True at every newspaper I know about. But there are editorial writers, and you might be able to find out who wrote this one.

Bruce

Can't say I agree with the Post's editorial either...that said, the responses to this are rather over-wrought. It simply expresses the collective opinion of the editorial section of the Post. All papers welcome responses via Letters to the Editor.

Looking for the e-mail of who wrote this or making assumptions that some poor hack journalist got caught in a long queue shows as much of a lack of knowledge of the newspaper business, as their editorial demonstrates a lack of knowledge of frequent flying.

The Post won't retract its editorial (I've never seen such a thing), but you may be able to educate the writer a little. Keep in mind that certain fields are assigned to the same people again and again. This person might write about airports and security again some day.

Bruce

I definitely think we should express our opinion. But I think the greater benefit is to get another opinion into the conversation as opposed to educating a journalist.

And there is not necessarily a "writer" here. The Post has an editorial board that collectively decides on its editorial stance...although at the end of the day, clearly someone needs to actually write the editorial.

But the folks on the editorial side are different from the reporters that actually cover a regular "beat" such as transportation or security. They are pretty much fenced off from each other.

Not to mention that most folk going through the Elite lines sail through the security... having already removed their shoes, overcoat, metal objects...taken out their laptop... and have their boarding pass/photo id/passport out.

( That last one always confused me ... why do the folk in front of me in non-Elite lines always spend time fumbling around looking for photo ID... when they finally get to the FRONT of the line? Oh yeah... those are the same folk that fumble for their wallets when they need to pay in the 15 item line at groceries, as if it's a total surprise they'd need to pay. )

If I'm thinking this through correctly, the Elite lines actually speed up the entire flow of the process... getting more customers through in the least amount of time? And making the normal line shorter? Particularly if there is a Security station dedicated to Elites, but which the normal line can vector passengers to when it's underutilized ( which I've seen at some airports ).

The whole viewpoint borders on socialism. It isn't "fair" for first class passengers to get better service?

amen. back to ignoring the WP/NYT and sticking to the FT.

So, does this editorial suggest that there aren't many Posties that are elite-level flyers? Well now...hehehe, no wonder we don't like the elite lines at IAD...

Exactly--that's the argument most often used against them, the "fairness" aspect. The other, tangential one is that taxes pay for the TSA, so it's not right that some people get different treatment--which ignores both the fact that taxes don't pay for the lines (which are run by the airports) and that frequent fliers, by the very virtue of their frequent flight, pay much more for security through the "9/11 fee" than the once-a-year trip-to-Disney families.

Reminds me of the time when...
 

I was on a NW flight, preboarded and sitting in 1B.

As the coacj pax file past, there was this woman who remarks loudly to her companion... "Look at these so-called Elite passengers with their drinks - they make me sick!"

Ordinarily, this wouldn't have offended me but I was mean-spirited that day so I reply... "That's why we sit separately from the rest of you - so you don't catch any more of my sickness."

Get the requisite nasty stare in response. That's fair.

Now, the clincher. I look at the book the woman's holding - Dan Brown's Demons and Angels.

Just as she is transitioning into coach, I pipe up, "Oh ma'am, byt the way... since you think I'm a bas*ard anyway, the villain in that book is *****" (identitity withheld here if someone here has not yet read the book)

If looks could kill, I'd be dead even if I were a cat - but I had a cabin full of F pax who thought I was cooler tha Elvis :D

No one else has jumped on this, so I will--

I flew "yesterday" (they're referring to Thursday), and trust me, the lines were much longer than normal where I was. I spoke with several of other business colleagues who flew out of other airports who also said that the lines were long as well.

I think whoever claims that the lines weren't much longer than usual on Thursday is smoking some pretty good stuff.

It actually depended on the airport. Folks I have spoken with seem to feel that at the smaller airports the lines may have been even shorter than normal. In fact that was my experience also.

At the larger airports where for some reason everyone seems to feel that threats may originate (don't the same planes fly to smaller cities also?) the lines were incredably long and stupid.

Back to the original post....

For fairness we should make the people who go to the restaurant for carryout wait in the same line as people waiting to be seated!

Yeah! That would be fair!

See, you're applying too much reason to the issue. That's your problem!

The security system is as strong as its weakest point, and once airside at any airport, the pax is potentially airside at any other airport (at least in the domestic system). If security at ROA or CLD screws up, then that terrorist has access to the larger planes at IAD, ORD, DEN, etc.

Reason and security in domestic U.S. aviation are usually two mutually exclusive concepts.