Steven Slater went from being fed up to becoming famous. He gained a lot of attention – and criminal charges – for the way he quit his job as a JetBlue Airways flight attendant.
Should he get a reality show gig? Time in jail? To some, Slater has become a sort of cult hero, someone representing the frustrations they have with their own jobs and embodying a secret desire to quit in a flourish.

“Fan pages were set up for him on Facebook, as well as a legal defense fund. As of Wednesday there were well over 137,000 people on the fan page. His response was very over the top, yet people are cheering for him. Why? Because there are a lot of people who are frustrated with their jobs or someone in their lives and relate to how he felt,” wrote self-empowerment counselor Daylle Deanna Schwartz recently in her “Lessons from a Recovering Doormat” Beliefnet blog.
“In my opinion, Stephen Slater is not a hero. He’s just a guy who lost control and shouldn’t have — no matter how obnoxious any particular passenger was or wasn’t. He may be a good person — but his dysfunctional behavior should not catapult him to stardom,” wrote John W. Kennedy in a recent entry on his “Catholics, Media and Culture” Beliefnet blog.
What do you think of Steven Slater? Join fellow Beliefnet members who share strategies and techniques on How to Stress Less. Or share some of your travel experiences and join a discussion based on a survey of some of the so-called worst airports.