Legal/Government

John Gilmore gets tossed off a BA plane

John Gilmore, co-founder of the EFF and outspoken activist for human treatmeant during air travel, has gotten thrown off a BA plane enroute to LHR because he refused to take off his suspected terrorist button:

The steward returned with Capt. Peter Hughes. The captain requested, and then demanded, that I remove the button (they called it a "badge"). He said that I would endanger the aircraft and commit a federal crime if I did not take it off. I told him that it was a political statement and declined to remove it. They turned the plane around and brought it back to the gate, delaying 300 passengers on a full flight.

How could anyone reason that taking a stupid button off would actually make a difference in the saftey of a flight? Too bad BA picked the wrong guy to tangle with, because John has the resources to make this escapade a real hassle for BA. Way to go John!

Posted by Mayhem at July 20, 2003 10:59 AM