One of the only perks left in flying alot is being able to upgrade to first class. I had finally flown the 30 trips it takes to do this on American Airlines and last week was my first taste of the first class cabin. It had been a long long time since I had flown first class and it was a decidedly different experience.
I kept thinking that this is the way the flying used to be. The flight attendant hangs up your coat, gives you a hot towel to wash your hands and serves you a hot meal. The feeling of holding a real glass (not a plastic one) at 37,000 feet was awesome!
Re your “Peace Train” posting.
Sorry I can’t drop this one. More on Crack Stevens – in the Guardian.
“When Ayatollah Khomeini issued his fatwa on Salman Rushdie, Islam was reported to have made a speech in favour of the decree. He denied it, claiming that he had only protested at the publication of the Satanic Verses.
Yet eight years later, he told me that he thought Rushdie, who was still under round-the-clock protection, should be “extradited” to Iran to stand trial – where presumably his sentence would have been a good deal stiffer than a fine. He also expressed views on adultery and the punishment thereof, that might best be described as mediaeval, if that didn’t defame a whole epoch.”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1324999,00.html