Sadly I have to agree with a lot of these posts. The rights or wrongs of Mr Ashworth aside, too many people in the airline industry see passengers as irritating inconveniences that simply get in the way of their important job of flying aeroplanes!
Air travel is in no danger of extinction, but there are some lean years ahead and I think there needs to be a serious change in attitude if things are going to get better.
I wonder if the pilots who are crying for the blood of people like Mr Ashworth have the same attitude when it comes to reports of pilots who make smartass remarks to ATC or ground controllers? It's the same situation in my book; it's a serious business that, in the strictest terms, leaves no room for horseplay. However, it's rare that a pilot will get locked up for cracking a joke over the VHF, or indeed making a humorous remark over the cabin intercom. But then, the pilots are important respected pillars of the community whereas the passengers are just the cattle who pay their wages.
A bit of common sense is what is needed instead of knee-jerk reactions. Someone recently coined the phrase "emotional correctness" to describe a phenomenon which is currently on the increase. In short, it's social pressure to conform to an emotional state, be it outrage at one thing or sensitivity towards something else. What I think the airline industry is going through at the moment is as serious case of EC!