We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Which Posh, Customized Private Plane is Right For You?

Click here to access article by Jamie Johnson from Vanity Fair. 

Often on Saturday mornings I like to pay a visit to the lives of the One Percent of Americans who live very differently than we do. Theirs is a life free of any concern about medical care, paying their bills, helping their children get a decent start in life, facing unemployment, foreclosure on their homes, etc.
But, after all, we really should get to know them because they do share this country with us as neighbors. 

Well, not really. We rarely, if ever, meet rich people in the flesh who spend much of their time at their various homes and playgrounds in such secluded places as Aspen, The Hamptons, Nantucket, Davos, Dubai, and Monte Carlo. We don't even meet them in the lines at airport security check points because they get around in their own private planes. One of their biggest concerns is deciding which type of aircraft to buy.
...rich aviation enthusiasts spend millions annually on lesser-known planes, commonly called owner-operated aircraft, or personal aircraft, built for recreational pilots whose passion for flying is matched by the size of their overflowing bank accounts. Their owners tend to be gentleman pilots eager to fulfill a James Bond fantasy. This typically involves finding the perfect seaplane to complement a grand private yacht, but sometimes it just means cruising the skies in de-weaponized military fighter jets.