Kurt Reymer likens business class lounges to "spas". Perhaps once, and yes, still in comparison to sitting by the gate. But it is more Holiday Inn vs Motel 6, than Ritz-Carlton level. Most people in business class lounges are there because of deals their organizations have negotiated such privileges as part of their volume purchases of air travel. Kurt is right that class is analytically useful, but we have to specify which class. In class terms, the "road warriors" who use them are not upper elite, but upper middle class. They have no control over the means of production, but usually some control over the terms of production. They are often technicans, as well as professionals and managers. As business lounges have gotten broader in their clientele -- and not just elite -- they have changed. For one thing, they are pretty good on road warrior production amenities: printer, internet plug-ins, desks for PCs, lotsa phones. However, they provide much less reproduction/consumption amenities: rarely any food altho lotsa beverages; seats are not good; CNN blasts as irritatingly there as iin the main terminal. They are also not as well maintained as 5 years ago, in accord with the general decline in airline service. (My impressions come mostly from Air Canada, United, American and Lufthansa.) Kurt is also right that "road warrior" is a macho term (although I'd count Xenia in when she gets a laptop and 800 number;-)). It is clearly a marketing hype term that PC Magazine [and perhaps] others started using 5-7 years ago, originally with respect to people using laptops and their anciliaries. Barry ___________________________________________________________________ Barry Wellman Professor of Sociology NetLab Director wellman@chass.utoronto.ca http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~wellman Centre for Urban & Community Studies University of Toronto 455 Spadina Avenue Toronto Canada M5S 2G8 fax:+1-416-978-7162 ___________________________________________________________________