Society

Picture the scene: we’re sitting in the departure lounge at Gatwick airport this afternoon waiting for the EasyJet flight back to Aldergrove. Over the tannoy the flight was announced, and before parents travelling with children or people with special needs, purchasers of EasyJet Speedy Boarding were called.

And a small handful of self-important looking business people shuffled to the desk.

I couldn’t help but glare at them. It’s not normally my nature, but how self-involved are these people, who need to sit their fat arses down on a plane before the rest of us? Or do they purchase this to qualify the fact that they’re flying low-cost?

Anyway, the other boarding groups were called and Mrs L and I discovered that we were two of the three people in boarding group “C”. So, we dutifully dandered down the stairs out to the….airport bus, where all the other passengers were waiting. Including those speedy-boarding twats who paid an extra fiver to sit on a bus.

Ha ha ha!

Needless to say, we all ended up arriving at the plane at the same time. Not only that, the speedy board suckers sort of ended up at the back because the later passengers like us were already at the doors. So we got on the plane first more or less!

What a stunning way for EasyJet to screw extra money out of customers who need to think they’re better than everyone else.

My Advice To Speedy Boarding Customers

Don’t be such an arsehole. Buying speedy boarding makes you look like a dick and sends out a clear message to your fellow passengers about you! You’re not that important that you need to sit on a plane ten minutes before everyone else.

Are you the same kind of person who stampedes out of your seat when the plane lands, only to stand bent double while they roll the stairs up to the plane?

Just remember: Levee’s watching you….

Tuesday, March 6th, 2007 // Observations

Spurred on by Matthew Ingram’s post on blogs affecting politics (and society), I’m wondering to what extent local (Northern Irish) bloggers can challenge traditional preconceptions in our wider society.

That was a long sentence! What I mean is, can blogs like Slugger encourage a wider variety of debate than what we’re exposed to when it’s just one-way propaganda from the party press office?

I specifically mention Slugger O’Toole, because Mick Fealty and the team have done a fantastic job of creating an open forum for debate. In fact, a few people (who don’t know about my double life as Levee) have recommended Slugger to me. They’re always enthusiastic. Many can see from the comments how regressive the ‘old’ attitudes are, and biggoted commentary exposes the futility of the traditional stances (my opinion).

There are other sites which impress me due to their seeming desire to explore new avenues. For instance, Big Ulsterman regularly challenges traditional ideologies by putting forward an alternative viewpoint and trying to reconcile ‘his’ culture and background with Nationalism and (to a lesser degree) Catholicism. He too, appears tired of politics here running around in circles with nothing ever being resolved and rarely ends a post without suggesting something Big that his subject might undertake.

Can Northern Irish Bloggers Make A Difference?

Over to you. Can those of us who blog on politics here make a difference? Is our audience wide enough to make a dent in the old school? What was your motivation for starting a blog in the first place (assuming you have one)?

Update: Slugger has recently run a more detailed commentary on this subject. Worth a read.

Thursday, April 27th, 2006 // Northern Ireland: Politics