United Airlines Officially Iffy On Bin Laden’s Death
[Guest post by Lee Stranahan]
I don’t think they can really win on this one. This is where PR people and customer service reps earn their money…but they aren’t earning it here. This isn’t good.
David Swanson was on an United Airlines flight when news came in that Osama Bin Laden had been killed. That’s United Airlines, as in United Airlines Flight 93.
The pilot who works for United was apparently happy that the guy behind the terror attack that killed United Airlines pilots, crew and passengers. The pilot made an announcement expressing happiness.
David Swanson didn’t like that. Who is David Swanson? He’s the author of War Is A Lie and Daybreak: Undoing the Imperial Presidency and Forming a More Perfect Union. He blogs at DavidSwanson.org and WarIsACrime.org (the site formerly known as After Downing Street.)
So Swanson wrote a letter complaining. A long letter – you can read the whole thing here on the blog post he wrote his awful experience being forced to sit through a United pilot’s moment of happiness…
Dear United Airlines,
My United flight at 4:06 pm PT on May 1, 2011, landed in Washington, D.C., Sunday night, and the pilot came on the intercom to tell everyone to celebrate: our government had killed Osama bin Laden. This was better than winning the Super Bowl, he said.
I think he should apologize to those passengers who choose not to cheer for the murder of anyone, no matter how much of a murderer himself, as if it were a sporting event and an occasion for joy.
Set aside for a moment the morality of cheering for the killing of a human being — which despite the pilot’s prompting nobody on the plane did. In purely Realpolitik terms, killing foreign leaders whom we’ve previously supported has been an ongoing disaster.
Our killing of Saddam Hussein has been followed by years of war and hundreds of thousands of pointless deaths. Our attempts to kill Muammar Gadaffi have killed his children and grandchildren and will end no war if they eventually succeed. Our attempts to kill Osama bin Laden, including wars justified by that mission, have involved nearly a decade of senseless slaughter in Afghanistan and the rest of the ongoing global "generational" war that is consuming our nation.
The Taliban was willing to turn bin Laden over for trial both before and after September 11, 2001. Instead our government opted for years of bloody warfare. And in the end, it was police action (investigation, a raid, and a summary execution) and not the warfare, that reportedly tracked bin Laden down in Pakistan. After capturing him, our government’s representatives did not hold him for trial. They killed him and carried away his dead body.
You get the idea. No mention of Flight 93, either. No expression of understanding or sympathy.
So United wrote this back to him…
Dear Mr. Swanson:
Thank you for contacting us. We are currently experiencing a high volume of emails, and I offer my apology for the delayed response to your message.
I am very sorry to hear that our pilot vocalized his personal opinion with the passenger’s onboard flight 210 on May 1, 2011. It is definitely a personal opinion on the reaction or outcome of the fact that Osama bin Laden was killed. Please accept my sincere apology. I have shared your comments to the onboard flight manager so he can take appropriate action to prevent this from reoccurring.
On another note, your email was so interesting it prompted me to continue on to read your website and blog.
Thank you for choosing United, we look forward to serving you on another flight in the near future under more pleasant circumstances.
At the conclusion of this email, please fill out the survey where you can rate your experience with the Customer Care department. We value your feedback and hope that you are satisfied with our service.
Regards,
Cherie Stevens
United Airlines Customer RelationsPlease provide us feedback on the correspondence you have just received from the Customer Relations Contact Center. After filling out our brief survey, you will be given a chance to fill out our longer survey. If you choose to take our longer survey, your name will be entered to win a $400 certificate. Please see more details by accessing the weblink below.
Also no mention of Flight 93. Bad PR. Totally tone deaf. Bad move, Cherie Stevens. Here’s hoping Mr. Swanson doesn’t win the $400.
– Lee Stranahan
United Airlines is a Chicago-based obamawhore company I think
happyfeet (3c92a1) — 5/12/2011 @ 6:01 pmSenor Swanson is a douchenozzle of the highest order.
JD (b98cae) — 5/12/2011 @ 6:09 pmReally, a terrible response.
