Catman, well, of my 3 upgrades on Continental, one was for an apology, which I didn't even ask for, but the gate agent wanted didn't want any bad feelings, so she gave it to me without me even asking; one was bargained for while volunteering to give up my seat - I was taught to always ask for an upgrade if you give your seat up. So if you are an elite on Continental, I don't think you should be upset that Continental does things like this. No hard feelings I hope.