The computer glitches that stranded thousands of airline passengers on a busy Christmas weekend resulted when protected workers called in sick at numbers greater than anticipated, but don’t tell that to the New York Times. It is simply another case of market failure, and a reason to pine for the good old days when the Civil Aeronautics Board had more clout. At least back then, the planes (like the trains?) arrived on time. In Evansville, Mr. Working said he thought the big airlines were “finally learning how to compete” — a step he thought was long overdue. Yet, he admits he wishes things were different. “To be honest, I wonder if deregulation was good. You used to dress up and everyone acted real nice to you and it was fun to fly,” Mr. Working said. “Now it isn’t nice, you only get pretzels and all the other service is gone.”
“Now You Only Get Pretzels”
