"Sylvain" wrote in message
t...
Furthermore, if things are so bad as you say, then why are the airlines
seeing such high numbers of customers?

Lack of choice.

In USA we have both huge distances between major urban areas and
no practical alternative to flying (driving or using the bus or
extremely slow and unreliable amtrak are not practical alternatives).

Define "practical".

Even before 9/11, airline travel was starting to get on my nerves. Since
then, the overbearing security rules have been horrible, IMHO. I have not
traveled on an airline once since 9/11, and not because I haven't needed to
go anywhere.

Driving takes longer, but it's not that hard to do. Simply foregoing some
trips is also an option I've chosen at times.

In case you hadn't noticed, airline travel dropped off *dramatically*
immediately after 9/11. It took the better part of a year for the airline
business to even start looking like it was going to recover.

Obviously there's a large portion of the airline business that is optional
for the people traveling. When push came to shove, they were willing to
avoid the airlines if they felt there was a good reason.

So obviously they can do it. They simply choose not to. And they deserve
the crappy service they get for their lack of complaint with the current
situation.

This is one of the problems with society, and US society in particular,
IMHO. People value their convenience much more than they value anything
else. They are perfectly happy putting up with all sorts of dangerous,
ineffective, wasteful, or just plain dumb things if in return they get to
keep some of their convenience.

Pete