I don't know about the premeditation part, but it DOES reflect badly on the managements that, rather than rededicating themselves to serving the customer better or finding inexpensive ways to add value, they decide the way to profitability is by inventing or introducing new junk fees, sometimes at gouge level. It's the "low road" and an approach that deserves to fail.

I'll be optimistic, though, and predict that the pendulum will swing again when things get better and airlines try to grab more market share. What's important in the interim is that Southwest and airlines like it stay healthy and keep up the competitive pressure. The other big winner from all this is the automobile, which is unfortunate because more people will die (due to much higher fatality rates) as a direct result.