice

[Skyray]

(Anyone know the name of the current volunteer National PAO?)

Nope, the last one I remember was named Rose, and he got terminated after about three weeks in the job because one of his rival squadron commanders got made Wing Commander and was known to hold a grudge.  Not terminated as National PAO, terminated as a member of CAP.