Someone, perhaps Beldar, but probably Aaron, linked a memo to a lawyer saying ‘We just wanted to let you know that some asshole is writing letters in your name’ response.
Sometimes, companies are justified in just responding directly. The vast majority of United’s customers do not appreciate OBL’s mass murder of United’s customers.
The less brave but also sane reaction is to not dignify this complaint.
Swanson’s whine that we ‘supported’ OBL suggests something really quite horrible about the fault for 9/11, and I think it’s sad United took that with a smile.
Dustin (c16eca) — 5/12/2011 @ 6:12 pmI would cut Cherie some slack. This is what she does all day long. “I’m sorry the baby cried all the way from NY to LA… I’m sorry you were offended by…our pilot…OBL’s death…”
Swanson is a jackass of the highest order. didn’t read the entire letter but can’t see as how it’s necessary.
Chris (eafa5f) — 5/12/2011 @ 6:29 pmI think where Cherie went totally off track was with the line…
“On another note, your email was so interesting it prompted me to continue on to read your website and blog.”
Bad bad bad move.
Lee Stranahan (708cc3) — 5/12/2011 @ 6:45 pmCherie might be more suited to a customer relations position at Subway or Joann Fabrics, I think. Big corporations are supposed to have a crisis management team in place to help formulate talking points and responses to deal with the side effects of one-off or unusual circumstances. The direct relationship between OBL’s demise and the worst day in United Airline’s history would seem to qualify as one of those times. At the very least Cherie should have been savvy enough to run Swanson’s letter and her proposed response by a supervisor or a company lawyer rather than blab on about being a fan of his website and her promise to rat out the pilot to the onboard flight manager.
elissa (f77e24) — 5/12/2011 @ 6:47 pmIt prompted me to read your blog and then I realize you were an America hatin lying douchenozzle, and I hope you have to wait in line to go to the bathroom, and have to pay ridiculous amounts of money for stale peanuts.
JD (d48c3b) — 5/12/2011 @ 6:51 pmHere’s a quarter, call someone who cares. Piss off, Swannie.
JD (29e1cd) — 5/12/2011 @ 6:57 pmI will never get a job in PR.
JD (29e1cd) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:00 pmLook, Swanson’s letter goes completely off-topic in the third paragraph. Instead of making his complaint, he starts blathering about Saddam Hussein, Afghanistan, and blah-blah-blah. He did this for one of two reasons:
1) He is such a pompous asshat that he can’t resist the compulsion to lecture, even when his only audience is some anonymous customer-service person at United.
2) His real audience was not the lady at United customer service. He wrote his ‘complaint’ letter solely so that he could post it on his blog and maybe pull in a few more hits.
Either way, Swanson’s letter was meaningless. Ms. Stevens’s reply was meaningless. Paying attention to Swanson is what he wants. Don’t feed the troll.
RNB (e9a2f5) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:00 pmDear Mr. Swanson,
On behalf of United Airlines, who lost friends, employees, and passengers due to the actions of Osama bin Laden, please let me take the opportunity to tell you to shut the fuck up, and feel free to fly another airline. No really, don’t come back.
United Airlines
kansas (1fc602) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:01 pmThat reply from UA could have been much shorter, maybe just two words long.
EC (b9a02c) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:04 pmCherie sweetie hi welcome to constructive advice corner I’m happyfeet. First of all mon Cherie to make “passengers” plural you don’t have to use an apostrophe … feel free to save up the apostrophes for the contractions you seem completely unable to construct. Contractions will help you sound less like a cheap soulless android and more like the customer relations professional you are.
We’ll talk about prepositions and agreement later cause of I’m sure this is all a lot for you to absorb, but Cherie I would be remiss not to let you in on a secret. Recurring. For reals it’s a word you can google it. Ok Cherie thanks muchly for visiting constructive advice corner love you ok byebye.
happyfeet (3c92a1) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:06 pmFWIW, I can unnerstan getting pissed at United. They might have the worst customer service on the planet. I have never been so mad as I was with a United rep when they were hosing Better Half’s parents.
