US student escorted off plane 'for speaking Arabic'

[Jim in CT]

If anyone cares, Southwest Airlines is saying that the man was accused of making threatening statements. It was what he said, not the language with which he said it, that got him kicked off.

[buckman]

Originally Posted by Jim in CT

If anyone cares, Southwest Airlines is saying that the man was accused of making threatening statements. It was what he said, not the language with which he said it, that got him kicked off.

Exactly , some here would like to fabricate hate , blame it on fabricated fear and stand up for those those victims of fabricated hate .
It makes them feel superior and smarter .
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

[FishermanTim]

"Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it"

Those that take rumors as fact without checking for facts are doomed to spread the same rumors without facts.

(along the lines of how "urban legends" get started.
You hear the "story", fail to check the facts, and pass the "story" on to others without any facts to back it up.)

[The Dad Fisherman]

Originally Posted by FishermanTim

"Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it"

Those that take rumors as fact without checking for facts are doomed to spread the same rumors without facts.

(along the lines of how "urban legends" get started.
You hear the "story", fail to check the facts, and pass the "story" on to others without any facts to back it up.)

Hey, I saw a meme come across my Facebook feed stating this was true......that's good enough for me....and sadly probably 25% of the population
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

[spence]

Originally Posted by Jim in CT

If anyone cares, Southwest Airlines is saying that the man was accused of making threatening statements. It was what he said, not the language with which he said it, that got him kicked off.

How could the accuser know the remarks were threatening when she DOESN'T SPEAK ARABIC???

[Jim in CT]

Originally Posted by spence

How could the accuser know the remarks were threatening when she DOESN'T SPEAK ARABIC???

Gee, that's a real head-scratcher. Because it's not possible that someone else on the plane speaks Arabic and related the threat to the airline. Right? Not possible?

I'm not saying the airline isn't lying (I wasn't there). But (1) you weren't there either, and (2) the airline has a massive financial incentive not to act in a way that would result in the US student suing them for a jillion dollars.

[detbuch]

Originally Posted by spence

How could the accuser know the remarks were threatening when she DOESN'T SPEAK ARABIC???

The article does say this "After an Arabic-speaking Southwest employee escorted him off the plane . . ."

Doesn't say that the employee was on the flight, but it's possible that someone on the plane did understand Arabic. More information than the story relates is needed for anyone to have a reasonably biased opinion.

[spence]

Originally Posted by detbuch

The article does say this "After an Arabic-speaking Southwest employee escorted him off the plane . . ."

Doesn't say that the employee was on the flight, but it's possible that someone on the plane did understand Arabic. More information than the story relates is needed for anyone to have a reasonably biased opinion.

The NYT who first reported the story lays it out in clear detail.

Student was having a pleasant conversation in Arabic with his uncle back in Iraq. A woman ahead of him was certain she had identified one of Jim's bad chocolates and notified the flight attendant.

Southwest scrambled to find someone who spoke Arabic to talk him off the plane who apparently was unintelligible and the student asked him to speak English. The then said poor Arabic speaker cautioned him about using Arabic on the aircraft for reasons just like this.

You guys are holding out on a presumption of guilt, oh, he must have done something right, he's a Muslim?

<<<<<BREAKING NEWS>>>>>

A video of the event was just posted to youtube.

[detbuch]

Originally Posted by spence

The NYT who first reported the story lays it out in clear detail.

Student was having a pleasant conversation in Arabic with his uncle back in Iraq. A woman ahead of him was certain she had identified one of Jim's bad chocolates and notified the flight attendant.

Southwest scrambled to find someone who spoke Arabic to talk him off the plane who apparently was unintelligible and the student asked him to speak English. The then said poor Arabic speaker cautioned him about using Arabic on the aircraft for reasons just like this.

You guys are holding out on a presumption of guilt, oh, he must have done something right, he's a Muslim?

<<<<<BREAKING NEWS>>>>>

A video of the event was just posted to youtube.

That was funny. I wasn't holding out and I didn't have any presumption. But after your speaking jive video, I be frontin fo a big laugh.