You are not a frequent business flyer, so you make assumptions that aren't true.

I choose DL for many reasons. UGs are way down the list. I did fly FL for a number of years, but switched back to DL because it flies to more locations, including international and Podunks. DL has more flights, more often. When things go wrong, DL is spectacular in its efforts to get me to where I need to be, or at least close to where I need to be. In ten years of heavy travel, FL let me down twice on this; DL never. By giving business to DL, DL helps me out when I've booked an incorrect ticket or need to make a change that might not be specifically within the rules. For giving DL business, I get SkyMiles which, I know many people knock, but have paid for me, family and friends to go on spectacular vacations to fantastic locations. Giving DL my businesses allows me to accumulate these points faster.

As far as WN - the hokey jokey inflight experience makes me loathe getting on their planes. I want to get on the flight and do work, not be entertained by third rate singers and jokesters. Unless DL starts changing some of the things listed above, there is little chance I'm switching to them.

UGs?? Yeah, they're good, but they are hardly the reason this business traveler chooses DL.

Baffling. Good word. Baffling why nobody has given an answer as to why they are unwilling to pay a VERY VERY VERY small amount for Elite, but are still of so much worth to DL that they deserve such benefits. In all of these posts, I havent gleaned one answer.

And what I meant by "awards are not free" had little to do with co-pays, but more to do with the fact that miles have value. Now they will hopefully become more valuable when the gamers are gone. Fortunately for DL, it was UA and AA that got stuck with the RGN classless wonders....er...excuse me....valuable elites

Thank you. I did miss the 100-page thread. Obviously, "some members may be kicked out altogether" is somewhere between shoddy reporting and blatant inaccuracy. I should expect no less from our media by now.

They will never comprehend that wonderful point.....all they want is that which is free. Let UA and AA continue the elite flood, we will see how wonderful the elite experience is for the cheap and poor.

I've strayed from my normal haunts into the DL section and after reading through this thread, I'm just in awe of something: The UA version of this thread has many of the same arguments. What is missing over there, however, that you folks have in spades over here are the literal caricatures of Gregory "Greg" Marmalard.

Deflecting is rarely a good strategy. You did not address the facts of the RGN fare comment. And you continue to show your lack of knowledge with the RGN fares. Are you aware of how many RGN tickets were issued by DL and or include NRT-LAX or similar segments??

AA has hardly anything to do with RGN fares.

To big shots like you and your cohort pbarnette, $3000 is "very very very" little money and Memphis is just a poor (black) town not deserving of non-stop flights or hardly any service. We get it.

To many regular Americans $3,000 is a lot of money, why can't you respect that? I mean, we get you are rich, powerful and highly intelligent. Not everybody is in your class.

UA/AA have an "elite flood?"

Either one allow you to start the year with 42,563 miles before stepping on a plane?

+1
The airline industry is the only industry I know of where currently "Elite" isn't in direct relation to spend because of airfares having very little to do with operational costs. If you stay at hotels and accumulate status, status is in direct relation to number of nights, which is in direct relation to the revenue you provide, and the cost of your stay is much more in line with operational costs. In most cases, if you spend more nights, you're spending more money. Thus those who spend 75 nights are more valuable than those spending 25. Delta is taking steps in the right direction to bring itself in line with other industries and what is smart financially. Delta is placing a monetary value on Elite Status and saying "DM/PM/GM/FO is worth $X". These posters who are whining think "Flying Further" means "more valuable", and up till now, that was how the game worked. You could be seen as "more valuable" by maximizing MQMs per dollar spent. Well, not so much anymore. It's sad that they can't get that - that their $2,000 flying back and forth to IST a few times isn't worth DM anymore - but oh well. Although I'm not a big spender, if these whiners who think they as $3,000 DMs are as valuable as $10,000 DMs jump ship, and I stay as the FO/GM that I am, it makes it that much easier to use the benefits DL provides to those of us who stick around. Time will only tell if this move was smart for DL or not.

10cpm is NOT small when my average personal travel is less than 1/3 of that cpm

I am neither rich nor powerful, nor do I claim higher-than-average intelligence. I dont appreciate a reference to racism at all because there is not a shred of racism in me. The penile endowment comments about me are equally uneducated and tacky, but the suggestion of racism makes me angry.

I am not fully versed in IATA rules, nor did I ever infer that I am.

I do understand business, though.....and I still understand society. There is a hierarchy. Some have more than others. Im sorry if you dont have enough, but we live in a capitalistic society where all isnt equal.

Delra isnt saying you cant fly on their planes if you dont spend a minimum, it says you cant have premium perks. There is a price for those perks, and relative to a lot of folks spending on DL, it is VERY, VERY, VERY small

The last comment is also questionable at some times although I will admit to SOME of his arguments being correct.

It is VERY, VERY, VERY small....if you are paying 1/3 of that, you are receiving the benefit of cheap travel. You are not entitled to perks beyond that. The new program confirms that.

Your personal travel comes in at below 3.33 cpm? Unless you're racking up a lot of VDBs that's extremely difficult to manage.

So?
My spending on JL is very small (and mainly on AA code shares) yet I have never failed to receive anything but the best service when dealing with them, even on a cheap Q/G (Japan domestic) ticket.
The perks I have received on JL are equivalent to any Mileage Bank top tier elite which is arguably a revenue based system as well (though they are different as their competitor NH isn't much better and fares from Japan are expensive, hence why our company holds more meetings there than in the US/YVR)
I am happy with the capitalistic system as well compared to the mess up north called Communism and I hope that the market speaks and there is a mass exodus of elites in 2014.

The last part is somewhat true as I can buy Q fares on routes that I know are likely to be oversold but on international tickets with FDs it's very easy to do that and I don't travel domestic for personal travel as I have already seen enough of America for work.
(I posted on the Trick It thread a few months ago to get knowledge but I find that it's much better to keep the knowledge to myself when I realized what I could do with it.)