How will this affect Tulsa?

[Red Arrow]

They're mostly just backdooring the necessary fare increases through baggage fees and the like. This lack of transparency is harmful to the market as a whole.

I compare baggage fees to parking fees. (I don't like either of them.  They both nickel and dime you to death.)

[patric]

Not exactly endearing the public's sympathy.


Passengers say AA flight attendant overreacted when booting actor

Alec Baldwin issued an apology Wednesday to fellow passengers on an American Airlines​ flight that was delayed by his refusal to stop playing a cellphone game—but stopped short of apologizing to the airline or the flight attendant he later mocked on Twitter.
The plane was already delayed half an hour at the gate when Alec was playing 'Words with Friends'

In the tweets that have since been removed, Baldwin mocked American Airlines as a company "where Catholic school gym teachers from the 1950's find jobs as flight attendants."
Baldwin noted the financial struggles of airlines, saying the result is that air travel has devolved into an inelegant experience, akin to riding a Greyhound bus.
Boxing great Oscar De La Hoya, who was on the same flight, tweeted that he thought the flight attendant overreacted.
http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_19487113

[Ed W]

Over reacted?  A passenger refused to turn off an electronic device and then locked himself in the lavatory just before takeoff.  Had it been one of us, we'd be in custody.

[Red Arrow]

Not exactly endearing the public's sympathy.

Alec Baldwin is an actor.  He tried to play a real person once without much success.

There are rules when riding an airline. Alec knows them (or should by now) and needs to comply or suffer the consequences.

[we vs us]

So it looks like Oklahomans are getting all proactive-y. 


Newly Formed Coalition Hopes to Save Jobs at American Airlines

Tulsa, OK -
The new year brings new hope for thousands who work at American Airlines.  They aren't fighting to save their jobs alone.  A new coalition hopes to help the bankrupt company keep Oklahomans on the job.   

"Oklahoma has an opportunity to come together," said Oklahoma Secretary of Commerce Dave Lopez.  He and leaders from surrounding cities in Northeastern Oklahoma are working with other county and state leaders to come up with solutions.  They're standing up for people like Sam Cirri.  He's spent half his life working at American Airlines.  "I'm 50.  I will be 51 this month. Uh, I planned on a career here to work to 60 or 62," explained Cirri. 

However, tomorrow's not promised.  The company filed for bankruptcy a month ago, threatening Sam's plans and thousands of others.  More than 6,500 people work for the airline in Tulsa, and the company supports another 3,500 jobs in the Tulsa area  indirectly.  "You're looking at some 10,000 jobs!  That has a huge impact on not just our local individual communities, but our region and the state of Oklahoma," said Tulsa Metro Chamber CEO Mike Neal.

The newly formed coalition says it's just brainstorming now and nothing is off the table.  "Everything from assistance from the state of Oklahoma through the legislature, from the county, the city of Tulsa, we all bring certain capabilities to the whole mix so we're in the process of assembling those and try to make a decision on what we think would be appropriate," explained Tulsa Mayor Dewey Bartlett.  It could make all the difference.  The group can't afford to fail because so many people are counting on them.  "I asked the folks to stay focused. Stay strong.  You gotta do those things and do it for your family. You know we'll get passed this. Shortly down the road we'll know our fate, and we'll handle the situation the best we can," said Cirri.

Like the union the coalition hasn't met with the company yet.  No one is sure when that meeting will take place.  Tulsa county taxpayers  have already chipped in $22 million dollars for just completed improvements as part of vision 2025 at American.  It's unclear if anything will be asked of taxpayers to save jobs.

This suggests to me that some highly placed people are starting to get panicked. Or they know something we don't.  Or both.

[Teatownclown]

Corporate welfare sure doesn't draw the flies at TNF like helping the poor does.....

[we vs us]

Corporate welfare sure doesn't draw the flies at TNF like helping the poor does.....

The difference between the poor and corporations in regards to welfare: leverage, pure and simple. 

