This article utterly fails to live up to the standards of Alternet, and I've seen some absurd postings on here before. It's vapid, shallow and pointless, and aimed at an airline that stands in marked contrast to the legacy carriers for customer service and corporate responsibility. It's also worth noting that they have pretty much the best safety record of any US airline, and when I fly, that's really the bottom line for me. Southwest also drives down fares in cities where it operates; it's so well-known for doing so that the phenomenon is called the "Southwest effect." (And no, I don't work for the airline; I just found this article deeply meaningless).

If you don't like the chaotic boarding schemes, go try Northwest. They charge you an extra $15 just to have an economy-class exit-row seat these days. Or maybe you'd like to sit for four hours on a tarmac on JetBlue? If it's anarchy you're looking for, try two hundred impatient travelers stuck on a runway on for size. I guarantee the interiors of those planes looked more like Lord of the Flies than Southwest pre-boarding lines do.

I'm not crazy about any US airlines, although I've had good experiences on Southwest, American and Alaska. But at least my criticisms are more substantive than merely feeling insulted simply because I didn't enjoy a particular form of humor. I'll agree that the comment directed at the wheelchair-bound woman was inappropriate, but it's hardly evidence of a systemic pattern of practice amounting to cruelty.

All in all, this article isn't worth the internet space it takes up. And on the off chance that this was intended as a "humorous" piece, it failed.

And by the way, it's "shudder," not "shutter," unless window dressings were somehow involved.

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This blogpost found on The Huffington Post is nothing more than one travelers opinion and has contributed nothing to my understanding of Southwest Airlines, and clearly the author does not understand the airline industry at all. She may have paid $300 for her ticket, but what were competing carriers charging? If her brother in FL had a similar experience on Southwest why she did she even bother to fly with them? What about those passengers who actually enjoy traveling with the airline that squirts humor into the mundane travel experience. At least Southwest attempts to differentiate themselves from the commodity service that other airlines offer. Humor is a understood subjectively and what she found offensive others may have found sincere, just as I have understood her post to be nothing more than a vent for her bad experience on this forum. If I can't walk away after reading your article a little wiser or instigate a new thought than don't waste my time.

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I agree with both comments completely. Waste of space post. I shutter to think that Alternet will waste space again like this.

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I know, I know. It's a crap shoot where you get to sit and you have to know that you can actually print your boarding pass at home so you get an A listing. You may not be so lucky on the second leg of your flight, though, and there always seems to be at least one more leg.

It's been a while, but my wife and I could fly together from California to New England and back for about $425. The rental car during our stay in New England cost more than that.

So we pack a lunch, ask for extra water on the plane, and put up with it. And they're right. If price were no object, we'd have a nonstop flight with some posh airline.

In spite of the "informality" they get us on, get us off, and have seldom been late.

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I despise the industry - the domestic carriers, anyway. I still can't get over purchasing a ticket, paid for in full, in advance, for a specified reserved seat on a specified flight, nonrefundable if I miss my flight, which can occur if I arrive as much as forty-five minutes before boarding (instead of the hour that they insist upon for no apparent reason) and they have already resold my seat. Worse, the flight departure time may have been advanced an hour as recently as two hours before the announced departure time. It doesn't matter that TSA held me up for an hour in a mockery of security involving nude X-rays, passports for Mexico and Canada even, shoe removal and deep packing of ointments. Or that the airline changed gates (and concourses) too.

Of course, I'm assuming that you're not on the no-fly list. If you are, you'll find out at the most inconvenient of times. Or that your flight wasn't cancelled if it wasn't full enough (reserved seats only work against you when you miss a flight, not for you, to reserve a seat. Then the indignity of maintenance or crew problems and protracted delays, missed connections and misrouted luggage. And they'll take seven hundred dollars and starve me when they could have charged $710 and given me a meal and even a cookie and hot towel like first class. Or God forbid I got to see the movie without another charge.

And don't even get me started on Customs.

