Witness: "He appeared very agitated and very nervous."

[goodhue]

http://www.wftv.com/news/5503137/detail.html

[aquart]

1. Who?

[DELUSIONAL]

2. look at the way the passengers were treated

like criminals. Just to cover the ass of one real bad cop --

[musette_sf]

5. they're just practicing

NO was a great place for practice, now American Airlines who owes their corporate ass and soul to Bu$hCo is providing a practice site.

I will NEVER fly American again. Even if someone else is paying for it. Even if I can't get a non-stop flight from any other airline.

They were rude, surly and nasty anyway. Now that they see their flights as Prison Planet training sites, things will just get worse.

Last year on an American flight, I asked the flight attendant for a magazine, since I'd already read all mine, plus the Sunday Times, plus had completed the Times Sunday puzzle, due to their delays. I got snipped at, "Don't you KNOW we don't have magazines any more since 9/11?" ??????? WTF? I must have missed that part when the terrrrrist clopped the pilot in the head with the September Vogue.

[Kingshakabobo]

13. This scene is f--king ridiculous.

If they didn't figure it out by now that it was some poor slob having a panic attack, they should turn in their badges.

Speaking of that, maybe a call to the man's doctor or employer or someone to confirm his illness would have saved all the time and effort of blowing up luggage on the tarmac. No fu-king brains whatsoever.

Of course, we live in times where smarting off to a flight attendant warrants a jet-fighter escort.

[musette_sf]

3. Referring to the air marshall

who just took out a citizen without cause.

Yeah, I'd be agitated and nervous too, until I was sure that the powers that be would be covering my butt. You know, like attributing unverifiable quotes to unidentified flight attendants, then placing them in MSM.

Oh well, who cares, the MSM is just so grateful that the slip-n-slide SW jet in Chi-town actually had had some collateral carnage to report, so they don't have to keep lying about the murder in Miami. :eyes:

[LoKnLoD]

4. I was looking for some articles

on MSN about this story this morning, no where to be found.

[musette_sf]

6. But we're still reporting

live from Midway Airport! All day! Speech by SW representative!

Makes you wonder if Chertoff himself greased up the wheels of the SW plane to get that inconvenient murder story out of the way...

[DoYouEverWonder]

8. Yes, I noticed that

they seem to be fixated on the plane that ran off the runway instead. Much safer story apparently. Can't antagonize their corporate masters I suppose.

[kurth]

7. Half a BILLION dollars for thousands of ex-cops to babysit airplanes

The federal air marshall budget skyrocketed from a few million dollars in 2001 to HALF A BILLION dollars this year.

The pilots are packing and the cockpits are secure. Every white-haired grandma is being X-rayed to death. Passengers are not stupid anymore, they would beat a terrorist to death. This is a stupid waste of taxpayer money.

And the guy NEVER said anything about a bomb, either. That was an outright lie by the government.

[SammyWinstonJack]

17. Had to cover their incompetence, I guess. Won't catch me flying anytime

soon, if ever again. And this is the first comment I have made on this extremely sad situation, other than to say this does in no way make me feel any safer. Quite the opposite as a matter of fact. The London police thought that unfortunate young man had a bomb too. They restrained him and then shot him, only to later reveal he didn't have a bomb. Oopsie! :banghead:

[katinmn]

18. OMG, you're right.

This is very similar to what happened in London. It's so frightening the way the WH and all other law enforcement agencies jumped in to say the marshalls did the exact right thing. And the media's approach (with few exceptions) is to act as stenographers for "the authorities.".

[SammyWinstonJack]

19. I believe it's called CYA?

:-(

[katinmn]

9. Somebody is lying. There must be other witnesses.

How horrible for all involved.

[burythehatchet]

10. When someone is lying, I know where I would lay my odds nt

[katinmn]

11. The government and law enforcement?

Just a wild guess.

Me too.

So this is what it's like to live in a police state.

[burythehatchet]

12. you got it kati.

and the saddest part of this is the comfort so many us take in the police state.

[katinmn]

15. I find it alarming how quickly it's becoming the accepted norm.

People willingly rationalizing away their freedom.

[peacetalksforall]

14. What if he said : = "What if they think I'm carrying a bomb?"

What if it was an innocent question?

[MercutioATC]

16. Think shooting somebody might make YOU a little "agitated"?

What's the point? I'd EXPECT the FAM to look agitated.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

20. A good, rational look at the incident in the larger context

of the Global War on Terror or whatever they're calling it these days, here:

http://www.salon.com/tech/col/smith/2005/12/09/askthepilot165/index.html

"In the days ahead, you can expect sharp debate on whether the killing was justified, and whether the nation's several thousand air marshals -- their exact number is a tightly guarded secret -- undergo sufficient training. How are they taught to deal with mentally ill individuals who might be unpredictable and unstable, but not necessarily dangerous? Are the rules of engagement overly aggressive?

Those are fair questions, but not the most important ones.

Wednesday's incident fulfills what many of us predicted ever since the Federal Air Marshals Service was widely expanded following the 2001 terror attacks in New York, Pennsylvania and Washington: The first person killed by a sky marshal, whether through accident or misunderstanding, would not be a terrorist. In a lot of ways, Alpizar is the latest casualty of Sept. 11. He is not the victim of a trigger-happy federal marshal but of our own, now fully metastasized security mania."

[katinmn]

21. "Alpizar is the latest casualty of Sept. 11"

Interesting way to look at it.