The poor have nothing, can give you nothing.  Even if they become productive citizens they can only do so much.  Corporations, on the other hand, can offer a myriad of things -- cash, resources, jobs, etc -- and even more if functioning properly.

I'm not arguing in favor of either here.  This is just the reality of the situation. 

[Teatownclown]

The difference between the poor and corporations in regards to welfare: leverage, pure and simple. 

The poor have nothing, can give you nothing.  Even if they become productive citizens they can only do so much.  Corporations, on the other hand, can offer a myriad of things -- cash, resources, jobs, etc -- and even more if functioning properly.

I'm not arguing in favor of either here.  This is just the reality of the situation. 

Gotcha. How much moolah has the taxpayer forked over to AA or for that matter how much has AA received in relief from government incentives? I am merely pointing out the irony of Corporatepersonhood....

Were there funds for AA in 2025?

[AquaMan]

Its not the reality of the situation that draws ire. Its the hypocrisy. So many people around here criticize the last two presidents for bailing out auto and financial industries. They see it as a corruption of the free market and creeping socialism.

Yet, when crunch time comes for Tulsa, then the cry comes out that they are just too big to let fail. Now the Union is our friend, the COC and a Republican Mayor fret about the job losses if we don't all band together and save them. Its different when red state interests are at stake I guess. WWRPD? (What would Ron Paul do?)

[Conan71]

I agree, I'm somewhat weary of the constant favors done to kiss AA's donkey, but when they are the largest private employer in the area, it's probably a good investment.  What would Tulsa do if it suddenly lost 7000 to 8000 jobs which are mostly highly specialized trades?  Those aren't jobs or incomes you replace overnight.

I think on some level everyone realizes job development and retention on a large scale costs a community money, but generally there's a pretty good return on it in terms of payroll running through the local economy as well as ancillary industries a maintenance base like AA will support.

[Townsend]

I agree, I'm somewhat weary of the constant favors done to kiss AA's donkey, but when they are the largest private employer in the area, it's probably a good investment.  What would Tulsa do if it suddenly lost 7000 to 8000 jobs which are mostly highly specialized trades?  Those aren't jobs or incomes you replace overnight.

I think on some level everyone realizes job development and retention on a large scale costs a community money, but generally there's a pretty good return on it in terms of payroll running through the local economy as well as ancillary industries a maintenance base like AA will support.

I bet we could fit a ton of call centers in their space.

[Conan71]

I bet we could fit a ton of call centers in their space.

I wonder how Ed W would feel about a call center job?

[we vs us]

I bet we could fit a ton of call centers in their space.

+1

[we vs us]

While I try to be as clear-eyed about the power dynamics as possible, from an ethical/moral standpoint the hypocrisy is, yes, stunning.  I also hate the fact that we're relative hostages to these companies.  The power imbalance -- that amazing leverage a given corp has over a given municipality -- is just maddening. For me, that precisely indicates the place where 1) business becomes bribery and 2) we are at our most undemocratic, where one interest group trumps practically every other. 

[heironymouspasparagus]

While I try to be as clear-eyed about the power dynamics as possible, from an ethical/moral standpoint the hypocrisy is, yes, stunning.  I also hate the fact that we're relative hostages to these companies.  The power imbalance -- that amazing leverage a given corp has over a given municipality -- is just maddening. For me, that precisely indicates the place where 1) business becomes bribery and 2) we are at our most undemocratic, where one interest group trumps practically every other. 

It's the American Way!!

And wrong.

We don't have capitalism except on a very small scale - what we have is capitalistic monopolism.  Or the new catch phrase - crony capitalism.  Same thing.  It is all based on the ongoing principal of cheap energy and "slave wages" - which means we must have continued population growth to achieve the economic growth.  It is what we have evolved over the last 400 years and accelerated dramatically in the last 100 years.

What we need is an economic model that works in a steady state set of conditions.