[Hildy]

I'm a bit torn about this...was the word offensive? Unfortunately, I see alot of people wearing t-shirts with that word. The disdain and humiliation should come from good people, I don't know if throwing her off of the flight was the right thing. I'm interested to hear what others think. If it were a shirt with Bill and Hillary with similar text, would you be mad she was thrown off? I hope everyone is honest here.

[End Times Sentinel]

If it were a shirt with Bill and Hillary with similar text, would you be mad she was thrown off?

It's not the politics of the message, it's that word.  That word alone should be enough to have her thrown off the plane.  If you can't conduct yourself civilly, you can expect to be asked to leave a lot of places.  Actions have consequences.

Owl_Eagle

(If what I just wrote makes you sad or angry,

 it was probably sarcasm)

[LIConFem]

"I'm interested to hear what others think. If it were a shirt with Bill and Hillary with similar text, would you be mad she was thrown off? "

I wouldn't be upset at all. A bit less shocked, perhaps, but not upset. ;o)

All airlines have rules governing the behavior of their passengers. Some of these rules seem (or are) silly, but they have a right to enforce them as they see fit. Would I have kicked her off the flight? I might have asked her to change her top in the bathroom first, and then tossed her if she refused. Ultimately, though, the pilot is responsible for the safety of his passengers, and such a politically-charged message could, in the airlines' eyes, cause problems.

[Dumb_Ox]

The disdain and humiliation should come from good people, I don't know if throwing her off of the flight was the right thing.

Well, isn't throwing somebody off a flight an example of showing disdain?

The airline would be in the right even if Bin-Laden were the object of the vulgarity. But then, I half-support blue laws against voicing obscenities in the presence of women and children.

[brytlea]

I don't care who the word was about, it is still considered very offensive language by many people. And the bottom line is that Southwest is a private business with a dress code, and were within their rights.
I say Bravo, and if I flew, I would fly Southwest!
susie

[ChildOfThe60s]

There is nothing to be torn about here. The woman was being publicly vulgar. And doing it deliberately to offend.

SW has the right to set standards of dress for their customers. That's why (for the same reason) you don't have to sit a restaurant full of people eating in their underwear. Even if a political slogan is printed on their underwear.

Attaching the name "Bush" to public vulgarity does not turn it into protected speech. Typical shell game of the wacko left.

And, YES, it would still be vulgar if it said Hillary (oops, I know that sounds like a double meaning, but it's not in this case).

My kid is grown, but I don't like having to explain garbage like that to children in public. The woman is, plain and simply, a crude, vulgar, leftist that has no class and is determined to annoy as many people as possible. It ain't that complicated. Case closed.

[colorado tanker]

If it were a shirt with Bill and Hillary with similar text, would you be mad she was thrown off?

Nope. When I'm squeezed into one of those cattlecars with nothing but a bag of pretzels to hold me to the next airport, I don't want my nose rubbed in someone else's bad taste.

Why don't Americans understand that just because we mostly have the right to be rude, crude and offensive in public, we don't have to be?

[HitmanLV]

Sure. I don't think that the t-shirt was 'politically' offensive. I do think that it was crude and I don't have a problem with airlines having any kind of reasonable policy when it comes to dress.

I think they might have asked her to change t-shirts because it contained a profanity. If she refused, I could see them being reasonable in tossing her from the flight.

Without some kind of standard, anything goes. How about nude passengers? How about a man wearing a thong bikini bottom and nothing else? How about a woman who is topless?

I don't think that having and enforcing a basic standard of conduct or dress is problematic. Within that context, I could see how a profane t-shirt could get one invited off a flight. I hope she got a refund, though.

[RedRover]

I find it hard to imagine that Clinton-haters would wear such a t-shirt. We have a much more highly developed sense of humor than the Libs. But, if it happened, I would support SW giving such a t-shirt wearer the bum's rush.

[Brilliant]

I suspect that if it hadn't used the "f" word, it would have been OK.

[Redbob]

You have to ask???

YES, the word is offensive.

And oh BTW, it's not "from the movie."
Those weren't pictures of Dustin Hoffman and his female co-star on the 'T'-shirt.

Southwest took this action to prevent someone like myself for example from ripping that 'T'-shirt off the person wearing it and stuffing it in her mouth.

[Finny]

If it were a shirt with Bill and Hillary with similar text, would you be mad she was thrown off?

YES. Anyone who wears in public a t-shirt with the "F" word or other outright profanities has zero class and deserves to be ostracized.

[garyhope]

Yes, the word, the shirt and the woman were/are offensive.

Everyone's "rights" (I'm sick of this word and the whole concept that so called individual "rights" are more important than public decorum and the rights of the other people around you) ends where the other person's nose, eyes and ears begin.

What's wrong with mature adults making little sacrifices for the public good of the society around us? We all have to make some compromises with our behavior and actions so that we all benefit. Otherwise we'd have chaos.

You wouldn't have to stop at stop signs or red lights, you could just take things from other people and businesses. You'd have to fight your way everywhere you went for everything. Within reason, a little personal sacrifice benefits us all as individuals.

[monday]

"If it were a shirt with Bill and Hillary with similar text, would you be mad she was thrown off? "

Nope. Southwest owns the planes. They can have rules like those if they want. People who want to wear T-shirts like those should fly Hooters or some other airline that doesn't care about profanity.

[arjay]

I think she should have covered the shirt or been removed regardless. I would feel that way even if Bill & hill were the ones being skewered.

That word is extremely offensive.

I believe the acceptance of such language in our society is disgraceful.

[auntyfemenist]

Southwest was within their rights. Anyone who doesn't want to tolerate vulgarity, shouldn't have to. However, am I to understand she was already somewhere half way through her flight? If so, they should have just let her proceed. The mistake is they shouldn't have let her on to start with and refunded her all of her ticket money at the start.

If they took it, let her make a leg of the journey, then they really have an obligation to bring her to her destination. They shouldn't take her money, let her get halfway, then strand her somewhere. They agreed to take her money and didn't complete their part of the obligation after undertaking part of it.