JD (b98cae) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:07 pmI can’t figure out how I feel about this. In one sense, I think she should have told this clown to shove it up his ass. But in another, that’s not what her job is. And she did her job in a way that was safe, as she was instructed … and probably very unsatisfying to you and I.
SPQR (26be8b) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:09 pmAre you sure she was instructed to use emails as a plural form? Was she instructed to make onboard one word?
I bet she’s in a union.
happyfeet (3c92a1) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:12 pmSPQR – were I a PR person thingie, I would have opted for the shove it up your ass option.
JD (b98cae) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:13 pmGee, Swanson must be one of those schmott guys.
I mean, who knew that the leader of a trans-national terrorist organization, who in fact have no soveriegn territory of their own and reside as parasites, whether supported or unknown, in someone else’s soveriegn territory, counted as a foreign head of state?
Schmott I tell ya…But a bit prickly.
Bob Reed (5f2db5) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:13 pmI hate to raise an inside baseball point, but customer relations is not public relations.
On the other hand, customer relations should be in lockstep with PR on messaging.
It’s not that hard and Cherie’s message should have been vetted. Corporate bureaucracy can be as bad as the government’s.
Swanson’s complaint should have been politely acknowledged. Nothing would have come of it otherwise.
Ag80 (6134b7) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:15 pmSPQR– sorry, friend. No way she was “instructed” to handle it that way. That letter is most definitely Cherie in freelance mode. Of course she wouldn’t and shouldn’t ever officially tell Swanson to shove it, but there are other ways to handle delicate situations and morons. United’s lawyers are not happy to see Cherie’s work in print and out on the interwebs. Guaranteed.
elissa (f77e24) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:17 pmMiniter, reminds us, that the first inklings of the ‘planes’ plot, surfaced around 1994, with Bojinka, most particularly Akim Murad’s ‘debriefing’ by the Phillipine national police, right about that time, KSM has squirrelled himself in the water departmentthanks the Quatari ‘black prince’, brother of the emir.
and they rather aggressively denied extradition requests, that was 6 years before September 11th,
The original plotters were Seif al Adel, and the late Mohammed Atef (two Egyptians, one a former Army Colonel, the other a policemen) that bit of data was in the DEcember 1998 PDB, but was not in the follow up report, 2 1/2 years later.
narciso lopez (79ddc3) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:18 pmI am slow, Ag. Good point.
Swannie should be happy nobody kicked him in the teeth today. Or threw a rock at him.
DEATH THREAT !!!!!!!!
JD (85b089) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:19 pmOne feels a little like Dave deserves the treatment Christopher Walken gave a hapless passenger in that very silly Bond film.
narciso lopez (79ddc3) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:28 pmJD:
No harm, no foul.
A good fist might have been appropriate, though.
Oops. Death threat!
Ag80 (6134b7) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:30 pmSawnnie has definitely been swirlied.
JD (29e1cd) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:30 pmI wonder if the United Pilot new the crew that was lost, if I were United I would have found out before I answered the idiot.
I would have sent a bio of the victims of the flight and pictures of their families left behind and say something like – I’m sorry you were uncomfortable – these people who worked for us though experienced some discomfort as well
Or something like that
EricPWJohnson (eaaa76) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:31 pmMr Feets, I am interested in what might have happened if some of your own past posts with the run-on sentences and no punctuation had been seen by the helpful staff at the constructive advice corner. What if they had been reviewed by a different reviewer? Does this concern you at all for the future?
elissa (f77e24) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:33 pmSwannie has definitely experienced a noogie.
Way off topic, but the Bulls should be embarrassed that Oprah is dictating their schedule.
JD (85b089) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:34 pmMon cherie, vous aint really great at this customer relations thingie, must take solace in the fact that epwj is about 861359617532563 times as dum as u.
JD (85b089) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:37 pmoh sure elissa make me the bad guy
happyfeet (3c92a1) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:51 pmWell, happy, you do make some folk mad.
