Disabled traveler Rachel D. took a
harrowing flight with United recently. Despite their
stated policy, she was told repeatedly that "It's not in our contract to assist passengers with their luggage and we reserve the right to refuse assistance to anyone." This is
not the first time United has had a problem with disabled people. (For reference, the federal
Air Carrier Access Act that prohibits discrimination towards disabled passencers.)
posted by restless_nomad
on Apr 12, 2010 -
102 comments
Sometimes music really is a weapon. Big surprise, United Airlines messed up some luggage and refused to do anything about it. But I have to give props to this guy for taking a bad situation and making something positive out of it. Bonus points for the song being pretty catchy. I wonder what would happen if that song was so popular that the record label wanted it on the in flight music station...
posted by theichibun
on Jul 7, 2009 -
70 comments
The NHS at 60. The National Health Service is 60 on July 5th. Take a look at documents, audio and video related to the birth and growth of this "radical plan."
posted by fire&wings
on Jun 28, 2008 -
5 comments
Twenty-one years ago today a plane crashed in Gander, Newfoundland. The flight carried
American soldiers heading home for the holidays, returning from a mission in the
Sinai. Called
the worst aviation disaster on Canadian soil, the crash killed the
248 soldiers and 8 crew members aboard. On December 16th, mere days after the crash, President Ronald Reagan gave a
speech at Ft. Campbell, Kentucky, to comfort the victims' families.
As time passed, however, some of the families demanded answers from the US Government regarding the circumstances of the crash. In 1989, Robin Tallon, member of congress from South Carolina, assisted the families' by bringing the matter before
Congress - and also sending a letter to then-Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney (scroll down page). In 1992, a
Time Magazine article addressed forensic evidence which supported the idea of an on-board explosion prior to impact, as well as the flight's connections to
Iran Contra and the terrorist group Islamic Jihad. This article also discusses the
book written on the crash by Les Filotas, a dissenting member of the air safety board. The question was brought forth again in 1993, with
a bill introduced requesting that a commission be formed to further investigate the circumstances of the crash.
As with any disaster with unanswered questions,
conspiracy theories abound.
To this day, many of the questions surrounding Flight 1285
remain unanswered. While the crash may never be fully explained, one certainty remains - for the families whose loved ones never came home for Christmas, the
twelfth day of the twelfth month will
never be forgotten.
posted by SassHat
on Dec 12, 2006 -
22 comments
Slavoj Zizek United 93, WTC movies and 9/11 with some perspective no conspiracy theories here just a bit of philosophising.
posted by hard rain
on Sep 11, 2006 -
18 comments
George Best dies at 59. Footballer George Best has died today from an infection after a protracted iillness due to ill health following his battles with alcoholism.
A great
talent he was famous for his good looks, ability and love of the ladies.
"I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars - the rest I just squandered."
Rest in peace Besty.
posted by ClanvidHorse
on Nov 25, 2005 -
70 comments
Riotous Littleport. The deportation of an English village to Australia. BBC article with links to other interesting articles on immigration and emigration on the page.
posted by plep
on Jun 20, 2004 -
5 comments
Were from the UN and we're here to help! Question: If you're a UN Weapons Inspector and a man jumps into your vehicle screaming "Save me! Save me!" clutching notebooks to his chest what do you do? The answer is simple, you turn him over to the Iraqi authorities who now claim to have "no information on the incident." This ought to foster more cooperation from Iraqi scientists...good work Blix and Co.
posted by RevGreg
on Jan 25, 2003 -
54 comments
U.S. helped Iraq start bioweapons program "I don't think it would be accurate to say the United States government deliberately provided seed stocks to the Iraqis' biological weapons programs,'' said Jonathan Tucker, a former U.N. biological weapons inspector.
"But they did deliver samples that Iraq said had a legitimate public health purpose, which I think was naive to believe, even at the time."
"
-isn't iraq just another case of
blowback and is anyone asking what the next round of "blowback" will be if we go in again?
posted by specialk420
on Sep 30, 2002 -
35 comments
Americans against World Empire. This Conservative/Libertarian coalition presents analysis, articles, links, opinions and rants from every corner of the political spectrum. ""Perpetual war serves a number of purposes.....It is under wartime conditions that the U.S. state will, at least initially, face the least resistance as it finishes the......process of gutting the Bill of Rights and voiding inconvenient parts of the U.S. Constitution......It is under wartime conditons that all opponents of U.S. policies anywhere in the world, including within the U.S. itself, can be most easily labled 'terrorist.'" This statement would have come from a conservative in 1940. Today it is from the Left. (Alternative Press Review, spring 2002).
posted by Mack Twain
on Jul 14, 2002 -
6 comments
As the violence in the Middle East escalates, and Arab anger grows over American support of Israel (especially among the masses), is
another oil embargo possible?
Oil may be the Arab world's daily bread, but it's also its only weapon — if, say, Arafat is killed or Israel goes too far in its incursions into Palestinian territories, popular sentiment in the already-shaky local regimes could force Arab governments to put up a show of defiance to calm their constituencies.
posted by Rastafari
on Apr 4, 2002 -
13 comments
English amnesiac may be porn star. "Philip Staufen" tried to convince Canadian authorities that he was an English citizen who suffered from amnesia as a result of a beating. As it turns out, he
may be George Lecheit, a French gay porn star. Authorities aren't ready to close the case yet, but even his lawyer doubts the amnesia theory. In a
previous MeFi thread, a few people took the Canadian government to task for not helping Staufen return to the UK. In light of recent developments, did Ottawa make the right decision?
posted by likorish
on Jan 21, 2002 -
8 comments
Has The Entire American Media Been Bought and Gone To Sleep? United has decided to call off merging with US Air for fears of Antitrust (competition) objections (from the USDOJ; perhaps the EU as well?). This sort of obvious realization came after months and months of, presumedly, attempting to work around the problem. What I want to know is, when the proposed deal was first announced, where were the objections from commentators and consumer advocates? It's sort of pathetic that United is the first one to speak up on the issue, no?
posted by ParisParamus
on Jul 2, 2001 -
12 comments
