My Fix for the American-U.S. Air Merger

Well it seems that the editors of Barron's liked my cure for the American-U.S. Air merger. The letter below was published in the upcoming September 2 issue. Frankly, the Potomac Pinheads really don't get it.

Arthur M. Shatz

226‑15 77th Avenue, Oakland Gardens, NY 11364‑3131, phone/fax (718) 479‑7749,cell (917) 446-1429

email:arthurshatz@gmail.com

August 17, 2013

Barron’s Mailbag

1025 Connecticut Avenue

Washington, D.C. 20036

To the Editor:

With respect to Tom Donlan’s Free the Airlines column (August 19^th), I have an absolutely spiffy plan for making the proposed merger of American Airlines and U.S. Airways work to perfection. Step one: The Justice (or shall we say Injustice) Department should foul up the works as much as possible so that American is again teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. Step Two: The Administration rushes in with a massive cash injection to stabilize the company just like they did with Solyndra. Step Three: Given the fact that President Obama, a former lecturer on the constitution believes that Article 2 Section 3 does not apply to him, and he has full discretion over which parts of which laws he can ensure are faithfully enforced, he should by executive order declare flying hazardous to one’s health and cover it under a special section of the Affordable Care Act. This would allow ticket prices to be set by the Independent Payment Review Board who will clearly make sure that those greedy airlines are kept in check just like greedy doctors.

Seriously, what is it about the word deregulation that government doesn’t seem to understand?

Yours truly,

Arthur M. Shatz