Appendix B. How to make a point

On my way home from Norway last June, I had a layover in Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C. With hours to kill, jet-lagged out of my mind, I sat in the only comfortable place I could find, a bench next to the United Airlines customer service desk. I couldn’t help but overhear the conversations taking place between irate passengers and the under-siege United Airlines service staff. Annoyed at first by the constant arguing, I soon found these dialogs fascinating. Every two minutes, another drama would play out—downtrodden passengers made their cases for something they didn’t have but wanted: upgrades, better seats, refunds, or meal vouchers. Sometimes they were simply trying, after long hours stuck in the airport, to get home. After hours of encounters, I recognized three ways people made their cases: