Six imams taken off US Airways #300

[SN30952]

Here we go again:
"They took us off the plane, humiliated us in a very disrespectful way,"

There is a vdo: Watch how one of the men was treated at a US Airways desk. Video: click that in the link
All that is needed to stop a passenger board a plane is : A passenger passing a note expressing concern to a flight attendant.... anyway that's how it works in Minnesota.

Anonymous letters? Soon passengers will need a Schindler's list to board an air plane in the US?
There was a time such letters were enough to get people boarding trains...

btw needless to mention Muslim imams, there are no Roman Catholic imams. Neither are there Muslim bishops. (See LZ news)
FULL STORY on CNN

[loadmaster747]

Very very disapointing fact, this news shows how the psychose is still remaining in some minds.I'ts a very bad way to disembark some passengers by using force only because they were muslim & were praying at the terminal, in the name of safety & security against terrorism.
I already flew many times with some muslims or also with jews, so what did I had to to cancel my trip or advise cabin & crew members that some suspicious persons were on board?
I condemn this regrettable attitude.

[SN30952]

When passengers point the finger of suspicion at other passengers, airline crews can find themselves in the middle of a tense confrontation.

The passenger wrote a short note to a flight attendant, who passed it on to the pilot.

One of the men on Wednesday called for a boycott against US Airways. As a retaliation that can count....

US Airways replies (too late?): "We do not tolerate discrimination of any kind."
Something only few seem to believe, seen the comments I have received.... and read.

But a Mr Laird, a former security director for Northwest Airlines has a good question: The episode raises the question of "whether the flying public has faith in the screening system.

Indeed, after, I posed the question, if a flight attendant has supervision over a gate agent, now the question is if a pilot has supervision over the security and screening teams?

When doubts start to grow in airline operations, then this is a bad sign. Question can be asked if the mechanics can be trusted, and the cooks in the catering.
In Paris they did not trust all baggage handlers.
In Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and Schiphol the security and screening teams were distrusted.

A matter of faith!
But who tells me we can trust the air crews, because most of the air disasters happen due to human failure of the air crews, and not due to the ground crews.

[chunk]

I trust that US Airways staff will do the same with those wearing dog collars next right? Yeah right.

Just another symptom of increasing xenophobia we see across the world especially from the uninformed. See person with beard that is not white, not black? Well obviously its a terrorist!!!

Lucky they werent Brazilians carrying backpackers or the snipers would have had to been involved!

[Philippe1983]

Like I always say... Stupid americans ! No limits in their lousy narrow-minded attitude. For them, muslim = terrorist.

[jal]

Like I always say... Stupid americans ! No limits in their lousy narrow-minded attitude. For them, muslim = terrorist.

It is rather naive to claim Americans to be stupid, as most americans are

ex. europeans who ,in the beginning of the 20th century, saw no future

in the narrow-minded Europe and left for the country of unlimited

possibilities. Nowadays europeans are just jealous about this event

in history.

[SN30952]

27 hours of discrimination and frustration.....
rather "a case of ignorance"

"The true discrimination set in after the Imams were cleared to fly by the FBI but US Airways refused. US Airways said they are launching their own investigation".

The Council on American Islamic Relations, or CARE, is calling on a congressional hearing about religious and ethnic profiling at airports.

Who wants to buy a ticket on US? Fly with US?
Investors seem to do, New 52 Week High, follow link below.

Wonder what Royal Jordanian a US partner has to say about all this?
One can read:
Through our codeshare with Royal Jordanian, we offer service between New York-JFK, Chicago-O'Hare, Detroit and Amman, Jordan. Additionally, Royal Jordanian codeshares our flights from Phoenix, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and San Francisco to New York-JFK, Chicago-O'Hare and Detroit for continuing service to Amman, Jordan.

FMI:
US Corporate Headquarters Location:
111 W. Rio Salado Parkway
Tempe, AZ 85281

U S AIRWAYS GROUP INC (NYSE:LCC)

[earthman]

It is rather naive to claim Americans to be stupid, as most americans are

ex. europeans who ,in the beginning of the 20th century, saw no future

in the narrow-minded Europe and left for the country of unlimited

possibilities. Nowadays europeans are just jealous about this event

in history.

To claim that Europeans are in any way jealous about Americans is purely wishful thinking on the part of Americans who are either too lazy or too stupid to find out the truth, which is that nobody really likes them, and that they are mostly used as an example of how NOT to do things. Except, of course, when there is a lot of money involved.

[chunk]

Far be it from me to back our American friends when it comes to issues such as this but we in Europe are in no position to criticise ignorance.

Remember the Brazilian was shot in London - at least these Imams were spared that treatment.

I am still waiting for someone on here to come out and spout the usual shite about this sort of thing being ok to protect us all etc.but it hasn't happened yet. EIther peoples views are becoming more realistic or people are their mouths shut for fear of the rational majority jumping on them. I go with the latter 'cos tolerance and and realism are nto high on the agneda these days.

[b720]

On the other hand there is a time and place for everything. The Imams were ejected after a passenger notified the crew when they stood up and started their prayers on the plane. All put aside, discrimination etc..we are all anti discrimination; nevertheless I do not think that it is appropriate to perform prayers in public, let alone on a plane in a country still traumatized and paranoid about everything Islamic.