Not me, of course, except sometimes.
Ag80 (6134b7) — 5/12/2011 @ 7:57 pmComment by Lee Stranahan — 5/12/2011 @ 6:45 pm
I was going to say “it’s just a form letter” until I noticed that line. But in light of that, I would nominate both Mr. Swanson and Ms. Stevens for the Dumb Award, hopefully to be shared between them.
That said–I don’t fly much, but the worst flying experience I have ever had involved both the outbound and inbound legs of a round trip on United. The second worst was on El Al, but at least they had a security related reason (back in 1973, when hijackings still ended in passengers held as hostages). Curiously, both involved long delays at the airport in Rome.
kishnevi (d785be) — 5/12/2011 @ 8:01 pmThat’s unfortunate, but predictable.
I was on the first United flight to leave Maui on September 14, 2001. The head flight attendant had a corscrew (they don’t have those anymore) in her hand and, when I asked about it, she said “let any of those mf-ers come up here and try something.”
United lost employees that day. Their co-workers haven’t forgotten. David Swanson is a douche who forgets the personal nature of the 9/11 attacks.
carlitos (1596cc) — 5/12/2011 @ 8:01 pmWell said, Carlitos. 9/11 is more than just a political diving board for hawks and doves. It’s a tragedy, and to be callous about a United Pilot’s personal stake in that is just inhuman. So some hippie doesn’t like the pilot’s joyous opinion. Shut up, hippie.
Dustin (c16eca) — 5/12/2011 @ 8:07 pmSwanson was on the wrong Flight 93!
AD-RtR/OS! (10b7ea) — 5/12/2011 @ 8:23 pmLee – Do us a favor and switch the link from Frad Briedman’s blog to Swanson’s blog. Thanks.
No links for liars.
daleyrocks (bf33e9) — 5/12/2011 @ 8:44 pmAgree with elissa, the customer service person should have consulted a supervisor on this one. I expect that both United’s PR and Legal departments are unhappy with her reply.
Not all customer correspondence warrants a reply. The best response to Swanson’s egregious sermon would have been to ignore it.
angeleno (ec0b60) — 5/12/2011 @ 8:45 pmSwanson is a douche with too much time on his hands.
daleyrocks (bf33e9) — 5/12/2011 @ 8:48 pmJD,
How much money did you give this month to the guy who is still actively trying to get Pat fired and had hinted at “other” legal action?
I see you are commenting frequently and sending tips to the man.
Really – isnt it time you came clean about your activities?
EricPWJohnson (eaaa76) — 5/12/2011 @ 9:12 pmStill waiting for your explanantion of why you seem to defend Palin’s tax increases, JD.
EricPWJohnson (eaaa76) — 5/12/2011 @ 9:13 pmEpwj = swanson?
You truly are a f@cking imbecile. How many times do you have to tell aggressive lies before you embarrass even you?
JD (85b089) — 5/12/2011 @ 9:22 pmUm, EPWJ? You do know that you are threadjacking on someone else’s blog, right? You say you respect Patterico. So why not just stick with the topic? I mean, when you slap at JD, he will come back with your long list of bizarre stories. And then you will hit back.
Can’t you just, well, knock it off? Or get your own blog?
Simon Jester (2c8f39) — 5/12/2011 @ 9:30 pmThe letter sounds like it was written by a word processing program. They feed a couple of key words and it does the rest. No human could have written such a stupid letter. I have received a couple of letters from companies after complaints and they sound like that although in both cases they also took action.
Mike K (8f3f19) — 5/12/2011 @ 9:33 pmJD
Why do you give money to that man? why do you even converse with him, send him research?
Why JD? you do understand he’s trying to ruin Pat’s life right?
Simon,
I think you meant that comment for JD right – because he went off topic and said I was worse than Swanson.
Maybe you should ask JD why he is actively working knowlingly and willingly to get Pat fired by actively and knowingly supporting a blog who has stated that as its mission
Maybe you should ask JD that.
