Oakland Airport apologizes for shunting troops
This is exactly what I said they should do: Just stop passing the buck, show some compassion, and take some responsibility. They listened. The Oakland Tribune reports on the Oakland Airport’s press conference this afternoon:
Oakland International Airport officials apologized for prohibiting a planeload of U.S. troops, just back from Iraq, from entering the passenger terminal during a layover Thursday, prompting conservative pundits and bloggers to hold up the incident as an example of the Left Coast dishonoring soldiers.
“We apologize, I apologize to any members of the military that were on this flight and may have experienced some discomfort or perception of disrespect,” said Omar Benjamin, executive director of the Port of Oakland, which operates the airport.
There was no disrespect intended when North American Airlines Flight 1777 was directed to wait two hours at a remote part of the airport, Benjamin said. The plane was onits way from Iraq to Hawaii.
Benjamin’s apology came in the face of conflicting reports circulating across the nation painting the airport in the liberal-leaning Bay Area as a poster child for disrespect toward U.S. troops.
Although the airport said its decision was made “together with the TSA,” the Transportation Security Administration denied playing a role.
More from SFChron:
“There was no disrespect that was intended,” said Omar Benjamin, executive director of the Port of Oakland, which runs the airport. “There was confusion. There were mistakes that were made.”
…The airport said the Marines were not screened by Transportation Security Administration agents after they arrived in New York on a flight from Kuwait. That factored into the decision to exclude them from the passenger terminal, officials said. But the TSA said the Marines had been screened by U.S. Customs.
“At no time were servicemen and women prohibited from entering the sterile area of Oakland International Airport by TSA personnel or regulations,” the federal agency said.
Now, the airport, TSA, and the military charter firm have to move forward, uncross their crossed lines of communication, and make sure it doesn’t happen again.
It must have been a difficult decision for the troop who first spread word about the incident to come forward. Kudos to him and all who wrote/contacted Oakland Airport and the feds.
It is NOT the 1960s anymore.
***
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If TSA and the airport officials are not effectively communicating with each other, it does not give me a warm and fuzzy feeling concerning security from terrorists at that airport. Or maybe Al Qaeda is giving the Bay area a pass due to their support.
Exactly. There is no excuse for this to happen again and for any more honorable soldiers to be disrespected.
Perhaps there was no disrespect intended but coming from that area of the country, I do wonder. It seems not to be an isolated case and one would think the charter company would know this. North American flies in and out of Honolulu Intl. at least once a day & having just moved from there, I find Omar’s story hard to believe but I guess we should give them the benefit of a doubt but I seriously have my reservations. However, this will not make me want to visit the Bay Area anytime soon.
GOOD! Another win for MM! Wow! MM is a winner! Well done!
Not me. Give credit to the troops who spoke up.
Sorry, sorry, sorry….I’ll fly into San Jose, Sacramento, or Reno and rent a car before I’ll book a flight into OAK or SFO. Took their time with the apology and worse, passing the buck back and forth as to fault.
Glad to see they took ownership.
MM, we still thank you for keeping the blogosphere heated up with the story.
MM you were on TV talking about this, you blogged about this. Face it, if you weren’t about this, nothing would have happened. I didn’t see anyone else talk about this on TV other than you on Megyn’s show the other day.
You might not take credit, but I give it to you anyway.
That’s extra good because they had an excellent opportunity to weasel out of this. Didn’t want to say anything and give them ideas, but the Oakland Airport was undergoing serious renovations. When I picked up a friend there this spring it looked like Ramadi, it was so torn up.
If the Oakland airport brass were weaselly they could have just said they were shuffling the troops around because of construction difficulties and no one could have contradicted them. Instead they took responsibility for their mistake. Good job all around.
Is anyone else noticing a pattern here?
No - not the one where the left consistently makes these idiotic decisions and statements….
I’m talking about the pattern of their continued retreat ( there’s that word again ) whenever they are challenged by the right.
Amnesty, ‘General Betray-Us’, the Limbaugh uproar, and now this….
They love to talk a good game, but when the real majority stands up to them, they fold like a cheap card-table.
Your modesty becomes you, Michelle, but we give credit where it’s due. If you hadn’t focused attention on the Oakland Airport honchos like sunlight through a magnifying glass, they wouldn’t have come around.