I hate every aspect of air travel, so I'm in no mood to hear Southwest's sophomoric attempt at spirit, and I gave up festival seating in the eighties.

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I enjoyed her comments and remember with amusement my own experience on Southwest. The jokes are cringe-making. I remember the one about how we don't need to use the lifejacket and liferaft because of we go down over the desert, we are fucked.

But for all its goofy marketing antics and laid back staff policy, there is a very serious side to Southwest: safety is absolutely what they are about. That does stand out in the US market, where we have had to put up with evil airlines like Jet Blue, Eastern, and Value Jet.

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Corny, maybe, but on time, consistently polite, and efficient. I have flown Southwest at least 6 times and have never seen the stampede type behavior this writer describes. The price is right, but I'd pay double to avoid dealing with the rudeness and incompetence I've found on US Air and Northwest.

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I am a retired airline captain.

I have seen some stupid articles about flying in my life, and this one ranks right near the top. This web site is losing its sense of values. Such silliness should not make it past the editors.

There are very valid reasons to be critical of SWA, but none of them were mentioned here.

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Heart shaped flags ? Really ? Sheeeeesh

So glad to be an X pat

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seems a bit inappropriate, but if this is the new norm guess I'd better weigh in.

My wife and I LOVE SW Airlines. Great service and healthy humour abound. Air travel sucks increasingly for us un-rich, but less so on Southwest.

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I have heard too many horror stories about Southwest to fly it personally. As a sociologist researching the stigma of fat people, I have also have heard appalling episodes about how their "two seat" policy is handled. Apparently, it is enforced completely randomly. Whoever looks "fat" to the flight attendant that day. I have heard cases where some moderately fat people have been forced to buy two seats, while some much larger folk remained with one. I have heard stories where people fly fine on one ticket to a funeral or job interview, then get pulled aside on the way back and humiliated in front of their friends or families as some SW employee confronts them about buying a second seat. I have heard that some employees completely lack sensitivity. NOW LISTEN UP BIGOTS, I am NOT interested in generating discussion about how you hate fat fliers. Or about the two seat policy itself. Nor am I saying this is self interest because I am probably not big enough to need two seats. What I am saying is that IF they are going to have a policy that requires large passengers to buy two seats 1) they should be up front about. Some passengers are not even aware of it. Everyone should know about this at the time they purchase their ticket. 2)They should have standardized enforcement. They should decide what size/measurements are the cut off point for the second seat, put it on their website, and enforce it uniformly. It should not be a crap shoot.

I think the above was a great article. If I was boycotting Southwest already, those cornball jokes really sealed the deal!

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Having flown Southwest often in recent years, I just haven't seen this-- "trampling family members"?!? Unlike the jesting efforts of the plane's crew, the author's being "horrified" is indicative of a perhpas elitist consumer attitude-- cater to me. So what if you don't like Southwest's efforts to lighten things up. Indeed, it actually seems the unfinished donkey joke went over her head (or maybe, under her feet). Sure its not comedy gold, but its funny not to finish the joke, i.e., he never intended to finish the joke--and that makes it the punch-line. I'd rather here that than some faux "nice flight" b.s.
I haven't had such experiences as the author, and will continue to fly my broke, adjunct ass on Southwest anytime their flights are available.

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From what I understand, Southwest is one of the best major corporations to work for. True they do not have strong unions, but that tends to come from a policy of treating employees with respect and dignity. Probably the easiest way to avoid labor unrest and something the other airlines should try.

Southwest also was the exception to other giant airlines begging for corporate welfare after Sept. 11, 2001. Their company was strong enough to withstand a down turn in the airline industry.

They have consistantly ranked near the top in being on time. And while other airlines wanted to jack up prices as fuel costs sky rocketted, Southwest had the foresight to increase their fuel inventory before the price of fuel jumped. So they could continue to offer lower fairs while the rest of the industry went into panic mode.

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In the past, before the days of nanny-state types and political correctness, Southwest had very cute stewardesses in 'hotpants' and the theme was "Long Legs And Short Nights" . I also recall there was an early promotion in which they also used to 'give you a bottle of bourbon' if you didn't have a 'friend to fly free'. Plus the fact that you still, currently, get free drink tickets (with corny jokes on them) in the post if you fly semi-frequently.
RyanAir is very similiar but "less nice". The stewardessess are often homely Irish girls, the cattle-car boarding process is even worse (though efficient) since you board from both doors of the aircraft- (front and back and meet in the middle), and the pilots often speak in unidentifiable accents which lends much comfort when they literally slam the plane on the tarmac, order you off, and then get the new passengers on in under 1/2 hour.
ps: I'm with you on the general intent though. I can't stand either of the airlines due to the riff-raff and people on the flights. I never fly coach and neither airline offers business or first-class. Even on 'regular' airlines the business and first-class cabins have become hardly tolerable due to people getting 'free upgrades', children, people wearing shorts and flipflops, and unkempt people!!

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I don't live in one of their cities. So I haven't had the direct experience that the writer/whiner writes about. Maybe we should find a deadly serious airline for her to ride.

However, I did purchase tickets on sale for adoptive parents to attend our annual conference, and six of the scholarship recipients got round trip tickets that averaged less than $100. This allowed us to offer a scholarship to another adoptive parent. So thanks Southwest!

I agree with other posters, this is not Alternet worthy. Please use some discretion in picking Huffington site posts.

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This was about as pointless an article as I can imagine. Further, it maligned the best airline in the industry for the most petty (and untrue) reasons. SWA has the best on-time record and the best safety record in the industry. The latter is no small thing. They use only one kind of aircraft, so they are experts at maintaining that aircraft. SWA employees clearly enjoy their jobs, which makes them pleasant to be around. Vastly better than the surly attitude I've endured from flight attendants on other airlines (who shall be nameless). And frankly, I think a little humor is a good thing. So corny or not, keep the jokes coming.

A few years ago my son developed an ear infection the day before our scheduled flight. SWA allowed us to delay our flight three days at no charge. I challenge anyone to find another airline that would have done that. It sold me completely, and when I have a choice, I only fly Southwest. (Plus their fares are unbeatable.)

Finally, the author's description of a mad rush and trampling of family members was so widely inaccurate, false, hyperbolic, and ridiculous, it makes me wonder if she is working for the Bush administration. If she doesn't like the open seating, she should just not fly SWA. Both parties will probably be happier for the decision.

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Illiterate as well as elitist -- way to go alternet!

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American Airlines treats their employees like crap. I eventually walked off the job after 8 years. If you're late 3 times, you get a career decision day. So: day 1- you get a call your best friend's husband died and you're 22 seconds late to the time clock. Day 2-you have a flat tire and you're 18 seconds late. Day 3- you're stuck on icy roads in the middle of gridlock during a sudden storm and you're 2 minutes late. WRITE UPs.

What else? Benefits downgraded, horrible polyester uniforms (stockings and dress shoes required) even when lifting 70 pound bags in an airport with broken air conditioning in 90 summer heat...

Passenger service folks (ticket agents, gate agents) were responsible for getting wheel chair passengers off flights. So, a 105 pound woman is supposed to get a 350 pound paraplegic on and off the plane? (That's a job for EMTs or strong firemen).

Broken computers, broken bag belts, 3 people on the ticket counter and 500 screaming passengers in line...

American is not a some glamorous airline. It's a sweat shop

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is this a news article or someone's self-indulgent idea of complaining and whining to the masses? this was a COMPLETE waste of my time. i love you, alternet, but this is crap.

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I Shudder at your inability to spell Shudder. Shutter me timbers!
I Shutter at the thought.... well you get the idea. You are posing as a writer use your spell checccccker nimrod!

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By the fifth paragraph I found myself thinking that this drivel was written by a ... nevermind.

