The United Airlines Scandal Scares Mike Rowe, But Not For The Reason You Think

I’m sure by now you’ve heard and seen (repeatedly) the man that was dragged out of his seat on a United flight in order to compensate for overbooking on the flight. There’s been all kinds of controversy about who was in the right and who was in the wrong. Did he have a right to the seat since be bought it, or is it always United’s call as to who inhabits their aircraft? There’s even been a pretty impressive smear campaign against the guy who was removed. Maybe all that they’re saying about him is true, but I’m not sure it has anything to do with his right to his seat.

Just in case you don’t have this scene already emblazoned on your memory:

Famous no-nonsense dispenser of logic Mike Rowe weighed in on why this even scares him, but it might not be why you’re thinking.

Via The Blaze:

Here’s the thing. It’s easy to forget that we have no right to fly. Buying a ticket doesn’t change that. So, when we board the plane, we have no right to remain there. We can be legally removed if we’re too drunk, too loud, too creepy, too suspicious, or too big for the seat. We can be removed if we stink. We can be removed if we’re insubordinate. We can be removed for whatever reason the airline deems necessary…

Personally, I support this policy. I support it because I don’t want to fly across the country in a steel tube filled with people who get to decide which rules they will follow and which they will ignore. I’ve been on too many flights with too many angry people to worry about the specific circumstances of their outrage, or the details of why they took it upon themselves to ignore a direct command. A plane is not a democracy, and the main cabin is no place to organize a sit-in. The main cabin is a place to follow orders.

Let me say it again. United made a business decision that was unbelievably, incomprehensibly stupid, and now they’re paying for it. (Seriously guys – what did you think was going to happen with two hundred citizen-reporters armed with cameras?) Point is, this is how the market is supposed to work. Their stock is down hundreds of millions of dollars, their customers are flying on other carriers, and, according to CNN, they just might be the most hated company in the world today. But that doesn’t mean Dr. Dao ‘did nothing wrong.’ He did. He ignored a direct order from a United representative while sitting on a United plane. He was told to leave and he refused to do so — multiple times by multiple people — all with the proper authority.

Does that mean he deserved a beating? Of course not. But it doesn’t mean he’s innocent. Like the airline, Dr. Dao had options. He had recourse. He could have deplaned and pled his case to the gate agent. But he didn’t. He chose resistance. That was dumb. United chose confrontation. That was dumber. Now, here we are. Dumb and Dumber.

I tend to agree with him; their plane their rules. This problem could have been de-escalated by anyone at any point along the way. Other passengers could have taken the money and a different flight or this guy could have left willingly. Most obviously, the laws of common sense say that United caused the problem by overbooking and United should have been the ones to suffer to make it right. But the laws of personal and company property say that it was their plane, so they can do with it whatever they wish. Was it stupid? Yes. Was it inadvisable? Absolutely. Was it illegal? Not even a little bit.

So the next time an airline asks you to do something, get your entitled rear in gear and do it. It might be rude for them to ask, but obviously, they have the right to, and aren’t afraid to back that up.

(Source: The Blaze)