Southwest fined over safety infractions

One of Clark's girlfriends -- Southwest Airlines -- has strayed from her ethical behavior. The nation's largest domestic air carrier had people playing it cute with aircraft maintenance and there's no excuse for it. Southwest flew planes without properly testing them for airworthiness. Former FAA employees employed by Southwest weren't living up to the rules of inspection and the whistle got blown. The airline has now been fined $10 million, but that's nothing compared with the damage to its reputation. The reality is that Southwest will probably bounce back as a safety beacon now that it's under a microscope. The CEO has managed the situation well, but the scenario still leaves a stain behind. As an aside, Clark realizes he could never run an airline; people would assume that he'd want to cut corners on safety like Southwest because he's so cheap!

Southwest's legacy includes being one of the first airlines to prompt deregulation and create a marketplace where everyone can fly instead of just the wealthy. The result is that travel is not the joyful experience it once was. Clark is celebrating his 10th anniversary at Milwaukee affiliate WTMJ today and getting there was not a fun experience. Clark and his executive producer Christa had to wait forever to go through security and the TSA employees treated people like cattle. It just solidified in Clark's mind why airport security should be privatized.