Madam, - I read recently that Michael O'Leary, of Ryanair, is very concerned, on behalf of his Aberdeen Angus cows, at plans to site a renewable energy facility close to his farm in Westmeath.
As the parent of very young children I had thought we were treated like animals by Ryanair earlier this year. The scramble for seats by parents with young children (Ryanair doesn't give boarding priority to families with young children) was very distressing. Some children and parents did not sit together on what was a four-hour long flight.
I now realise I had a very grandiose idea of my family's status. Imagine I aspired to think that we and other families like ours were being treated like animals. Michael O'Leary has a much higher regard for animals. In my struggle to identify the next category down I wondered would sea slug count as a category. My concern again is that Michael O'Leary may empathise with sea slugs too and I despair at finding a category below this. Perhaps the next category down will simply have to be passenger. - Yours, etc,
MICHAEL AHERN,
Lucan, Co Dublin.