Should there be Federal safety standards for airlines?

[TheFarseer]

Rush Limbaugh's replacement Jason Lewis says no. He claims market forces will take care of this because it would be bad advertising for airlines to have their planes crash (also bad for the people that die in the crash) In addition, he says insurance companies will not allow airlines to fly planes that are not up to snuff because they will not want to pay insurance claims. OK, maybe we shouldn't freak out and shut down an entire airline, but to let market forces dictate aircraft maintenance?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

[dflprincess]

1. Colbert made a joke about this line of thinking earlier this week

His comment was along the lines of, if a terrorist brings a plane down it's a security lapse, if a plane crashes because of poor maintenance it's just a market adjustment.

He also made a crack about passengers being screened more thoroughly than the planes.

[leftyclimber]

11. So the repubs are stealing from Stephen Colbert now?

Geez, they really HAVE jumped the shark. :evilgrin:

[dflprincess]

12. Jason Lewis is probably one of the wing nuts who is too stupid

to figure out that Colbert is doing satire. I always enjoy when Colbert interviews someone who clearly doesn't get it.

[Mika]

2. We should trust the most noble cause of all - unregulated rapacious capitalism.

IOW, if too many planes crash, it might be bad for business.

edit: :sarcasm:


-

[A HERETIC I AM]

3. Does this Jason Lewis or you think there aren't already Federal Safety Standards?

Seriously?

Of course. That's why most major airlines are still flying the de Havilland Comet and the Ford Trimotor.

[TheFarseer]

4. Of course there's Federal safety standards

and he says there shouldn't be. He probably thinks we should get rid of the FDA because as soon as a few people die because there's strychnine in Prego spaghetti sauce, people will stop buying it. People should be able to vote with their dollars if they want strychnine in their spaghetti sauce. The government should not dictate what can and cannot be in spaghetti sauce.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

5. Idiot.

These so-called free-market fuckwits think "market forces" will correct all problems; everything will automatically be safe because companies that provide products and services don't want to lose business. Of course, these are the same fools that don't think there ought to be personal injury lawsuits, either; so if you are injured by some corporation's negligence you have little or no recourse, and the corporation's only incentive to maintain safety standards would be the concern that people wouldn't buy the product or service.

The reality is that before approximately the '60s there were a lot of unsafe products that injured and killed people, and nevertheless corporations did not voluntarily take these products off the market. What finally made products safer was the threat of lawsuits following the development of theories of strict product liability and government regulation of consumer products.

With respect to aviation -- of course a plane crash would be horrible for an airline's business, and airlines certainly want to avoid that. But how can the general public know for sure that a particular airline (especially, perhaps, those that are smaller or are in tough financial shape) is doing everything it can to be sure its operation is safe? Why should there not be objective standards that are determined and enforced by an outside entity? And, most importantly, why should people have to be injured or die in order for these "market forces" to have an effect?

I think the recent problems with American Airlines' MD-80s proves the point. The FAA fell down on the job (and, donning my tinfoil hat, I have to wonder why two big *Texas-based* airlines are the ones regarding which the FAA didn't do their jobs), and an inspection wasn't done of a part that, if it failed, could have caused an accident. The likelihood of such an accident was very small, but there was still a good reason for the FAA's Airworthiness Directive. The fact that AA did not comply with the AD on time does tend to suggest that these kinds of inspections might not always be done voluntarily. Where the likelihood of failure is small and the cost of safety compliance is substantial, wouldn't any business be tempted to assume that small risk, especially when money is tight? The Randian free-market fuckwits don't seem to get this.

Read the AD. Does this seem like a reasonable requirement? "This AD results from reports of shorted wires and evidence of arcing on the power cables of the auxiliary hydraulic pump, as well a fuel system reviews conducted by the manufacturer. We are issuing this AD to prevent shorted wires or arcing at the auxiliary hydraulic pump, which could result in loss of auxiliary hydraulic power, or a fire in the wheel well of the airplane. The actions specified by this AD are also intended to reduce the potential of an ignition source adjacent to the fuel tanks, which, in combination with flammable fuel vapors, could result in a fuel tank explosion and consequent loss of the airplane." I guess Jason Lewis would be fine with this. Market forces would keep it from happening again, so it would be all just hunky-dory. :sarcasm:

http://rgl.faa.gov/Regulatory_and_Guidance_Library%5CrgAD.nsf/0/E1BF657E6FC3CE7D862571BC00643684?OpenDocument

[Oldtimeralso]

10. The airlines bottom line

has driven almost all carriers to do major maintenance offshore by unlicensed, cheaply paid, untrained and poorly supervised workers. The QC inspections are being done by graduates of the Helen Keller school. As a former FAA licensed Airframe and Powerplant mechanic I was constantly told by management that an aircraft does not make money sitting on the ground.

[libnnc]

6. OH hell, just let 'em fly where ever and however they choose.

When they fall outta the sky or smack into each other at 10,000 feet, who cares?

Market forces....:crazy:

[baldguy]

7. Sure, the market would take care of it.

Thousands of people would die in the process, but the safety problem would be taken care of.

As caring, civilized humans we should be trying to avoid that. Avoidable life & death issues shouldn't be left to market forces.

[catnhatnh]

8. Y'ever watch Texas Hold'em....

and see someone asshole bluffing a jack high hand???
In terms of aviation I would like to see SOMEONE make sure that in the maintenance shop that they at least have a full house to open....just sayin'....

[pnwmom]

9. Let's hope market forces

kick them all out of their jobs.