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Xanthro

Published Letters: 1768
Editor's Choice: 52

Tuesday, March 13, 2007 04:36 PM
Original article: Maternity leave litigation

Problem with this

Two women, same age, both married, both have the same academic and professional background, both work for the same company for the same number of years.

Now, Women A takes one year to deliver her child and raise it. Women B stays on the job doing part of the work that Women A used to do. Now when Women A comes back, both should be considered as exactly the same? Sorry, that's bullshit.

It's bullshit because it punishes women and men who either do not or cannot have children. Having a child is a choice, one that may and should affect ones career.

While raising a child is work, it's also far more rewarding and fun that what most people do for a living, saying that one women should have to actually put in more hours on her job, yet another women who got to spend time with her child, so be considered as having worked the exact same hours is wholly unfair to the women that worked.

Friday, March 23, 2007 11:19 AM
Original article: Ask the pilot

Some people have never coordinated any type of event or activity.

Logistics is not easy, and that’s the problem with airline delays, is that it throws the delicate balance of airline logistics into disarray.

People like Locutus get upset at anyone defending the airline industry, when people themselves are a great part of the blame for US airlines being in disarray. People talk about how they would gladly spend a little more money per flight, but in actual practice, even $10 is enough for people to balk and complain.

I’ve had a multiple day delay flying from Europe, 36 hours from Munich to Frankfurt, 30 hours sleeping on the floor at Frankfurt am Mein, flight to diverted to Boston, 16 hours in Boston, then finally flying to Los Angeles. That’s what weather does. It delays things, not just the flights, but everything around it.

Why aren’t there extra snacks, food and drink when there is a possible weather delay? Because such things are planned in advance, the items have to be available, and this takes time, time that pushes back flight time.

Passengers like to complain about the lack of information, but make the mistake of assuming information is even available. Often, the pilots are informed that the flight will be cleared for takeoff in ten minutes, then in 9 minutes, it’s another ten minutes, and this repeats itself.

Nobody is getting information “There will be a 9 hour delay so just sit there are the tarmac.” No, they are getting information that the flight will take off in a half an hour, and this keeps getting pushed back at the last minute.

Yes, it’s frustrating, but getting unreasonable upset and yelling does nothing to rectify the situation and only adds to the frustration of your fellow passengers.

Friday, March 23, 2007 03:54 PM
Original article: Ask the pilot

Waste of space articles

If we can't say something nice, we shouldn't say anything at all. And if we don't like Patrick's waste-of-space column, we definitely should not say so. We should all send him warm fuzzies for being the amazingly superiffic person he is, smarter, cooler, and so much more pilotesque than we are, and bow down before his wonderfulness. (How many accounts does your mom have, Patrick?)

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There are plenty of articles on line that I have no interest in reading, they are not to my taste nor interest.

However, I don't make the mistake of assuming everyone has the same tastes as mine. While if I were the only reader on the Internet, such articles would be a waste of space, since I'm not, and said articles have an audience, they are by definition not a waste of space.

If you do not enjoy reading Ask the Pilot, then don't read it. I highly doubt that Patrick has snuck into your home and is holding you hostage forcing you to read his articles.

Why people click a link to simply make themselves upset is weird enough, but to then take the time to complain about it shows a distinct disconnect with reality.

Friday, March 23, 2007 04:49 PM
Original article: Ask the pilot

Poor Analogy

So, by that reasoning, If I wrote a column, "Ask Me about Xanthro's Mom" which was full of self-aggrandizing, elitist swill, and in between my salacious tidbits about the woman who birthed you, I spent my time sucking up to, oh, let's say, the recording industry, and you wrote in to complain that it was little more than an attempt to besmirch your mother's virtue, I could tell you, "If you don't like it, don't read it"?

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I'm sure you understand the difference between slandering someone's mother and writing about a topic. Based on your logic you were birthed by a plane.

Wheather you disagree with Patrick is not the issue, others enjoy his column, so it's not a waste of space.

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If you're going to call yourself a writer, you have to be able to handle critics. Otherwise, you're just a blogger.

And I am STILL calling bullshit.

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You're not a critic, you're someone who can't stand a different point of view and will only accept a total capitulation to your thinking.

I understand planes are going to be late and some personnel are going to be asses. I'll make my complaints about this to people who actually have power to affect change, rather than simply bitch at an unemployed pilot giving the causal flyer insight into the airline industry.

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