Saturday, April 12, 2003
Every cloud has a silver lining...
Every cloud has a silver lining...
...and today I guess I saw mine.
In the minutae of the War Funding Bill that Congress passed so Shrub can go pay for this illicit war he's dragged us in to, is help for the airline industry. Halleluia. Not a bailout, as United and other mismanaged carriers might want, but money nonetheless. Other major nations had long ago determined that airline and airport security are part of national defense, and funded it as such. The U.S. learned our lesson the hard way on 9/11, and Congress passed all kinds of laws dictating new security measures and federalizing the TSA - and then stuck the airlines with the bill. Airlines will see reimbursements for what they've spent in extra security costs for the year 2002, plus specific reimbursements for reinforcing cockpit doors, extension of unemployment benefits for displaced airline workers (thank goodness, I have lots of friends drawing unemployment right now) and waiving of the collection of security fees until September 30, 2003 to help the airlines keep more of what they earn to put towards their bottom line. It won't keep the sinking carriers from going under - as it shouldn't - but it will help the carriers who are drowning in three feet of water to begin their slow crawl back to shore.
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...and today I guess I saw mine.
In the minutae of the War Funding Bill that Congress passed so Shrub can go pay for this illicit war he's dragged us in to, is help for the airline industry. Halleluia. Not a bailout, as United and other mismanaged carriers might want, but money nonetheless. Other major nations had long ago determined that airline and airport security are part of national defense, and funded it as such. The U.S. learned our lesson the hard way on 9/11, and Congress passed all kinds of laws dictating new security measures and federalizing the TSA - and then stuck the airlines with the bill. Airlines will see reimbursements for what they've spent in extra security costs for the year 2002, plus specific reimbursements for reinforcing cockpit doors, extension of unemployment benefits for displaced airline workers (thank goodness, I have lots of friends drawing unemployment right now) and waiving of the collection of security fees until September 30, 2003 to help the airlines keep more of what they earn to put towards their bottom line. It won't keep the sinking carriers from going under - as it shouldn't - but it will help the carriers who are drowning in three feet of water to begin their slow crawl back to shore.
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