I think they’re sorry they got caught and would do it again if they thought they could get away with it.
I question the sincerity of their apology.
Right, I question the sincerity of their apology. It is interesting, that TSA stated they were going to investigate this yesterday, then today Oakland Airport brings out the apology. Could it be that the TSA investigation would turn up they were lying, and they are trying to prevent an investigation by apologizing?
The basic excuse for this was BS anyway. We know it. They know it. And they know that WE know it, too.
Somebody told the Oakland Airport Authority to cut the crap and apologize. The negative publicity was not doing them any good and would probably end up costing them federal dollars in the end — and they knew it as well.
In any event, this had better NOT happen again.
“may have experienced some discomfort or perception of disrespect,”
ah, the old non-apology apology trick!
perception is reality chumps, especially in this case!
“may have experienced some discomfort or perception of disrespect,”
What a crock.
How about: “We are truly sorry for our treatment of the military. There was no excuse for it and you can be sure that it will never happen again”
That is an apology
HOGWASH!!!
Translation:
You got your feelings hurt. We’re so sorry you were “uncomfortable.”
Correct apology:
We got our wires crossed, and because of our unverified miscommunication, we treated you with complete disrespect. As heroes, you don’t deserve that, and we are deeply sorry. It will not happen again. Ever!
#17 PAUL TROMMER
dammit!
I was typing mine, when you posted yours! You beat me to it.
Well at least they stepped forward. Now if it happens again …
I sent a flaming, red-hot email to the airport personnel. Glad to see they got the message!
You know, I just Googled Omar Benjamin name to find out about his background, and found it interesting, to say the least, that he used to be COO of Al Anwa USA Inc., and Newfield Enterprises International, businesses both owned by Arabs. Hmmm….and these troops just returned from Iraq?
It is NOT the 1960s anymore.
They at least are acknowledging their error … even if it does not ring 100% true …
Words are cheap … so I will be waiting to see the actions taken to keep it from happening again …
They did not acknowledge their error. They said that they were sorry the troops “…may have experienced some discomfort or perception of disrespect.”
Good to see a government bureaucracy “man up” and admit to, and apologize for, its incompetence and inefficiency. Gotta say though that I don’t see any evil “Bay Area conspiracy” of hatin’ on the military here. No doubt there are in fact a few anti-war nutjobs who disgustingly disrespect our troops, but very few in my opinion. I travel all over the country on business and otherwise, and I see pretty universal respect for (and often times sympathy) our guys and gals in harms way from both those for and against the continued occupation mission in Iraq. In fact, many folks ardently against the “war” in Iraq go out of their way to pay their respects to the troops before bashing President Bush and his policies. Better to fight the good fights IMHO than to invent straw men. Now what went on in the 60s and early 70s regarding the Vietnam anti-war protesters and their treatment of returning soldiers and marines is another story, and is a sad chapter in this country’s great history of civil and peaceful dissent.
It seems as if half of the responders are upset because the apology isn’t contrite enough or secretly they’re not REALLY sorry.
I don’t know why anyone apologizes anymore. Oakland Airport, Don Imus, etc. No apology is good enough anymore. This lack of forgiveness crosses party lines.
I would understand if this were one of those non-apology apologies. But it’s not. Don’t behave like typical liberals and assume the worst of intentions.
Should be: Don’t behave like typical liberals who assume the worst of intentions.
It may have something to do with:
There is a bit of blame in the apology and therefore nulls it as effective. Kinda like when Geraldine-o apologized for his spitting comment. He talked more about what Michelle did than just offering up an apology and shutting up.
Yes Michelle, some of us noticed.
They are really feeling the heat and just playing CYA big time. This is just a bunch of career politicians trying to protect their phony baloney jobs. It will be a very long time before I visit the Bay Area again. I really used to enjoy going there. The beautiful scenery hasn’t changed much but most of the people sure have (no insult intended to all our friends living there).
Dakine:
I know, I know…you hate me because I am a coulter fan…but the bay area does not house a “few bay area nutjobs”… You will have to beg my pardon…but you are out of your gord if you really believe that….
