I have been thinking about this topic for a few weeks. For those who are familiar with me you know that I have a 5 year old son who loves to go to Newark Airport and spend the day plane spotting. We would ride the monorail, watch the planes, shop in the stores (toys, candy etc), eat lunch in the restaurants (esp. in Terminal C) and have snack in the CO Presdints Club.

We did this every other month or so and had a lot of fun. We always tried to combine this with another activity such as visiting the Statue of Liberty, going to my office to pick up something or see a client, or when I had to pick up grandma at the airport. We paid for parking, paid for meals and toys, tipped the bartender at the Pres Club and contributed to the airport's financial well being in a very positive way. In addition, by taking my son out I gave my wife a break so she could do other things. I have another son who is about to turn 2 next month and would probably start joining us soon on our airport runs. However, I have not gone to the airport since 9/11 but have thought about buying refundable tickets so we could visit but it is not worth the effort or hassle. I just feel bad for all the merchants who are losing lots of business because we can't get through security. And I feel bad my son can't plane watch because of the terrorists actions.