Applause, applause for JetBlue

I don't fly, of course, because I want to get to my destination and if someone tries to frisk me and rifle through my belongings I'd like to believe I would have the guts to insist on a search warrant - which means I would end up in custody and fail to get to my destination on time.

But if I did fly, after the way JetBlue handled the emergency landing the other day, I think I would take a JetBlue flight if they were heading my way. This because the company did not attempt to hide from its passengers the television news coverage of the crisis on board Flight 292.

JetBlue customer Daniel Terdiman of CNET writes, "The fact that the television service was not turned off on my flight - let alone on the fight that had actually had the mechanical problems - was a surprise to some of my fellow passengers, given that airlines have long been reluctant to show movies or any other video involving airplanes in distress."

In this era of hiding ugly or even embarrassing truths from the public - the ultimate condescension - JetBlue treated its customers like grown-ups. How refreshing.

"Our general policy is not to censor the programming pretty much under any circumstance," (JetBlue spokesman Bryan) Baldwin said. "That's our general policy across the board. We provide customers information on how to make the screen dark if there's something they don't want to watch."

Putting the power into each individual's hands and not trying to force one policy on everyone - what a novel approach! Lovers of liberty everywhere should applaud JetBlue, and busybodies from arts censors to smoking banners should learn by example.

Now if only JetBlue would tell the muggers at the loading gates to go home and let customers get on board unimpeded, I might just fly again someday.