Just a few examples:
Sacramento CA - Property owned by Berekely, CA couple:
http://povertybarn.typepad.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/captfx10302160231soldier_effigy_fx103.jpeg
City of Berkeley, CA City Council tried to ban flags off of fire trucks saying that they were devisive and “irritating” to some of the the residents (later reversed the decision).
http://www.bannerofliberty.com/OS10-01MQC/10-26-2001.1.html
Lafayette Anti War Memorial - “The Crosses of Lafayette”.
http://lafayettecrosses.blogspot.com/
Not to mention, not letting military recruiters on State campuses…
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2005/03/15/29992.php
Just a few…
I’m with leepro on this. It was a typical mealymouth non-apology apology.
It would have been better if he just said:
“We apologize, I apologize to any members of the military that were on this flight and
may haveexperiencedsomediscomfort or perception of disrespect.”Though sadly it was probably the best you could expect from a typical bureaucratic spokeshole hoping to avoid admitting fault lest anyone start suing them.
It’s about time.
We can MoveOn now!
Apology or not …
If the head of the airport had heard about this as it was happening, and “crossed-lines” were in the way of the troops being welcomed inside, the head of the airport should have immediately rounded up airport staff and refreshments for the troops, PERSONALLY went down to the “quarantine” area where they were waiting and apologized for the messy situation … OH! and THANKED them for their service to our country. AND should have spent the time WAITING with them until their next flight.
Of course TSA was in on it. Power hungry bureaucrats that enjoy demeaning Americans and kissing the enemy hello.
Exactly. When are the people in the Bay Area going to realize this? Or better yet, the democratic party?
Al Anwa USA ( Saudi owned) & Omar Benjamin have some very bothersome ties to airlines and hotels. Especially now we know Omar Benjamin doesn’t like the US military….
I guess this confirms yesterday’s TSA declaration that this clusterfudge was solely the airport’s doing. The airport folks forthrightly lied about what actually went down.
I can’t imagine why anyone would now take Mr. Benjamin’s shallow apology seriously.
Are there consequences for dishonesty anymore? Mistakes will happen, but to lie - that calls for termination.
Hi everyone!!
I saw the same thing Paul (#17), Leepro (#18), and TJ Green (#38) saw right away - this wasn’t an apology at all. If it was an apology they would have never used words like “may have” or “perception”.
I’ve been in a situation before where I was specifically and directly ordered to do something in no uncertain terms, (At the time I was working security and I was told to do it or be fired) - when I followed orders, I explained to the people who were involved that it wasn’t my decision but I had no choice.They reported it to their boss, who in turn contacted the head of the security department, who in turn had a little “discussion” with the man who had given me the orders in the first place.
When I came in that night for work, I was directed to the main security office where the man who gave me the orders put all the blame on me for “not understanding him clearly”. His partner later caught up with me while I was doing a security check and explained to me what had happened and that it was as much of an apology as I could expect from the guy because he was a jerk.
At this point I would keep close scrutiny on the airport to see how they treat the military from now on. They shouldn’t be allowed a 3rd chance.
I’m rather tired of giving them the benefit of the doubt, and frankly, with a name like Omar…
and NOBODY discussed things with the troops and came back in and made phone calls to find a way to make them as comfortable as possible - no red carpet for troops returning from Iraq?
I ain’t got any benefit of the doubt left for Oakland/San Fransisco Liberals.
I’m just disgusted!
Someone take those officials out to a chainlink fenced piece of tarmac and let them cool their heels in September for 6-8 hours.
THEN we’ll talk about benefits of the doubt!
Nah feebie, I don’t hate anybody. Life’s way too short to waste time on that.
I wasn’t really saying there aren’t nutjobs in the Bay Area, and I’m sure there are in fact nutjobs who act in a disrespectful manner toward military personnel. I’m simply saying that I don’t see very much open hostility directed at the troops among the very, very large number of people in this country who want to end the occupation in Iraq. In fact, almost all of them go out of their way to praise the troops and commend them for doing their jobs before bashing Bush and his policies. I think folks are seeing more than is there, that’s all. Also, I’m not going to defend colleges prohibiting military recruiters from coming on campus, but that’s almost always about the “gay thing” and is typically not intended to be some sort of slight against the troops…at least that’s been my observation. I think it’s silly, but again, I try to look beyond the knee-jerk rhetoric when it comes to stuff like this.
