You should rethink the United Airlines flight

The views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author.

In 2021, United Airlines released the following statement:

“Our flight deck should reflect the diverse group of people aboard our planes every day. That's why we plan for 50% of the 5,000 pilots we train over the next decade to be women or people of color.”

In recent weeks, a 2021 interview with United CEO Scott Kirby in which he promoted United's pilot training policies went viral.

The bottom line is clear: Merit alone will no longer determine who will be half of United's trainee drivers; it will be race and sex (or “gender,” as the left prefers to call it). While the New York Times and the rest of the left defend United, there is no other honest conclusion to draw.

As someone who flies about 100 times a year, often on United, this worries me. Until now, I rarely worried about security issues. I've certainly never been afraid of flying.

But this is troubling enough that even though I will probably have flown a million miles on United by the end of 2024 and am in the second highest tier available to United Airlines flyers (Premier Platinum), I will now do my best to avoid- it flying United I am also giving up my United Visa card.

And I urge all Americans with airline options and credit cards to do the same. If you don't fight this battle, you have no right to complain about the demise of our society, let alone United or any other airline that adopts similar policies. You have the opportunity to make a difference. United may be willing to compromise safety, but they are not willing to compromise their bottom line.

United is a particularly alert company. As left-wing airline industry observer and United defender Gary Leff said, writing on viewfromthewing.com: “United was way ahead of the Biden administration on vaccine mandates. That pissed off a lot of pilots.”

It's important for me to point out that until now I couldn't care less if my pilot was black, white, male or female. I've flown in planes with black pilots and female pilots, and I've slept just as well on board. Those of us who oppose United's affirmative action do not do so on the grounds of race or sex. To cite one medical example, people of all colors looked to Dr. Ben Carson if they needed one of the best neurosurgeons in the country for their child. But if people knew that a hospital was hiring surgeons with affirmative action criteria, they might think twice about undergoing surgery with a minority surgeon.

Here's a good test of whether United's opposition to affirmative action for pilots is racist or not: Ask a black friend or colleague if they would prefer a pilot (or surgeon) who was chosen solely on merit or also using affirmative action criteria.

We already know that affirmative action colleges have not helped black students succeed. Why should it work in the cockpit? Would anyone respect an NBA team's decision to diversify its players through affirmative action to hire more white players?

The DEI's awakened notion of companies, doctors and cabs having to “look” like the rest of the population is as absurd as it is dangerous. In fact, I can't think of any area of ​​life where this matters to anyone who isn't on the left.

How exactly have all the black mayors, congressmen and even a black president helped black people in any way? Has the virtual absence of Indian-American, Taiwanese, Filipino-American, or Pakistani-American mayors, congressmen, or pilots harmed any members of these groups in any way? These four groups are the highest earning ethnic groups in the United States (Census Bureau, 2021).

The idea that the mayor's cabin or office should look like the rest of the population is silly, as silly as the idea that professional athletes should look like the rest of the population. It's an idea, like most stupid ideas, that appeals mostly to college graduates.

Dennis Prager is a national radio talk show host and columnist. His commentary on Numbers, the fourth volume of “The Rational Bible,” his five-volume commentary on the first five books of the Bible, will be published in October 2024. He is the co-founder of Prager University and can contact dennisprager.com.

Dennis Prager, one of America's most respected radio talk hosts, has been broadcasting in Los Angeles since 1982. The popular Dennis Prager Show was distributed nationally in 1999 and airs live, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. (Pacific Time), 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. (East) from its home station, KRLA.

Latest messages from Dennis Prager (see everything)

We have zero tolerance for comments that contain violence, racism, profanity, profanity, doxing, or rude behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it, click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for engaging with us in a fruitful conversation.