farmdoc's blog post number 319

Sweetheart Vivienne and I periodically bemoan the excesses of the neoconservative, economic rationalist, privatising, corporatist vandals of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. These low-life scum, who slime around in the private and public/government sectors, are responsible for untold economic and social harm. Sweetheart Vivienne says they’d privatise and charge us for the air we breathe, if they could get away with it. Though I’ve always thought that far-fetched, now I’m not so sure. This week the European airline Ryanair announced it’s considering charging to use its aeroplane toilets. In recent years airlines, especially budget ones, have slugged customers/guest/clients/punters for credit card transactions, checked-in luggage, seat allocation, in-flight food and drink, blankets and fuel surcharges. I realise the global financial crisis is affecting their business dreadfully, and they need to maximise revenue because their costs are reasonably fixed, i.e. not closely related to the number of bums on seats. But there is a line, and I think charging for toilet use is beyond it. I’m much more outraged by loo charges than selling food. Eating and drinking on planes is discretionary; but regarding the toilet, when you gotta go, you gotta go. Anyway charging to use the toilet might result in lower sales of overpriced on-board drinks. Which would serve Ryanair right.