Stupidity and the art of airplane maintenance

Today, I lost a valuable hour of work time in the DFW airport due to a maintenance issue with our airplane.  I hate delays as much as the next person, maybe even more, but if my plane has a problem, I'm happy to wait while the airline fixes whatever is wrong.

Other passengers aren't always so willing.  The guy sitting next to me in the gate area, for example, declared from his perch, "This isn't a maintenance problem, it's a management problem.  They should just let us get on the damn plane and go."

Fine thinking, that, yet he's not the only one I heard saying we should board the plane, maintenance problem or not, and fly away.

I won't be doing that.  I'm amazed that any people want to do it.  At times, listening to them bitch and bellow, a bad part of me wants the airline to grant their wish and let them give it a go.

I, of course, would watch from the safety of the terminal.

None of us likes situations such as this one, but I continue to hope we can all behave civilly.  Some days, like today, that hope proves to be in vain.