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This article got it all wrong. It was just trying to be cutsie and abrasive. I am not often a person to praise a large corporation, but Southwest has bent over backwards to provide extra service for me and my family. Most recently, my son missed his flight the day before Christmas-a time when flights and airports are booked and chaotic. I called Southwest and the service desk spent 20-30 minutes looking for another flight to get my son home as soon as possible. She found a flight for him (a creative route, but not that much longer than the original flight) and there was no charge for the extra service. Continental charges $100 if you try to change anything, everytime. No other airline would have done this. Southwest service has always been respectful and considerate. If you reserve your flight on their internet site, you can get very cheap tickets and the site is clear and easy to use.

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Ok, I know the antics of the flight attendants get a little, shall we say, corny, but I'd rather fly Southwest than any other airline. Assigned seating isn't all it's cracked up to be and with the exception of some relatively mild accidents they have NEVER had a true CRASH where the entire aircraft is consumed and most or all of the passengers are killed. Few airlines can say that. Oh, and I don't work for them or have any financial interest in them. I'm just a not-so-frequent flier and I like Southwest.

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Clearly, the author enjoys an atmosphere of control to feel safe. What magnificent Progressives we've become.

Well, off to my Southwest flight. I myself, very much enjoy a reliance on the kindness of strangers. They rarely fail to step up and do the right thing. Especially when confronted with the opportunity to be good people.

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I'm a retired airline captain with free travel privileges on Delta. Unfortunately, the carrier doesn't operate on my favorite route: Burbank to Phoenix. So I take Southwest.

Not only is the flight faster and cheaper than a round trip by car, Southwest is the best U.S. airline flying today. Not like the Good Old Days before deregulation, but that's another issue.

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I agree with the majority here, wasted space. Got a complaint or SW Airlines? Go to them not us.

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So has Alternet lost its ability to distinguish between what's important and what happens when folks have WAY too much time on their hands???

Is this why injustice prevails?

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Sorry, but "I shutter to think" is a 5th grade mistake, not a mistake a true writer would make. JEEEEZ, Alternet, why did you post this traish?

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Seriously. With the occupation of Iraq, the crimes of the Bush administration, the recent Republican sex scandals, the possible appointment of a backwards homophobe to the position of Surgeon General of the United States, and, really, everything else that's been going on in the world, I've obviously lost sight of the true victims in society-- people who don't find their flight attendants funny.

It amazes me that someone with the wealth and leisure time to "jet down to the beach" for a long weekend would complain about something so stupid and inconsequential. But I'm even more amazed that someone at AlterNet thought, "This is an injustice we need to bring to our readers' attention!"

Smirking condescension usually does not result in successful humor, and arrogant posturing about one's own (unquestioned) feelings of entitlement does not result in a successful personal essay. Therefore, this piece of writing fails on every possible level.

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Dear Alternet,
There is a war going on.
We are on the brink of environmental collapse.
There is a great disparity between the haves and the have-nots.
Our government is in shambles.
Just thought you'd like to know.

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what the hell is the point of this?

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Alternet, most of your material is excellent....but you knock Southwest for bringing stand-up comedy into their flight safety messages.....this was basically bad stand-up comedy also. And to be honest, as a relatively poor person, I appreciate cheap, straight-forward service on Southwest. But really, what the heck does this article have to do with anything?

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I ask, because Southwest has the best on time record of any airline, and not by a small margin.

Does anarchy mean operating without government subsidy? Because Southwest consistently turns a profit, and does so without protection from bankruptcy courts or federal bailouts, like other airlines.

Does anarchy mean good labor relations? Southwest has one of the friendliest relationships of any company with their unions, meaning no strikes, comity during contract negotiations, and mutual respect.

Does anarchy mean good relations with individual employees? The CEO of Southwest gets his butt out of the head office and has worked every single job in the company, from reservations to baggage handler (no word on how his flying is) so he knows what the concerns of people on the ground are, and can work to improve their conditions.

Does anarchy mean enjoying your job? If so, then I'm one anarchist insurance agent. That the employees get to have some fun is a great thing. It lessens the dull routine of work, meaning they're more alert, friendlier, and happier. This translates into how they treat passengers.

