Today’s New York Times carries a piece on a new attempt by John Graham, head of information and regulatory affairs at the White House’s Office of Management and Budget, to measure the cost of lost freedom in the war on terrorism and use those costs to help make decisions about whether giving up certain liberties is worthwhile. [T]he budget office asked experts from around the country for ideas on how to measure “indirect costs” like lost time, lost privacy and even lost liberty that might stem from tougher security regulations. The budget office has not challenged any domestic security rules, and officials say they are only beginning to look at how they might measure costs of things like reduced privacy. But officials said they hoped to give federal agencies guidance by the end of the…
About Gary Leff
United Makes it Hard to Give them Money
Christopher Elliott (whose column on the best airline flights in America I Fisked last month) shares one of my biggest gripes about United Airlines. They demand to see the credit card used for ticketing at check-in. This means that if you’re purchasing a ticket for someone else with your credit card, you need to show that credit card in person. And since there aren’t any “city ticket offices” anymore, you need to show it at the airport. You can get around this requirement by ticketing with a travel agent or getting paper tickets (for a fee, and takes time — the tickets would be shipped to you and then you need to get them to the traveler). But this annoyance pops up if you buy online or directly from United. They say it’s to prevent…
Reader Mailbag — You ask, I answer
Karol from Alarming News.com asks: [W]ith the prospect of war looming as it is, and with the possibility that airfares will go down when the war starts, do you think I should buy my tickets [from New York to Chicago at the end of March] now or wait another week or so? I think you should go ahead and ticket now. Your specific flights are cheap. Depending on the particular flights you’re looking for on those days, I’m seeing a roundtrip fare of $166 on United from LaGuardia or Newark to Chicago non-stop for your days. I also see $175 on American. Will fares drop more? Even in the event of war, it’s unlikely that the fares will drop below what you can get the tickets for now. You’ll want to book your ticket 14…
The Oracle of Google
Some time back I told you about Google Fight, which lets you compare any two items and determine their importance. Coke vs. Pepsi, Heaven vs. Hell, the possibilities are endless. Now you can find out what Google thinks of you with Googlism. Type in your name, the name of a product, or the name of your company and see what happens.
View from the Wing is Always Looking for Creative Dating Ideas
This is freaky, but I almost have to respect a man who fakes choking to get a woman’s attention. He flails his arms, coughs and sputters. After a woman rushes over to help, he showers her with gratitude, hugs and kisses. The sheriff’s office in Punta Gorda, Florida has received about a half-dozen calls about the Choking Man, as the Charlotte Sun Herald dubbed him. So far he has not committed any crime, though a woman went to the hospital on Monday with an anxiety attack after an encounter.
Hilton Gold – Now You Have To Stay at Hilton First
The trusty, reliable AAGU promo — that I’ve been using to give all of my friends, their relatives, and their relatives’ dogs instant Gold status with Hilton seems to have expired. I last used it towards the end of February. The best current promo that I’ve found is SMGD. Call 1-800-548-8690 and signup for a new account or upgrade your current account with Origin Code SMGD. After four stays at Hilton properties, you’ll get Gold status which means point bonuses, room upgrades, and health club privileges.
You need a British Airways Executive Club Account NOW
After July 1, 2003, the British Airways frequent flyer program is closed to new members unless and until they fly their first expensive flight (Y, B, or H fares in economy or any premium cabin fare). So sign up now before the new rule kicks in. That way you’ll be poised to take advantage of opportunities that come along, like last month’s Jaguar Test Drive Promotion.
I needed an SEC filing to tell me this?
Bank One, which issues the United Mileage Plus Visa, reports that it would lose a whole lot of money if United Airlines went under. It would lose customers who are motivated to use their Visa by United Airlines miles. Gee, really?
Will Fly For Sex
Scott McCartney doesn’t seem to like the idea of Hooters Air, but his piece does offer a nice retrospect of airlines selling tickets with sex in the 70s. He mentions that “Southwest Airlines decked out its first stewardesses in hot pants and leather boots” but fails to note that their automated ticket machines were called “quickies.” 🙂
Delta signup bonus
Refer your friends to Delta. Give Delta the email address of a friend who does not currently have a Delta frequent flyre account. Delta sends them an email. If they join, you get 500 miles and they get 1000 miles if they fly Delta or even get miles in some other way (such as via the free Skymiles Dining program). Some folks might interpret the offer as “Delta is losing customers because of the changes to their frequent flyer program.” But that doesn’t seem credible to me, since they’ve made the same offer in the past. Delta just wants word of mouth marketing.