When this war on terror began- I vowed that if I EVER saw a soldier assaulted by being spit upon- I would perform a citizen’s arrest!
Money talks. How about a boycott of the Bay area? They wouldn’t let the Marines film an ad there. They tried to stop the Blue Angels from flying there! etc.
I guess hitting them in the pocketbook is almost as good as an arrest.
There was a time when I lived in Commie California. A place infested with out of touch politicians, movie stars who make money off of glamorizing soldiers and then stabbing them in the back with their political stunts and games. Yes, such a glamorous place to live some think. Well I guess not is all bad in California but when I left I never looked back.
From my point of view - I would never accept their hollow apology. They just want to save face. If our society has to raise the issue just to have our soldiers be treated with common respect and decency it proves that we have large issues to overcome.
There is no excuse for these sort of embarrasing and shameful acts. Someone should lose their job over this if you ask me.
Wasn’t there someone who had commented that since Michelle had only reported about this based on an e-mail, she must have been lying and thus this event never took place and was just another “Right-Wing lie”? I guess that will be yet another well deserved apology from a Lib that she and the rest of us will never receive…not that they would admit to ever doing it in the first place.
RetFireman
It went a bit further than that. There was an entire Kos Diary on the issue. As usual, they lied and then backtracked and then deleted. The left is the new McCarthyist. Kos, Media Matters are supported and financed by Hillary. She is a loon. A total moonbat.
As a marine who was called baby killer
and spit at in san francisco airport
in 1968 it appears that things have not
changed much in the bay area!!
This was just another typical Left Coast swipe at the men and women in uniform. To say that the airport didn’t do this on purpose is ludicrous at best, especially given that tactics like this are well-documented in areas controlled by the loony left. The non-apology was an insult, not a contrition, and it only serves to prove my point.
The airport knew what they were doing, plain and simple, and as such, have besmirched anyone who has ever honorably worn a uniform.
There’s no doubt in my mind that the Airport Authority purposefully left those troops on the tarmac out of disrepect. I don’t buy the non-apology apology either. That’s just damage control. The lunatic left-coast has a well earned track record of disrespecting our troops. If I were in charge of transportation, I wouldn’t even let our troops layover in California.
The only thing sterile is Omar’s brain.
A 5 year child apologizes with more sincerity then Omar Benjamin did.
I’m with you, Ombre Rose!
What’s done is done. They can’t take it back. While I am sure the “apology” may be comforting to some, it is simply not enough for me. Our troops are risking their lives and when they arrive home, they are treated like excess cargo.
Our troops deserve better. Upon the next arrival of a group of troops at Oakland Int’l they had better roll out the red carpet and I am not talking about giving them an extra packet of peanuts either!
Yes, this is an unfortunate event which should never have occured. However, why isn’t there more outrage that we are paying Blackwater for its private security forces about 6 times more than we pay to our own fighting soldiers, many of who’s families are having financial difficulties while they are defending us? This is a true injustice.
Les,
Michelle’s posts cover those stories that aren’t covered by the MSM.
Non-apology apologies aside, this speaks more to the general mindset of the left coast.
It’s not so much that it was deliberate bias against our troops (which I strongly suspect that it was), but just as much that they even thought corralling human beings on the tarmac was appropriate in any way at all.
The existence of military uniforms just blinded these people entirely to our troops’ humanity and their right to be treated as well, if not immensely better, than the worst of criminals!
If these men and women had been maximum-security prisoners, they’d have been treated better, because they are human beings. If they had been illegal immigrants, they would have been (and routinely have been) treated better, because they are human beings.
But no, these men and women had the nerve to serve in the military and wear the uniform, so, in the minds of the left-coasters, they are less worthy than criminals to be treated with human dignity, let alone any respect for the sacrifices they have made for this great nation….ironically, the same great nation that protects the rights of these a**holes to treat our servicemen and servicewomen with such blatant and arrogant disrespect.
Shame on them.
30pcs, I’m not seeing alot of stories about the pay differential in the MSM. Are you? Sure some of those housing foreclosures are military. Has that been reported?