Does anarchy mean treating the passengers well? Because Southwest does. I've never had a piece of luggage lost. I've never had a complaint. They've allowed my cat in the cabin. They've gone above and beyond to get me home when there were weather delays. They've never been cold, or even reserved in their helpful attitudes.

If this is anarchy, may it be extended to every other company in America.

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I love luv [SouthWest Airlines]!!!!

I fly the from Midway to Fort Lauderdale often. The stories I could tell, all wonderful and warm.

Only once did I have a bad experience. A couple in line was quite gruff. Perhaps those that are miserable want company. Fortunately, none of us joined them.

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Oh, for cryin' out loud. Get off your fancy high horse and live a moment in the world with the rest of us. I am thrilled that there is a SW Airlines because if there wasn't I couldn't afford to fly. And who cares where on a plane you happen to sit for an hour or two? It's the destination, silly, not the journey. Okay, perhaps I'm not the most sophisticated person around (although I do read the NY Times), but the last time I flew SW I laughed until I cried at the flight attendant's comedy routine. Or maybe I was in a good mood because I was saving my hardearned $$$$$. Go Southwest. Love ya.

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In a word, yes.

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This is a fluff piece and is completely inappropriate for a serious online political mag. There are ENDLESS outlets for this sort of banality--please go post at one of those.

Furthermore, I've been flying Southwest for many years and NEVER had an experience anything like the author's--so honestly, your article is nonsense.

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Well, silly or not, they are about the only U.S. airline that consistently earns substatial profits year to year, running decades long.

It's an economy airline and while I never had the luck to get a granola bar (it's usually peanuts), honey, you shouldn't have a "crotch." Ew is right.

Fly another airline if it is so distasteful. Pay the extra cash and get a sandwhich in your crotch.

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While I am a regular reader of AlterNet, until I read this silly and pretentious article about Southwest, I had never signed up to make a comment. First, how does someone who can't spell "shudder" get an article posted on AlterNet. Second, what useful purpose does this article serve in a world where there is so much wrong. Third, I hope Leslie never flies Southwest again, so that she can suffer through the great service provided by our legacy airlines like American, Delta, United. Southwest in not perfect, but they have a good on time record, their ground and airline crews are almost always courteous and friendly and when things go wrong, they tell you to the best of their ability what is happening, all things I have often found lacking at legacy carriers, with the exception of Continental. On a recent weather delayed flight which was then diverted for refueling, the captain kept us updated regularly and they told what arrangements were being made for those who would likely miss connections. I suggest that AlterNet can make better use of its space than to publish one person's silly and pretentious rant.

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ok if u dont like the way the swa f.as dress or act dont fly them evd of storie . to be a flight attedant it takes alot of training i know personaly so if u dont like the srvc or the way they dress dont fly them dont sit here and run ur mouth on a computer u look stupid so their go to some other airline ..

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...

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This is the dumbest article I've EVER seen on Alternet.
Someone needs to be fired for allowing this to reach the page.

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Geez I did not think AlterNet could top the Paris Hilton goes to jail.

I'm proven wrong.

Which bonehead editor greenlighted this tripe?

Fire 'em please so they can go work for People magazine.

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Can't believe you run this shit, Alternet. Are you really that hard up for content?

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were you a true gentlemen, one would demand satisfaction. however, one does not demand that what the other could never possibly give nor understand.

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It's all explained in the book:

"Nuts! Southwest Airlines' Crazy Recipe for Business and Personal Success"

Read the Book

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omfg. "don't you go anywhere you hear" so offends leslie goldman, then she needs to exit civilisation and find the nearest mountaintop where her refined sensibilities can fully mature into a totally neutral post-modern derida generic wasteland devoid of colour and reality.

