I'm not sure what to make of the "3 Aug 2009" and the "Today, 4 Aug." references since those dates have not yet occurred.
Why are you complaining about the airline when the fault lies clearly with your credit union? They did not process the charge correctly. What was Northwest to do? Just go ahead and issue tickets without receiving authorization from your bank that the card was valid and there were sufficient funds? You should call your C.U. and tell them that their system breakdown resulted in an added $20 fee to complete your ticket transaction. Usually the airline will charge this as a separate item so your bank will clearly see this on your account activity.
I'm not even going to comment on your subsequent tirade about fees. Okay, yes I am but be forewarned your not going to like what I'm going to say.
The reality of airline travel today is that these ancillary fees are here to stay. They're not going to go away because they all, with the exception of Southwest (and they won't hold out much longer...their Pres./CEO stated he might consider additional fees during their Q2 results conference last week...say tuned!) charge fees for various services and no amount of negative posts on the internet or word of mouth is going to sway the majority of travelers' buying decision when it comes to fees.
Furthermore I'm not sure how you make the leap from fees to discrimination. Tell me please why, for instance, you feel that the elderly are unfairly impacted? Carry-on bags can be stored under the seat as well. It doesn't necessarily need to go in the overhead bin and I think there would be at least one decent fellow passenger who would help if they saw an elderly person struggling. Persons with disabilities and children traveling alone are given assistance. And your assumption about internet access is not entirely accurate either. Many "seniors" are embracing technology. I get a good laugh about my parents because they'll trade stock and shop online but still sit down and write checks out and affix stamps to envelopes to pay bills! They do, however, use online check-in and book the majority of their travel online.
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