We've all seen the numbers. Northwest Airlines to cut 10,000 jobs; United Airlines to cut 20,000; Boeing to lay off 100,000. In the wake of the tragic terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, D.C., the airline industry is reeling. The three-day grounding of commercial flights by the Federal Aviation Administration, coupled with a newly acquired national apprehension of boarding a plane, has hit the airline industry hard. But this doesn't just affect the profit margins of huge multinational corporations -- it's costing hundreds of thousands of Americans their livelihoods.\nSaturday, President Bush signed an emergency aid package for the airline industry, providing $5 billion of direct aid and $10 billion of loan guarantees in an attempt to save the flailing companies from collapsing completely. This will help, but it is ultimately a temporary solution. The American public must regain faith in the airline industry as a safe and reliable mode of transportation before the free fall can be halted.\nThis is not to say that it is our responsibility to save corporations from bankruptcy. But it is our responsibility to re-establish the normalcy of our daily lives as much as possible. Air travel is a fast, efficient way to travel around the world, and while tragedies do occur, those are exceptions rather than the rule. In the aftermath of the tragedies of Sept. 11, federal transportation officials are enacting new security measures to make flights even safer. Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta said two task forces are considering methods of improving safety, including airport screening, cockpit security and the possibility of armed air marshals accompanying all flights. Other new security measures already implemented include the end of curbside check-in, only allowing passengers to pass through security checkpoints and increased armed security at airports. These actions, and others that will develop as investigators determine the hijackers' methods, will ensure that flights are safer than ever.\nWe must not forget the horrible events of Sept. 11. We must honor the dead. But we also must not allow terrorism to destroy our way of life, and for millions of Americans, air travel is a way of life. We will return to that way of life, because to do anything else would be to admit defeat. The ramifications of the airline industry's woes are far-reaching: unemployment and a continuing economic downturn are only the beginning. Everyone is scared -- but we can't live in fear forever.
Staff vote: unanimous
