When airlines were deregulated in the 1970s, the average price of a ticket was $135. Three decades later, the average price is $275, there are twice as many in-air collisions, fliers in small markets are at the mercy of predatory carriers, and air rage is at an all-time high. It is time to re-regulate the air travel industry. All of the following statements, if true, weaken the above argument except for which statement?
A.
Because of inflation, a $275 ticket today is actually 10 to 20 percent less expensive than a $135 ticket was in 1975.
B.
Deregulation has increased the choices available to fliers in terms of both time of flight and carrier.
C.
Airlines are currently flying more than five times as many passenger miles per year as they did in 1975.
D.
Compared with passengers in large urban areas, passengers in small markets pay, on average, twice as much per mile flown on domestic flights because their airports are generally served by fewer airlines.
E.
Psychologists have been able to determine no connection between the deregulation of the airline industry and the onset of increased levels of air rage.