Joke empties plane Man ticketed and sent home as passengers scurry to resume travels

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ^ | Dec. 24, 2002 | GINA BARTON

[jsraggmann]

I would have done exactly what the pilots did. As a flight crewmember, you realy have no choice. This is a sure way to get your ass thrown off and take a long delay, or even have the flight cancelled. The mere suggestion of intoxication is taken very seriously. This reaction may not be "fair", but that's exactly what will happen in this instance.

[NittanyLion]

Yes, I do understand that I have the right to remove offensive people from my establishment or abode. You allow ill-mannered people to invade your home and business? Oh wait- you are ill-mannered. It's much clearer now.

You'll notice the article states the action is in compliance with FAA guidelines. As the federal government becomes more involved in the airline industry, it's no longer so clear that an airliner is a private establishment. Nor is it so clear that the passenger searches aren't occurring in violation of the 4th Amendment.

Bottom line: you can't have it both ways. When airlines accept government money, and use government agents to search passengers, they can no longer claim the rights of a private enterprise.

[RGSpincich]

What makes you a friggin' expert on free or offensive speech?

I read the rules on posting here. Tada! Try it. You, too, can be an "expert".

[Chancellor Palpatine]

Making a smart aleck comment in a planeful of people who heard you is JUST like yelling fire in a crowded theater.

[Chancellor Palpatine]

Tickets expensive? I pay less to fly than I did 20 years ago even without adjusting for inflation. It probably costs a third of what it once did. Further, I have more routhes and carriers to choose from.

[RGSpincich]

You'll notice the article states the action is in compliance with FAA guidelines.

The article does not say the big mouth passenger was arrested or detained in compliance with FAA guidelines. It was the pilot's call on behalf of the airline he did not cite any FAA standards. If other passengers were alarmed or aware of the comment, he had to address it. The article does state that the pilot and crew were tested using FAA procedure.

The crew reported to a medical facility to be tested for alcohol and drugs, in compliance with Federal Aviation Administration guidelines.

This is the only mention of FAA standards and does not relate to the (almost)passenger.

[NittanyLion]

The article does not say the big mouth passenger was arrested or detained in compliance with FAA guidelines. It was the pilot's call on behalf of the airline he did not cite any FAA standards. If other passengers were alarmed or aware of the comment, he had to address it. The article does state that the pilot and crew were tested using FAA procedure.

Sorry, I should have been more clear. I took the FAA comment, along with the following, to mean there's a possible violation of federal law:

The FBI and the U.S. attorney's office will discuss the incident after the holidays and decide whether the man should face the more serious charge of interfering with a flight crew, a federal felony that carries a maximum 20-year prison term, said Monica Shipley, FBI spokeswoman.

Regardless, the airline industry is now virtually an extension of the federal government. The idea that government agents can act under the same guidelines as a private security guard is clearly erroneous.

[RGSpincich]

And I take the FBI's response as a big yawn. They would have arrested the guy by now if they thought he was a bonafide criminal rather than a doofus.

The idea that government agents can act under the same guidelines as a private security guard is clearly erroneous.

Who put forth that idea? The pilot ordered the guy removed and canceled the flight. TSA screeners have their own set of federal rules.

[RGSpincich]

Bottom line: you can't have it both ways. When airlines accept government money, and use government agents to search passengers, they can no longer claim the rights of a private enterprise.

So you and I, by accepting fire, police, sewer, etc. services provided by government, lose our rights as private citizens?

[NittanyLion]

Who put forth that idea? The pilot ordered the guy removed and canceled the flight. TSA screeners have their own set of federal rules.

Sorry, that's a bit of an off-topic rant. I have a problem with federal security screeners searching private citizens without probable cause. I think it's indirectly related to the topic at hand, particularly because citizens are subject to a maximum 20-year prison sentence if they speak too loudly or say the wrong word. Situations such as these irritate me.

So you and I, by accepting fire, police, sewer, etc. services provided by government, lose our rights as private citizens?

Well, the argument could be made that we pay for those services. Airlines have accepted massive monetary bailouts from the government, as well as labor from government security personnel. Can they continue to toss people off airliners arbitrarily? (Granted, the personnel weren't by choice...)

[TightSqueeze]

Making a smart aleck comment in a planeful of people who heard you is JUST like yelling fire in a crowded theater.

Typical response from someone who has been granted a modicum of authority in our society, on balance though a smart aleck comment has far more in common with hollering Fart! in church, than yelling Fire! in a theater, do you see? Go back to polishing your badge and leave the comedy to the professionals.

[TightSqueeze]

Making a smart aleck comment in a planeful of people who heard you is JUST like yelling fire in a crowded theater.

Typical response from someone who has been granted a modicum of authority in our society, on balance though a smart aleck comment has far more in common with hollering Fart! in church, than yelling Fire! in a theater, do you see? Go back to polishing your badge and leave the comedy to the professionals.

[Chancellor Palpatine]

Insinuating that a pilot, the guy who has your life in your hands without knowing it to be a fact is alarming to everyone around you.

Life threatingly alarming.

[csvset]

Rut roh, better check this out.

Delta pilot tests positive for alcohol, removed from plane

[Hildy]

I don't understand this at all. The only half-assed logic I can make of it is that if anyone suspects a pilot of being unfit to fly, the pilots must go through a sobriety test, no matter what, even if it is a joke.

If that's the case, then they should print it on your ticket to leave the pilot alone. This is absurd. If I were on that flight, they probably would have had to throw me in jail that day for yelling so much at everybody at that airline.

[Hildy]

The more I think about this, the more I'm angry. It's ok to be treated like a criminal when you're trying to board a plane, but asking a pilot, in jest, if he's been drinking is over the line. Insanity.

[gitmo]

The guy who jokingly asks if the pilot has been drinking gets arrested & possible prison-time. The pilot caught DUI was not taken into custody.

[thepitts]

"I should have said, 'Merry Christmas."

How long till that becomes a "federal felony"?