Thank you very much for the responses - sorry not to return before, but my computer crashed - almost terminally! (perhaps it had had one too many?)
It's a fascinating subject isn't it? What does seem clear is that we are actually on the same side after all - and that we do care about matters like this. Being a Training Capt for most of my career, I have never understood why there isn't much job-experience swapping - you on my jumpseat and me coming along with you for a day now and again - the eye-opening factor would go up a treat methinks! My daughter is 'temping' at the moment at the gate, and the stories of how you guys are spoken to by our mutual clients has been highly revealing.
Surelynot, I'm scheduled - and the worst experience of drunks I've had was a bunch of Junior Doctors on a boys trip to AMS who junked the aeroplane. They went home by ferry though!