EricPWJohnson (eaaa76) — 5/12/2011 @ 9:36 pmSimon
As a rebuttal to JD calling me out as someone who is infintely morally worse than the topic of this post – its important to point out his actual actions, done by him and verifiable independently.
EricPWJohnson (eaaa76) — 5/12/2011 @ 9:39 pmMaybe you should ask JD why he is actively working knowlingly and willingly to get Pat fired
You are a f@cking liar. You make kmart seem graceful. Seek help.
JD (194dc5) — 5/12/2011 @ 9:56 pmI apologize for responding to this mental midget. I should be a bigger person, but he is so aggressively dishonest than I simply refuse to let his dishonesty go unanswered.
JD (194dc5) — 5/12/2011 @ 10:00 pmLooking up and down this blog’s posts today, I see several things more interesting than whether JD is a true loyal commenter. I mean, for God’s sake, this is just a blog. It’s a great blog, and I had strong opinions about this dead feud, but it’s over. I don’t know if ‘they’ act like it’s over, but it is anyway.
Dustin (c16eca) — 5/12/2011 @ 10:11 pmHey, EPWJ?
Personally, I cannot wait for Mr. Frey to see that you are writing this repeatedly on his own blog. I have suggested that you tone it down, and now you are trying to rope Patterico into your bizarre nonsense.
Most people posting here—again, not just a couple of people, pal—see you as one odd person, with an, um, flexible view of reality. Time to take a break, or at least stick to the topic.
Simon Jester (2c8f39) — 5/12/2011 @ 10:14 pmEric,
While I am sometimes puzzled by my friends’ choice of friends, I do not have a loyalty test on this blog. This is a sore point every time you bring it up, so I think it would be best if you left it alone. I’m not even sure where this came from on this thread. Anyway, while I appreciate what I believe is the sentiment of wanting to support me, I think your ire is more appropriately directed at the people trying to harm me, rather than people who might choose to befriend them and myself at the same time.
Patterico (c218bd) — 5/12/2011 @ 10:23 pmPat,
In this individuals case, my supporting you on that other blog is the catalyst for outright lies and distortions – if you read thiscomment thread – I wrote a comment supporting this position and was again had my character attacks by this individual – mostly fueled by my slapping his hero over at that other place for his actions against you. I slapped him hard. This is alos other people’s position here on this blog
You are right – I should ignore him and have tried. I agree with you – its his actions that cause this – if JD just argues with my premise then I agrue back – but no one here can deny that JD doesent argue – he attacks – defames – and attempts to destroy through sheer volume of name calling, lying and distortions.
Sound Familiar – you didnt like at all being smeared on the internet – but ehre you are asking me to accept the same?
But you are right – I should just let him distort lie, defame and I should take the high road. If I need to quit commenting – if this is going to start up more unpleasantries that distract you from your important duties – I must stop – what you do is more important than watching this guy have his way.
You are right – I apologize for defending myself, for offending JD or anyone here
EricPWJohnson (eaaa76) — 5/12/2011 @ 10:36 pmThank you for being patient and I’m truely sorry if this has caused anyone any pain.
EricPWJohnson (eaaa76) — 5/12/2011 @ 10:37 pmWell . . .
Look. Let me say this. The fella you and I are both talking about? (Not JD, but his pal.) I don’t read him any more. And I am way happier not responding.
Way happier.
(I know that fella has embarked on a little crusade to harm me at my job — or, at least, he claims he has. I have seen zero evidence that he actually has done anything; if anyone at my job cares about his jihadlet, it’s being kept a secret from me. And since I hardly know anyone personally who reads his site any more, there is really just about nobody to keep me apprised — which, again, is fine by me.)
So, while I have indeed in the past claimed the right to respond — and if you feel you are unfairly being maligned, you certainly have that right as well — I would advise you that it is probably best for all concerned, including yourself, to let it go. It has worked pretty well for me. (Sure, I still get little flareups of memories on occasion — as when people were all over Common for opposing interracial relationships, while many of the same stood idly by during that cretin’s Google-rape of me for opposing a similar sentiment. But really, the guy is becoming an increasingly distant and unpleasant memory to me. And perhaps to others as well. Who knows?)
