“…Discussing Babywise or the Preparation for Parenting series can result in conversations that range from slightly awkward to downright volatile. Dialoguing about parenting choices tends to lend itself to a posture of defensiveness for nearly all of us. How can we have peaceful, grace-filled conversations with others about a topic that is often a catalyst for divisiveness?…”

“As Bill Clinton crisscrosses America defending his wife’s candidacy, he’s fuel ing speculation about who’d be in charge should Hillary be elected. Sen. Clinton – the incredible shrinking candidate – seems at times almost a bystander at her husband’s campaign, merely playing a somewhat more active role than she did in ’92…

“…Now, Bill’s oversized presence on the national stage raises an even more profound question: Is he using his wife’s candidacy to seek a third term in office, prohibited him by the 22nd Amendment?”

Finally, there is scientific proof of what true believers have known for ages: total human depravity is genetic, passed down from the one responsible for it, our forefather Adam. This genetic disease affects all of us, and it is terminal. The good news is, there’s a cure.

I took the internet poll on the side of the page, and at least when I took it, the responses were three-to-one in favor of the airline’s response in this case.

The kid throws a tantrum and won’t be pacified, delaying the plane’s takeoff by 15 minutes, and the airline gets the family off the plane for the sake of the rest of the plane’s passengers. A reasonable person on the receiving end of that might be given pause by the situation, right? And it’s not like the airline didn’t make it worth their while, though, as a sort of consolation:

AirTran reimbursed the Kuleszas the cost of the tickets, $598.80 and offered the family three free roundtrip business class tickets to anywhere the airline flies for their trouble.

Okay, some inconvenience, but overall not too bad, especially considering that they had family in town. A bad day made right, right? Not exactly:

The Kuleszas did not accept the ticket offer and say they feel humiliated and they don’t appreciate the fact they were left stranded in Florida without their luggage, which had not been kicked off the flight and went to Boston without them.

“They also told us because we were removed from the plane we couldn’t fly for another 24 hours and meanwhile our luggage and her carseat were headed back to Boston and we’re stranded with nothing,” said Gerald Kulesza…

“…We’re humiliated, humiliated. Being asked to be removed from a plane because of a three-year-old. Humiliated,” said Julie Kulesza. Gerald Kulesza says the family will never fly AirTran again.

And with that we can see why their three-year-old daughter was having such an uncontrollable tantrum in the first place: she learned that it was acceptable from her parents.

UPDATE 01/26/07: …and once again the NYT is proven to be hopelessly biased, twisting the data beyond all recognition.