All of a sudden the airlines want to be less dickish...

As mentioned before, my airlines indicator has tripped.  Normally dickish airlines who put in all kinds of shitty rules that require constant consumption in order to maintain status and to keep frequent flier miles are all changing their tune.  Somehow it used to be OK to have your miles expire unless you spent money on flights each year, but now that business is slowing way down, all of a sudden they want to act like keeping frequent flier points is a human right or something.

Yup, we the airlines now suddenly have concluded that the points you earned by sitting in our ridiculously small punishment seats and waiting in our abusive lines really should be yours to keep forever.  At least we think that should be the case beginning Oct 17th.  Before that we think that business was so good that we didn't give a flying fuck what you thought.  We took your miles like it was nothing and unless you had double-uber-platinum-globetrotter status it meant pretty much nothing in practical reality.  Award travel was a joke, never available for you who only have gold status or less.  We're sorry, really.  No, really, we are sorry!!  Please fly more often because, really, really this time, we have learned the error of our ways.

Right up until the next time business picks up again...