TURKEY NOVEMBER 2013 -2- HAVES AND HAVE NOTS

11.8.2013

HAVES AND HAVE NOTS

Arrived in Istanbul. On Air Canada, on a flight sparsely sold out. I had two seats to myself, most people had four, those who were lucky enough to be assigned a seat in the middle four-seat section. I wasn’t that lucky, but couldn’t complain, either. The only remarkable thing about this flight was the design of the business class section. The seats were arranged in a Christmas tree fashion. Each seat having its own "cubicle" that made up the branches of the Christmas tree. The outward end of the cubicle had a foot rest, the inward end housed the actual seat. Thus, everybody had their own private cubicle with no opportunity for conversations with fellow passengers, I thought, since the way the seats/cubicles were situated put each cubicle on an oblique plane with any other seat/cubicle, which then put at least 2 yards distance between people. Communication then would require screaming across the aisles! The seats were designed such that, one could slide it forward toward the foot rest piece to complete a flat surface to assume a fully supine position late at night. No more connection with other human beings, though, I thought one more time. Perhaps I am a bit prejudiced, but I have this bias that business class customers are already confined from the rest of the common people, either by choice or situationally. Now more confinement from even peers... Having just read Ernest Hemingway’s “Haves and have nots”, I know there is a lot of loneliness in reaching the steps where one can afford business class tickets all the time. How far will the "haves" go for comfort, more differentiation, more luxury, more alienation before they see what the cost is, before they cannot tolerate the loneliness and lack of connection with other human beings any more...

After I returned from Turkey, I met with a group of friends in which there was a young man, who works in a private consulting company. As an insider from the business world, he gave us astonishing information on the business class flights. I could never ever imagine, a business class ticket may be sold for $75,000, yes, it is not a typo! Seventy-five thousand dollars. Imagine, how much profit is expected from flying a business agent across the ocean at that price... And business world keeps whining about their insurmnountable difficulties when it comes to debating whether we should help out single mothers with children or not when one business class ticket may put food in the stomachs of thousdans of hungry children for a year!