Look, I'm no seasoned world traveler. I fly maybe once a month, around the country. Once upon a time, I was so paralyzed with fear about flying I had to be sedated to even get near an airplane, but after so many flights, that's mostly passed. Last week, I was on three different airlines, in three different cities, and it got me thinking. First, what the heck is it about air travel? Yes, it's fast and convenient, but I think JetBlue has it right: go between the big cities, long haul flights, and don't try to make it any more complicated than that. On the East Coast, there is simply no excuse not to take a train between cities 500 miles away. Out here in the West, the land is a little more expansive, but it's crazy to fly. By the same token, I'm so conditioned to fly everywhere, I forget all about trains. Case in point: last week, I flew AirTran from Boston to Chicago. $39 ticket justifies me getting on an airline I never have heard of. Small old plane, poor servi
A Tretakoff view of the world.