#214. Top Gun

We at SBPDL broke the magnificent news to the world on July 4^th, 2009 that Pre-Obama America was officially dead. With the election of Mein Obama, a nation that Michelle Obama stated “she would be proud of for the first time in her life,” was forged, largely out of the blood, sweat and tears of Civil Rights activists who toiled with disingenuous white liberals to eradicate the evil that was Pre-Obama America.

Yet, something interesting is transpiring in regards to who suits up to defend the United States (previously discussed in Real American Heroes), as Black people are finding enlistment in the military an option they no longer deem suitable for a vocation. They can salute General Zod in or out of the military, as defending Omerica is a vocation for white people:

“African-Americans don't like war, and we especially don't like the wars we've been fighting for the last eight years. According to the Department of Defense, the number of African-American volunteers for the military dropped by 58 percent between 2000 and 2007. The current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were cited as the key reasons for the decline. We've now hit exactly eight years since the start of the war in Afghanistan, and troops are still being killed…

The truth is that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are primarily white, liberal issues; African-Americans tend to be worried about problems in our own communities, such as violence, unemployment and education. In fact, even when it comes to matters that affect us most, it would take a long list of incredibly irresponsible decisions before the black community is to ever turn on their political superman.

African-Americans will stick with Obama through the war. They will stick with him through health care. They will stick with him through hell, high water or the return of bell-bottom pants. They love Barack Obama - and no war, economic downturn, educational crisis, or health care quagmire is going to change that. He might as well name himself the King of Black America.”

And yet, The New Black World we live in where Mein Obama lords over all would be defenseless were it not for all those palefaces. You see, the United States derives the bulk of its might from the vast military superiority it enjoys in aviation, and as we learned Black people find themselves lacking in a field where affirmative action policies are a death sentence for everyone involved:

“Only 1.9 percent of Air Force pilots are black, according to AFPC. Of 14,130 Air Force pilots, 270 identified themselves as black; another 620 declined to report their race.

“We’ve been trying for 20 years to get more black pilots, but it’s a little lower than it was 20 years ago,” said Stewart, who is a pilot.”

Black people in the Navy don’t fare much better (nor do Naval Academy Standards), for Navy Aviators that happen to be Black people are but 2.5 percent of the flyers.

Statistics can be Hate Facts though, so these numbers must be due to the inherent racism of the sky.

The military isn’t the only place where Black aviators are a quizzical sight to behold, as commuter airlines find it just as difficult to find Black people capable of logging the strenuous hours necessary to gain qualification to fly:

“In 1976, approximately 80 black pilots were employed by the nation's major and commuter passenger airlines and freight carriers. By 1986 that number had risen to nearly 400, and today the total is estimated to be 674, including at least 14 black female pilots (thanks to Bessie Coleman). While the total increase is impressive on the surface, one must realize that there is a total of over 71,000 pilots working for these airlines.”

Oddly, a move is underway to find more Black pilots to command the cockpit of some of the nation’s top airlines, where affirmative action policies of undoing “discrimination” could result in loss of life for not only the pilots, but the 150 + people aboard the plane:

“….chart of the number and percent of black pilots at Delta and Northwest. Both airlines ranked at the bottom (Northwest had 58 black pilots or 1.12 percent; and Delta had 92 or 1.22 percent) of that list. By comparison all the other airlines in the chart had higher percentages: American (1.63 percent), Federal Express (2.68 percent), United Parcel Service Inc. (3.88 percent), Continental (3.48 percent), Southwest Airlines (2.18 percent) and United Airlines (3.42 percent).

Delta said in an e-mail that 4.65 percent of its pilots were minorities and women, but it did not break down those numbers.

Beasley said Delta can do better.

“I’m retired from the Air Force,” he said. “There were almost no black pilots when I joined, and the Air Force made an effort for inclusion. If Delta wanted to, it could hire more black pilots.”

Interestingly, the number of Black pilots for Delta mirrors the Air Force’s number, which disqualifies the statement that inclusion necessarily brings equality.

Remember the film Top Gun? Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer portrayed every white boy’s fantasy as cocky, arrogant, skirt-chasing, top-notch pilots. Made in the 1980s, this movie has become a classic for many, due to its high-octane soundtrack, classic one-liners and accurate portrayal of the racial elements of pilots (a re-make today would require the absurd sight – when looking at the reality of pilots – of numerous Black people as pilots):

“The setting of Miramar itself is in prosperous California, where the sun always shines. It is a typical White Anglo Saxon Protestant society with little evidence of ethnic groups. There is one negro pilot who becomes Maverick's new partner after the death of Goose, but he is represented in a rather unsympathetic way. Maverick has forced himself into the skies, but has lost his nerve. The negro pilot seemingly unable to comprehend Maverick's "block", berates him for not firing on the "enemy" . This pilot in addition is the only black man seen at the graduation ceremony.”

The lone Black pilot in the movie has the call sign of “Sundown”, which is fitting considering that the sun is setting on Black people in aviation.

Sadly, The New Black World we all live in can’t be defended by the Tuskegee Airmen anymore, for this group of aviators is leaving earth for greener pastures. One of the foundational myths of The Black World we all live in now, the evil that is Pre-Obama America must constantly be reminded that without the heroic deeds of these brave Nubian airmen, the evil of Nazism would still be around. In fact, it is this all-Black unit that never lost a pilot in World War II. But wait…:

“It has been part of the lore of America's first black fighter pilots since the end of World War II: The Tuskegee Airmen never lost a bomber to enemy fire.

But now, more than 60 years later, a leader of the group says he has uncovered records proving the claim is not accurate.

Former Tuskegee Airman Carrol Woods of Montgomery called their claims "outrageous."

"I think they are trying to destroy our record. What's the point now?" Woods, 87, told the Advertiser.

Holton said his sole interest is in making sure the group's history is as accurate as possible.

With nearly 1,000 pilots and as many as 19,000 support personnel ranging from mechanics to nurses, the group was credited with shooting down more than 100 enemy aircraft and — for years — with never losing an American bomber under escort.

Holton, who has been historian of the association for about a decade, said he began leafing through mission reports after hearing a veteran complain that the Tuskegee Airmen really did lose some bombers.”

You see, these heroic Black pilots “escorted” bombers and engaged Nazi pilots sparingly, resulting in a minute ratio of shoot downs for their squadron.

It is interesting to think that flying has long been a fantasy of mankind and was achieved by palefaces only 106 years ago in North Carolina. A people who built the Pyramids should have conquered gravity eons ago, right?

Black people look at pilots with envy, for policies that would promote Black people ahead of other pilots could jeopardize the lives of countless people and is a misguided policy. But, many would see this done in the name “diversity”.

Black people find aviation to be the domain of white people and men like Charles Lindbergh who once wrote an article in Readers Digest declaring the skies to be the territory of the white man.

Statistics don’t lie. Facts can be hate though, and Stuff Black People Don’t Like will include Top Gun, for the movie accurately showcases who rules the air and who flies the planes we see above us at any given time. Let it be clear: this entry is not solely about the movie, but uses the film to symbolize flying into the wild blue yonder and who is left behind on the ground.

No amount of “happy thoughts” could ever lift Black people into the skies and this is why SBPDL welcomes another entry into our airspace.

(Hint: While you read this entry, have the video that is below playing)