Les, what are you suggesting?
30pcs, what I’m suggesting is that there is a corporation that is making hundreds of millions of dollars by the government paying them six times more for their employees than we pay the soldiers. Yes, it may have been reported in the MSM as an offshoot of the recent hearings, but are you seeing any outrange over the pay inequity in either the MSM, liberal media, conservative media, on this site, or others. I don’t. Yet there is alot of outrange over the airport incident in CA. I’m sure if you ask any of the soldiers, they would rather be paid like we’re paying Blackwater, than get a red carpet welcome (other than by their own family members) at some airport.
les:
The disparity between pay rates is just another instance of proof that the free market works waaaaay better than government regulations.
Yes, it is unfortunate, but if the government would spend less money paying an IRS secretary with only 8-months experience $18 an hour to shuffle papers from pile to pile, they might have more money to pay our valiant heroes.
les, all I have to ask is one soldier, preferably the one who brought this incident at Oakland airport to the forefront in the first place.
Secondly, is it coverage of the story or more money for our troops that you want?
Exit questions: Why do you think the government is willing to pay Blackwater the amount of money they do, what services do they provide? Surely, it isn’t because you feel the government cares nothing for our troops and/or their families, right?
I don’t see ownership here. I see “but the TSA was involved, too.” It reminds me a lot of when my four year-old comes in and says “…I threw sand inside the car but my friend Paul did it, too.”
It’s still wrong. Let Paul hold his own press conference for himself. You own what you did.
Say it like this: “We made mistakes. We apologize. We respect the sacrifice of our armed forces men and women. Period. Any questions?”
30 pcs, I’m not implying that the government (Rep, Dem, Indep, whatever) doesn’t care about the troops. I’d like to see more coverage of the story including an analysis of why we pay them so much more for their employees in Iraq. And if the analysis is that the function is worth X$’s in the marketplace, than we should be paying the soldiers equally. My exit question to you, are you suggesting their employees provide a more valuable service there than the soldiers? Is a soldier in harms way worth the same as a civilian sub contractor in harms way?
“perception of disrespect”, time-dishonored weasel words.
“I am sorry that you interpreted what I said in a manner that I did not intend.”
In other words, it is not what I said that is at fault, but how you interpreted it. I did nothing wrong. The blame is with you. I did not disrespect you. It just seemed that way to you because you were ignorant of the facts.
What’s wrong with “I am personally ashamed of the treatment these soldiers received.”?
Blackwater provides security to dignitaries and members of Congress when they see fit to travel abroad.
Our troops are fighting a war and kicking a$$ and I support them wholeheartedly.
When our troops come home they should be treated like the heroes that they are, period. That’s what this thread is about.
Next question.
30 pcs, what we pay the troops is very relevant to how we treat them. So what if the Blackwater folks are protecting visiting VIP’s rather than fighting terrorist. At the end of the day, they are all in a very dangerious situation, with the soldiers probably be in the most dangerious. I’m just amazed that everyone can get enraged about a slight at an airport, but I’m the only one bother that these guys are getting the shaft in the pay department. And that my tax dollars are making alot of executives at Blackwater mulitmillionaires.
Military pay has always sucked, and still sucks, and always will suck, but the benefits rock!
When people put their ass on the line for money, they expect to be well-paid. When they do it for duty, honor and obligation, the money is not their primary concern. Just remember that those Blackwater guys worked for years for a pittance to get where they are. They also keep a lot of GI’s from getting shot up or killed by guarding the VIPs.
Immolate - over 3800 American soldiers have been killed in Iraq as of today. And how many private security contractors? Doesn’t look to me like “they also keep a lot of GI’s from getting shot up or killed by guarding the VIP’s”.
Another bogus “apology”. i.e. If *YOU* were offended, we apologize.
Why can’t people just say it? “We apologize. You experienced discomfort and were shown disrespect. For that we are sorry.”
les, you simply could have asked Michelle to look into this for you. As they say “you get more with sugar than you do with salt.” Translation: just ask and be nice about it.
You take our silence on the subject to mean that it is only you who cares…how unfair and incorrect is that?
Again, this thread is not about Blackwater, so until it is, I digress.