Earth Shaking Developments - or - whose "fault" is it, anyway?

What a morning! Things started shakin' in the wee hours with an earthquake in Illinois, of all places, that was felt in Chicago, Milwaukee and as far west as Des Moines, Iowa. Next, on my early rounds I discover that unleaded gas has surged to $3.45.9/gal. It now costs what was a whole week's stewardess pay in 1958 to fill the small gas tank on my PT Cruiser. Surely neither the Dalai Lama nor the Pope, both visitors to the US this week, would use their holy influence to visit this pestilence upon us -Tibetan agitators and predator priests notwithstanding.

No. I lay all "fault" at the feet of Northwest and Delta, for beginning this week with their announcement of a proposed merger to create THE BIGGEST AIRLINE IN THE WORLD.

Yesterday Delta CEO (and former Northwest CEO) Richard Anderson and Northwest CEO Doug Steenland attempted to reassure the locals that the Twin Cities will be "a very important hub" in the new airline. So what exactly does that mean? Mainly it means that these fellows hope Minnesota will not call the $245 million dollar loan which specifies that Northwest maintain its hub AND corporate headquarters in the Twin Cities, which they have no intention of doing.

This morning's earthquake may not have reached Minneapolis and St. Paul, but the airline merger is shaking things up well enough, thank you.