That said, I prefer Singapore or South African.
Posted on 08/30/2007 8:28:09 AM PDT by Froufrou
A woman who complained that some fellow passengers spoke Arabic and "had odd behavior" prevented a Chicago-bound American Airlines flight from departing San Diego, police said Wednesday.
Flight 590, scheduled to depart at 11 p.m. Tuesday, left its gate about 11:15 but returned to the boarding area after the woman, who was traveling with at least one child, indicated she wanted to get off the airplane. The flight then was unable to make Lindbergh Field's 11:30 p.m. curfew for departures, said Irene McCormack, a spokeswoman for the San Diego Harbor Police.
The flight, carrying 126 passengers, was rescheduled for midmorning Wednesday and arrived in Chicago in the afternoon, an American Airlines spokesman said.
McCormack said it is unusual for planes to return to the gate. She said it's usually for medical and mechanical problems or a disturbance.
The woman first complained to the flight crew that four to seven men were possibly speaking Arabic in the boarding area. The woman added that they "had odd behavior." The crew decided to return to the boarding area because the woman indicated she wanted off the plane.
The American Airlines spokesman indicated the plane returned to its gates because of a dispute between passengers. The spokesman didn't provide details on the dispute.
A Transportation Security Administration spokeswoman said it returned because of "suspicious activity on board the plane."
Ahmed Rehab, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Chicago, was upset about the airline's actions. He said television reporters told him that six Iraqi Americans were detained after a passenger became uncomfortable with the men speaking Arabic.
"It is one thing to flag suspicious behavior, but to flag a global language? We are deplaning people for who they are, not what they do," Rehab said.
The Associated Press reported Defense Training Systems had hired the men to train U.S. Marines at Camp Pendleton in California.
McCormack said no one was detained in the incident.
“if I knew I was going to be spending any significant time in a foreign country, I WOULD learn as much of the language as I could and use it.”
As would most people. But would you use it when speaking to members of your family and other English-speaking friends? Why, when you could converse to a much greater level in your native language?
Since the Middle East is part of Asia, wouldn't that make Middle Eastern languages, Asian? I'll take the $50. And you called me stupid...
It means the ordinary people implicitly accept profiling while the government and it’s useless TSA don’t.
Fine, we can profile. But it should be done intelligently as they do at BenGurion Airport where thousands of Arabic speakers move through daily. They don’t soil their knickers because someone speaks Arabic in the terminal or on the plane.
Americans need to get a grip, get out more...
Yo Drew—Who exactly has created the mess that air travel has become these days? Is it the woman who only wants to get to her destination alive or is it the Islamoterrorists? Your anger is misplaced my friend.
That woman did not create the lines waiting to clear the security checks. And that woman did not create the enormous expense all this security is costing the American taxpayer and traveling public.
You’re probably one of those who believe that America should have responded to 9/11 by asking the UN for permission to defend our country. And, if the UN is your preferred arbitor, than why do you not also demand that these stateless murderers take their grievances to the UN for resolution?
TROLL !!!
That’s just silly.
If I travel to France, I can speak French; however, when I traveled to China, I did not, and could not, speak the native tongue. Was I being rude? No!
I shouldn’t have to avoid traveling to China just because I’m not fluent in Chinese!
The article says they are “Iraqi Americans” but they might have recently arrived. Don’t worry, Arabic speakers will learn English pretty quick—we don’t provide too many services in Arabic in these parts.
I can’t help but think if that had been me (blond and blue eyed) in the terminal calling my husband (when he was on a dependent-free deployment) or sister (who lives overseas) and getting their Arabic speaking housekeeper on the line, I could have been kicked off the plane for speaking Arabic to her (with my very limited, social Arabic vocabulary).
I’m all for vigilance, but if it was the language only, there is indeed a problem!
When I fly Emirates, the “I Dream of Jeannie” theme constantly runs through my head. Very distracting!
Great airline!
What Islamoterrorists? There were none on the plane. Only some Middle Eastern men contracted by the DoD to train Marines. I'm angry at the woman who panics because there are some Arabs on her flight and forces everyone else to miss their destinations because of her irrational behavior. If you fly often (as I do) it is not at all uncommon for people of many different nationalities (including, Heaven forfend, Arabs) to be on domestic flights.
You’re probably one of those who believe that America should have responded to 9/11 by asking the UN for permission to defend our country. And, if the UN is your preferred arbitor, than why do you not also demand that these stateless murderers take their grievances to the UN for resolution?
What on Earth are you talking about?
Bite me.
It wasn't just the language apparently. The article says *suspicious behavior*, too.
The track record of middle eastern men and planes has not been good for years. Had she been by herself, perhaps she would have taken the chance, but she had a child (children ?) with her. I'm sure that was a factor in her decision.
People can tell when someone is fluent in a language or not.
When I was overseas in a Spanish speaking country, yes, I spoke English as my Spanish is very limited, but I was with my friends who were VERY fluent, the husband grew up there, and when we were with others we didn't carry on a private conversation with each other in English in front of them. We conversed with them and my friends translated. And when they spoke to each other, they did so in Spanish and had to tell me what they were saying. When I said something to them, they let the others know what I was saying. All in the effort to not be rude.
Also, there were plenty of people who were thrilled to practice their English and insisted on carrying on conversations with me IN English.
They were in an airport, for goodness’ sake! They weren’t rudely excluding a third party from their conversation. Had your nails done lately? You’ll know the distinction.
There was an intimation of “suspicious behavior” but no specifics. This incident is a product of one paranoid hyperactive imagination compounded by CYA by the airline.
I’ve traveled all over the world and you have to be vigilant but sensible. You hear all different languages when you travel. If we imposed the requirement to speak the local language in every airport one might pass through, we’d be in big trouble.
They were on the plane. Have you read the article lately? You know the distinction between plane and airport don't you?
Hardly the same, and your response had nothing to do with my point. If you travel to Israel for example, you may find yourself on an American, a French, an Egyptian and an Israeli carrier all on one round trip ticket. To make a proclamation like, "If you're on a American plane, you should speak English" shows a great ignorance about how international travel is conducted.
That said, I prefer Singapore or South African.
Another deliberate provocation.
All I know is that when we went to Europe I was constantly being taken for a local! Not recognized for American anywhere but a tavern in Innsbruck, where I was asked about Bush just following the election.
Silly me. I expected FReepers to understand the difference between regional designations and continental designations. There are good reasons we refer to regions like Central America, and South East Asia as such instead of merely North America or Asia.
Particularly, I was referring to the differences in the Afro-Asiatic languages such as Arabic and the Indo-European languages such as Hindi. I reassert my claim that the average American does not know one from the other.
Hell, even if we’re speaking geographically, half of the countries we refer to as Middle Eastern, such as Morocco, Algeria, Egypt, Libya et al are African, not Asian.
Uh oh, I just wrote Arabic. I'm a bad person.
La!
Wa ana mish majnuna!
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