And hey, perhaps JD will consider not insulting you constantly as well.
Something to consider. I’m not going to bark orders at anyone here.
Patterico (c218bd) — 5/12/2011 @ 10:51 pmCan I assume this is sarcasm? It’s a lot funnier if it is.
I admit, the problems Patterico has to deal with are real, and if they happened to me, I would not be as gracious as Patterico tends to be. The man’s livelihood and reputation are attacked by a coward who can’t even honestly own up to what he’s done (oh, I deleted that, so don’t quote me, and when I rephrased it a bit, that makes it satire, even though I then google bombed it so almost everyone coming into contact with it would actually believe it).
EPWJ, it’s bound to drive you nuts if you give them attention. So don’t. There is no fairness to internet decorum. Bullies and liars can just keep it up forever, and they attract the true blog warriors while the smarter blogs attract people who have less interest in petty crap.
Anyway, I cannot recall JD bringing that up. I don’t think he has been a part of it, except when people insist he make himself one. A man has a right to just wash his hands of it. Frankly, we all should wash our hands of it because no matter how many times you run through the whole affair, there’s always the next thread or attack you would have to keep up with.
It seems like a low blow to push JD back into this ugliness. Not to laugh it off, but let’s stop paying attention to crazy people, or pass their sins off onto other people.
BTW, for some reason I got the impression you were saying there was some renewed blog warring going on, but as far as I can tell, they are all worried about more important things right now too. That’s the best likely outcome, IMO.
Dustin (c16eca) — 5/12/2011 @ 10:53 pmAs an outsider, I would say the following: it’s not a great idea take a disagreement and try to entangle the host in it. That being said:
1. EPWJ has stood up for Patterico several times elsewhere than this blog, and that is a good thing.
2. Trolls get slapped around a lot; people who aren’t trolls do not. Definitions shift. Some people like troll-slapping. I see some people as being trolls while other people do not see them that way. It’s not simple.
3. This is a fine blog with interesting commenters. The host does not need any additional aggravation. I intend to do my part.
Simon Jester (2c8f39) — 5/12/2011 @ 11:03 pmSimon
JD has blogged with me for YEARS at other blogs – this only started when I defended Pat and stopped some things that were about to happen or contemplating where going to happen
since at least 2005 we have on a daily basis blogged together – I’m the only EPWJ on the internet – the only one and also here have defended JD every time he was unfairly attacked or personally attacked
I’m going to ignore his outright libel/slander/distortions and I wont be commenting much at all anymore anyway do to time differences as people are asleep when I’m awake and vice versa and – I guess this isnt fair to JD when he is away from his keyboard as well.
This is too much about me and not about the topic and I need to stop because I feel I’m hindering others from wanting to join a thread with this viterol constantly.
He’s not going to stop so I will, it seems to be the only decision.
Pat doesnt need the distraction and you guys need to be able to not have to wade through all this – no one can talk
My fault – I take the blame
EricPWJohnson (eaaa76) — 5/12/2011 @ 11:13 pmAnd guys just let trolls talk – so what? The more you slap them the more pissed they get and the more they stay and bring others.
This doesnt work, hasnt worked – just let them have their say and just point out where you think they are wrong.
Me, well slap away
EricPWJohnson (eaaa76) — 5/12/2011 @ 11:15 pmThe khat boat must have arrived, for EPWJ is in full delusional mode.
AD-RtR/OS! (166457) — 5/12/2011 @ 11:30 pmMe, well slap away
I can’t figure out why that was inserted in the middle of this thread to begin with. I don’t track all the arguments here — personal or otherwise — so I don’t know what instigated the conflict in the first place. (BTW, it’s not easy wending through dozens of postings here at one sitting. IOW, text without horizontal rules ends up like a big blur, like sentences without paragraph breaks. Argh. The graphic designer who configured this interface must have eyeballs that are super easygoing and very patient.)