[earthman]

Having travelled regularly on the AMS-WAW route, which is frequented by Catholics, I have many times seen the passengers next to me performing a quick prayer before takeoff. Why would prayer in public be disallowed?

I must admit though, that seeing six muslims perform an elaborate prayer routine before or after boarding a plane on a flight where muslims are only a small minority of the passengers would make me feel a little nervous. Perhaps the imams should have been a little bit more sensitive to such issues, but that's no excuse for what happened afterwards.

[chunk]

Well if you are made vervous by that sort of thing don't fly in the Middle East or on a Middle Eastern airline. If there is not a call to prayer before take off then the moving map show where the plane is relative to Mecca all the time!

On most flights I have taken to Jordan, Lebanon, UAE, Qatar etc there are some traditional muslims that even have wee copies of the quran on them with the worry beads. Malaysia Airlines even have a prayer area on the plane. Where does the irrational fear start and end? Do we stop people flying if we see someone go into the MAS prayer area? Of course not. That would be stupid.

That said - given the reputation of US Airways for crap service and tatty old planes perhaps praying wasn't a bad idea!

[SN30952]

That said - given the reputation of US Airways for crap service and tatty old planes perhaps praying wasn't a bad idea!

If I understand you well, chunk, you recommend this practise: Pray before boarding US Airways. Great idea... Ain't this an idea for some publisher's?
The official US Airways pbPB! or
Chunk's official US Airways pbPB!

Some organisations put you a Bible or Koran in your hotel room.
Indeed why not make pbPB's available at US Airways' gates? Or add it to 100 Notable Books of the Year

btw, It takes tje Frenchy always at least 24h ti translate, her is Le Monde version of the incident.

[David747]

Atleast the Imams were not breastfeeding....

[Philippe1983]

Atleast the Imams were not breastfeeding....

Haaaaahaha That one just made my day, man !

[chunk]

To be fair the female breastfeeding incident was crazy and the predictable reaction to ,oh my god, a breast ensued. Kids all over the plane going whats that mommy? yeah right.....

Now if it was males trying to breast feed then i would chuck em out whilst taxiing!

[chunk]

That said - given the reputation of US Airways for crap service and tatty old planes perhaps praying wasn't a bad idea!

If I understand you well, chunk, you recommend this practise: Pray before boarding US Airways. Great idea... Ain't this an idea for some publisher's?
The official US Airways pbPB! or
Chunk's official US Airways pbPB!

Some organisations put you a Bible or Koran in your hotel room.
Indeed why not make pbPB's available at US Airways' gates? Or add it to 100 Notable Books of the Year

btw, It takes tje Frenchy always at least 24h ti translate, her is Le Monde version of the incident.

Good thinking. But would US Airways put anything other than a bible there? Or would passengers be put off by the sight of a Quran. What about Buddhists, Hindu's, Jews? They could have a library there. I think this should be suggested to US Airways management!

[SN30952]

Are We Preventing Terror by Preventing Prayer in the Skies?
DON’T FLY WITH THINGS YOU ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO FLY WITH!

It seems Camembert is included in the no go list.

THINGS YOU ARE NOT SUPPOSED?
Supposed by who?

First you are supposed not to bring along some things...
Next you are supposed not to bring along some ideas....

Supposed by who?

[chunk]

That article was kinda interesting but the conclusion was predictable when it came to the American putting the turban like object on his head. It is racial profiling at its worst.

As for the bit that says you get more intense security if you speak a foreign lanuage other than SPanish? I dispute that - you get more intense profiling and security if you aren;t carrying a US passport - language seems to have little to do with it. Since 2001 I have lost count of the times I have gone up to the check in machines in a US airport, got the boarding pass and as soon as the UK passport is shown as i.d - sent to extra security!

Basically unless we are US passport holders we are all treated the same way. Shit. But hey - parts of the country are nice so we go back regardless.....but not near as often and certainly not in transit. More and more people are vacationing elsewhere because of the grief. I know people that would usualy go to Vegas, or California or FLorida that now go East to Thailand or Maldives or even Dubai instead. Less hassle.

[SN30952]

Muslims protest airline discrimination
The clerics, taken off in handcuffs, say they did nothing wrong.
“The way they took us off the plane, was a humiliation, 100 percent,” said cleric Omar Shahin.

In a statement, U.S. Airways said: "We do not tolerate discrimination of any kind and will continue to exhaust our internal investigation until we know the facts of this case and can provide answers for the employees and customers involved in this incident."

It looks like that when some Americans travel abroad they not travel much farther than army barracks in a war zone, or their Sheratons...
(and like a former US president candidate insinuated, slightly humiliating the service men and women, not the most clever ones are travelling...
and unfortunately for them the ones that leave these barracks, are not longer able to tell their story)

With the 4Fs:
« find the enemy »
« fix the enemy »
« flank the enemy » and last but not least,
« finish the enemy »
it is understandable that everything abroad frightens them.
It is understandable that everything they do not comprehend or apprehend frightens them.

When one forgets the basic rule « make no enemy », (s)he is in deep sh*t.