Making a mess of boarding airline flights

We don't know about you, but one of our least-favorite aspects of airline flights these days is the boarding process, depending on the airline. Southwest's traditional method -- no reserved seats, board in check-in order unless you paid a lot or fly a lot -- may be a cattle call to critics but still seems to be the simplest and least hassle-free. This front-page New York Times story really struck a chord because it accurately describes how different airlines try different methods, giving priority to frequent-fliers, certain credit-card holders, those who pay extra for the best seats or who knows what -- and then create a scramble for overhead bin space for the poor schmucks without special status. Read it here and marvel once more about the joys of air travel.