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Not to mention they put me through a special security line where I felt invaded despite the fact that I'd flown up to 10 times a year to the same destination on a regular basis. This one time I was asked to follow a different line at Midway Airport. I asked them why. Why the hell they singled me out for? They said Southwest put that request on my ticket. What the f? I callled them and they said they just do it randomly to spot a terrorist. Talking about dumb luck. What kind of homeland security measure is this? It pissed me off and I stopped flying with them. Of course all the chaotic scenes at the gate add to the decision.

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I love Southwest Airlines, and fly SW often. It is priced reasonably and so much more convenient, located in Dallas, rather than drive all the way to DFW airport. So I have a very good opinion of Southwest Airlines

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Alternet's losing it... wasting space and time with this pointless post.

Have a look at http://www.truthout.org/ instead

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yannnno?...i say "bravo" to southwest airlines...having been a customer of theirs since the late 70s....i have friends that have retired WITH money after employment with the company....and i have friends who have had southwest pick up their "tab" for extended periods of time so that they could take their child...who had leukemia...to a hospital in houston for treatment...this would not have been possible without the help of soutwest...in the 70s southwest had the lowest rates by up to 75%...improving the travel habits of texans...and they are STILL affordable....i say "dance with the one that brought you"....and will continue to book with southwest...ask any of their employees how they feel about the company...chances are you will hear VERY good things...

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America loves this article. No two ways about it. Look at all the glowing support.

Democracy is grand, ain't it?

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I thought the piece was funny and poignant. Though not as funny and poignant as Patrick Smith's assessments of Southwest, published on Salon a few years back....

Giving shit to Southwest, a history of no-frills carriers:
www.salon.com/tech/col/smith/2003/06/20/askthepilot46/

More thoughts on Southwest Airlines:
www.salon.com/tech/col/smith/2003/06/27/askthepilot47/

Airline survey part 3: The yin and yang of Southwest, JetBlue:
www.salon.com/tech/col/smith/2004/05/21/askthepilot87/

Sincerely,
Definitely Not Patrick Smith

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Not my experience flying Southwest, at all. It's a community, not an isolated bunch of stuffed shirts. The jokes are refreshingly irreverent. Do you really prefer the same canned speech you've heard for 30 years? I've flown around the world a couple of times and tried many airlines and southwest is the best.

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please please do not pay for this article. This is as childish and ignorant as Rush Limbaugh. I am pissed that I wasted my time reading it.

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I am not going to address the article, as people far more articulate than I have already described it quite effectively. No, this comment is for the Editors of this site: Please, in the future, do not let this sort of pap through - it is little more than an anoyance. Save the space for writing that is worth reading. Thanks.

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Has anyone at Alternet or anyplace else ever done some "facts and figures' research comparing air fares during the bad ol' "regulated" era and the fares we are paying now??? I tried some research on the net last year and found nothing. My memory of the 60's and 70's is that the fares were a least comparable to those now, and, allowing for the creeping inflation (including miserable service) since that time, maybe even lower. Anybody have some cold, hard facts on this?

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I started reading this blog post/article with a shred of hope that it would be either amusing or insightful or at least funny. Unfortunately it was none of the above. I then clicked on the author's link, and saw that it was the only submission she'd had posted on HP. That was the good news, I guess. I'm surprised, though, that the HP editors would even bother posting such an insipid and worthless 'article' to the otherwise fine journalistic site they have. Must have been a slow news day. Anyway, the "author" needs to find a new hobby. Any thoughts she may have had about writing should be disabused by now.

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Why did you print this rant???

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1. If there isn't enough good stuff to print everyday, it is okay with me to print less stuff everyday.
2. I'm flying round trip from LA to NY on SW for $200 (plus taxes). For that I can put up with flags and humor I don't like.

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Leslie, please tell me more about this "Brawny" flight attendant. Do you remember his name? Would you know it if you heard it? I truly want to know more. BTW completely agree with you. I HAVE had a horrific experience on this airline and I will never fly southwest again.

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Leslie, if I were you, I would file a formal, written complaint with Southwest Airlines in regards to the way that flight attendant treated the person in the wheel chair. That is NOT acceptable at all, nor is it funny, unless one has a warped sense of hummor.

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