@ Frank

I HAVE PAID for 1st Class.
I have also been upgraded to 1st Class for free once.
I have flown 1st class 6 times in my life, and business class three times.

Each time I've been in 1st class I've enjoyed it immensely.
However, the entire flight, I didn't spend one second considering how or why anyone else was there or got there. I was there, I enjoyed my flight. I really don't pay much attention to people who sit across the aisle from me. If they're not interested in having a conversation or even if they are, I don't care who they are, what they do, or how they got the seat they did. They can tell me and I can tell them about me, but as soon as the flights over, I don't give a darn.

Not only is the likelihood of me finding out if the other person got in for free next to nothing, but if I did find out I paid for it and they didn't, the only real response I could have would be, "good for them."

Your argument is comparable to complaining that it's not fair that some people win the lottery and some people have to earn money. Sucks that it wasn't you, but why should you be mad at them?

Ever get a hotel room upgrade? Wasn't it great?. Car rental upgrade? Same thing. Ever get a free desert at a restaurant cause the waiter screwed up your order or spilled a drink? What about great seats at a sporting event because it was undersold? All the same type of thing.

It's called customer service. If the customer has a valid claim to some injustice or special need and the upgrade is available, there is no reason to deny it. The corporate offices know this, the reservation agents know this, the only real dunder head, stickler, nazi-strict, nay-sayers are the flight attendants who get off on the power they are suddenly given.

You are right it is a product people pay for... with a heavily marked up ticket value. So if someone got it on the cheap or free and I found out, only words that come to my mind are, "Lucky" and "good for them".

Just seems like you are trying to be some great defender of the Airline company. What would it ever hurt to discreetly give someone a 1st Class upgrade?

Here's what I hate: Petty flight attendants who suddenly are given a small inkling power and make it their duty to protect the great company they work for.

Not saying that you should upgrade everyone, but seriously, how would you get in trouble? What would it hurt?

Wish we could go back to the 60's and 70's when flight attendants were good looking young folks with great personalities.

Idiots... NO FREAKIN' WAY IT"S a BACKUP CAM.
Reasons it's not a backup cam:
1) Cut plastic around the camera indicates this is interior.
2) The cut plastic is interior color.
3) Prius backup cam would be housed weather proof, like the current one, cause it's outdoors... so NO BIG HOLES for water to get into.
4) Current Prius includes backup cam standard already... why would they leak pics of it... they recently leaked some switch that looked like a sunroof control... that's new and worth leaking.

Best Guesses:
1) Night vision H.U.D. like the Cadi's had.
2) Projected speedometer H.U.D.

New interior SUCKS!! Looks like a cheap ass version of a Lexus RX interior.

I liked the Spartan/ipod/spaceship look of the last model's interior. Less buttons, hidden gear shift, more touch screen... simple, clean, nice, not car like. It gave you the impression of "This is the future of automobiles".

If I wanted a gear shift I would buy something I wanted to change gears with... like a manual transmission.

This new interior is like any other Toyota interior... Other than fuel economy it looks as futuristic as a Corolla. BOO ON YOU Toyota.

What's the deal with Japanese always making receivers in Gold or Black? And then only offering the US Silver or Black?

Akihabara is jammed with gold receivers from every manufacturer from Aiwa to Zenith... All kidding aside, Sony, Pioneer, Panasonic, Onkyo, Dennon all have gold models in Japan... What's the deal?

Seriously, what other A/V equipment does gold match with?

BULLSHIT!
I'm a 26 year old straight former frat boy male. I drive a prius, wouldn't be caught dead at a political march or benefit, loves catchin me some tail, and most people I know would agree that I have a knack for pissing people off by saying completely insensitive/ politically incorrect things.

I drive the car cause it's roomy like a camry, priced and equiped like a civic, gets the MPG of a mini.

As a side bonus it's good for the environment, but for the most part... on my budget, having to pay for a car is enough, I definitely don't need the added gas payments... and 400 miles off a 10 gallon tank is sweet.

I also live in LA, so they are more prevalent than wherever Dr. Ofidontknowat comes from.

Favorite scene: The 1st time the persians attack... they come running towards the spartan scattered running as hard and as fast as they can waving weapons. The Spartans stand straight, tall and remain calm. King Leonidis shouts something... "SPARTANS ???!" All the Spartans at once change their stance to a defensive battle position and respond with a loud grunt, "HURRRR" perfect formation, ready for war.

Freakin' fantastic.

300 WAS AWESOME!! THIS IS AN ACTION MOVIE.

On a side note, how is Flags of our Fathers even comparable? Flags is a wartime drama that takes a serious look at the true story of the heroes of Iwo Jima. 300 is a fictionalized story of the battle of Thermopolye or however you spell it. In any event, no one know what happened for certain in the Spartan battle, but people can accurately recall Iwo Jima, they lived it. It's like comparing Animal House to School Ties because they're both about frat boys.

Furthermore, Flags was poorly told, Band of Brothers was beter and it was on a TV budget. Acting and casting in flags was plastic and plain, Directing was flat and evoked little emotion, editing was confusing as we were shot back and forth between 3 periods: present, past, and little more in the past, and overall the experience was week. I have yet to see Letters to Iwo Jima, but have heard it was much much better.

300's 1-sheet sets up the movie perfectly... "PREPARE FOR GLORY". You go in their, knowing that you want to see some serious ass kicking, not only are you given what you paid for, but as reviewed above it's candy coated with beautiful cinematography, tight editing, a linear story line, and actors who actually look like comic book heroes are supposed to. Not only that, but they are believable as COMIC BOOK spartan soldiers.

My point here is, these movies are Apples and Oranges. Quit being a deusche and stop comparing a campy Saving Private Ryan knock off to a bloody combination of He-Man and Gladiator. Yes they are war films, no they are not comparable.

300 revs you up and gets your heart rate pumping... like listening to Metallica - Enter Sandman.

Flags of our Fathers is supposed to make you think... I think... it's kind of like listening to a female lounge singer in Atlantic City do her rendition of the Beatles Imagine.

All I'm trying to find out is the fellow's name on first base.

Who.

How come future car designers can never design a good looking car of the future? These are butt. Not only that, but I could never imagine being able to see cars next to or behind me in any of the models... And we wonder why car companies loose so much money... maybe try hiring someone who didn't major in watching star trek with a degree from Lincoln Tech. Idiots.