Mark (411533) — 5/12/2011 @ 11:42 pmSo, praytell — where do we write the “brilliant” Ms. Stevens with regard to OUR opinion on the matter?
IgotBupkis, President, United Anarchist Society (c9dcd8) — 5/12/2011 @ 11:46 pmLOL — nice, but you forgot the P.S.:
IgotBupkis, President, United Anarchist Society (c9dcd8) — 5/12/2011 @ 11:51 pm
By all means, Swanson is an asshat, ignore him.
It’s UA and Ms. Stevens who needs to be tarred and feathered — virtually, if not really.
IgotBupkis, President, United Anarchist Society (c9dcd8) — 5/12/2011 @ 11:53 pm
Smock Puppet, Amelican Aillines Pirot (c9dcd8) — 5/13/2011 @ 12:03 amNo, I believe business decorum does require a slightly more subtle response… something along the lines of:
Hey, give EPWJ a friggin’ break already!
. . .
He was counting Jews in Iran and his abacus broke.
Icy Texan (6baa4d) — 5/13/2011 @ 12:15 amI think if I’d been on the plane, questionable since it’s PUnited, I’d probably have jumped up an yelled (enunciating carefully) something like, “Allahu Fubar”. I think I’d have gotten into trouble for it. But it’d be worth it.
Its a normal reaction to the defeat of a symbol and leader of absolute evil. We all had the sense to celebrate Hitler’s death and Tojo’s defeat. Why should OBL be exempt? Certainly not because he is a (gisp) Muslim.
{^_^}
JD (bcdcf2) — 5/13/2011 @ 12:52 amDear USA Public:
We are very sorry to hear that our customer service representative verbalized her personal opinion while writing in our name. She didn’t ought to have done that.
Seriously, if the result of this letter is that pilots are told not to vent their private political opinions from the cockpit, then by the same token nor should customer service reps vent their private political opinions in official letters to customers, even if they know for sure that the customer agrees. It’s not as bad, since if the letter is kept private it doesn’t have the potential to turn customers off the company, as an announcement from the cockpit does; but this episode shows that the letter may find its way to those who disagree with the opinion expressed, and do such damage.
Milhouse (ea66e3) — 5/13/2011 @ 5:26 amLast nite I watched “Lullaby of Harlem,” in which Louis Armstrong addresses the question of whether it is ever ethically correct to celebrate somebody’s death:
http://www.amazon.com/Wish-You-Were-Dead-Rascal/dp/B000008A7Y
gp (72be5d) — 5/13/2011 @ 6:11 amIf there are still any doubting Thomases out there, Obama could ask Hawaii to rubber stamp an abstract of a copy of bin Laden’s Death Certificate.
That should settle the issue, at least as far as the professional watchdogs in print and broadcast media are concerned.
ropelight (ac959c) — 5/13/2011 @ 6:38 amAs a graduate of the University of Virginia, I’d like to apologize to the country for this idiot. Note that he’s a Philosophy graduate, which means that he couldn’t find anything productive to do.
wwp (e8cc0d) — 5/13/2011 @ 6:58 amIt probably doesn’t need pointing out that bin Laden was not, in fact, a “foreign leader whom we’ve previously supported”, but I thought I’d do so anyway. I still occasionally run into people repeating Michael Moore’s lie that the USA had supported the Taliban, or had given them money; more often I run into the “we created bin Laden” myth. Both need stepping on.
Milhouse (ea66e3) — 5/13/2011 @ 7:05 amWahoo’s suck.
MikeHu (255b30) — 5/13/2011 @ 10:13 amWhy no mention of United Flight 75, the other United flight that crashed on 9/11?
My response would have been much like kansas’ response in #11, but I would have added a P.S –
PS – I would stay away from American Airlines as well. I’m sure they share our sentiments and wouldn’t appreciate your future business either.
Alia (67a997) — 5/13/2011 @ 7:04 pmGood point, and I think it’s still needed.
Dustin (c16eca) — 5/13/2011 @ 7:16 pm