There was a time we had a genuine government.
But after the Supreme Court decided money is speech, the airlines have been 'speaking' to Congressmen in their favorite language: cash in their re-election campaings.
Our government used to have regulations against those things. But then lobbyists lured their way into our weak-willed Congress and convinced lawmakers to heavily deregulate.
Now, with few choices of carriers, and airline employees squeezed over pay and benefits, the only people left to bleed are customers.
Last summer we saw several flight diversions due to 'unruly' airline passengers arguing over reclining seats, which has actually spawned a new industry.
Securicare , a UK based company produces a special seat restraint device and provides security training to airlines, to subdue "challenging, disruptive and violent passengers".
The space squeeze
As airlines pack more people and profit into planes, lack of space is only the latest frustration for travelers already frazzled from TSA hassles, charges for checked baggage, food, seat assignments, in-flight entertainment and other once-included services.
Such moves have led industry profits to near-record levels. But have they pushed passengers to a breaking point?
Cramming too many people into too tiny spaces for too long so they explode isn't the only danger. In case of a fire or emergency landing, more people will die because they can't get out of their seats, down the aisle, and out of the airplane in time.
So unless you're willing to pay a ransom for Business or First Class seats, be prepared to feel squeezed, starved, and fleeced.
FlyersRights believes regulations make sense for minimum leg room, limiting extra charges for "luxuries" like taking a bag with you when traveling and requiring food on board flights lasting longer than four hours.
"But that will raise the cost of air fares!"
Probably. But those "cheap" fares advertised are just tricks. When you factor in the extra bag charges, the fees if you try to book on the phone, or try to change or cancel a flight, the the price of food you have to buy, the price of lost hours when there's no spare plane when there's a mechanical problem or your flight's forced to land owing to a passenger dispute - not to mention the value of your life when you burn to death inside an airplane because there's no way all the sardines can get out fast enough.
If a single price covered matters like food and baggage that used to included automatically, and if Congress keeps an eye on fares, prices aren't likely to rise so much that you'd wish you'd gambled your life instead.
Your Congressmember's in charge of this stuff. Here's a list:
So, who on the House Subcommittee on aviation has the spine to stand up and say, "Yes, let's re-regulate the airlines so they can't treat passengers like cattle?" Who isn't in the pockets of the airlines they supposedly oversee? Let's start with the Republican majority of 16, who could make it happen, if they wanted, without a single Democrat's vote:
How about you?....
Chairman Frank A. LoBiondo, of New Jersey
Tom Petri, of Wisconsin
Howard Coble, of North Carolina
John J. Duncan, of Tennessee
Tom Graves, of Georgia
Blake Farenthold, of Texas
Larry Bucshon, of Indiana
Patrick Meehan, of Pennsylvania
Daniel Webster, of Florida
Jeff Denham, of California
Reid Ribble, of Wisconsin
Thomas Massie, of Kentucky
Steve Daines, of Montana
Roger Williams, of Texas
Mark Meadows, of North Carolina
Rodney Davis, of Illinois
What say you?
While the Republicans on the committee outnumber the Democrats 16-13, rendering Democratic votes useless, there are still things the Democrats can do. Your Republican colleagues certainly have favorite projects and other favors they'd like to secure for their patrons. So by delaying and obstructing expenditures for their pet programs as long as possible, you might be able to get their attention.
So how about a minority member revolt from Democrats?...
Rick Larsen of Washington
Peter A. DeFazio, of Oregon
Eleanore Holmes Norton of DC
Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas
Michael E. Capuano of Massachusetts
Dan Lipinski of Illinois
Steve Cohen of Tennessee
Andre Carson of Indiana
Rick Nolan of Minnesota
Dina Titus of Nevada
Sean Patrick Maloney of New York
Cheri Bustos of Illinois
Corrine Brown of Florida
What say you?
Let's give all these Congressloafers a kick. You might start by copying this piece into an e-mail and addressing it to one of the committee members in your own state. You can find their e-mail address here.
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