Woman lit cigarette on American Airlines flight is professor who wrote thesis on hysterical women!

Shouted her love for Chavez and accused Obama of murder on Tuesdays.

A woman who was arrested on an American Airlines flight after lighting a cigarette, blaming somebody else then ranting about Obama can be revealed as a Penn State professor of sociology.

Dr Karen Halnon, 52, who wrote her PhD thesis on hysterical women, was arrested on board the plane for disorderly conduct as it sat on the tarmac at Miami International Airport on Saturday.

She was caught on camera lighting up shortly after the flight had landed - but stubbed it out and thrust the butt into a seat pocket when flight attendants came over.

She then pointed at the man in a seat next to her when challenged over her behavior - before launching into a pro-communist rant attacking the United States for applying economic sanctions on Venezuela.

According to NBC, police were called aboard the flight, which had come from Nicaragua, and tried to calm her down, but were met with the response: 'F*** you. This is not a democracy'.

She teaches sociology at the school's Abington campus near Philadelphia, and has the rank of associate professor.

According to her faculty page she is an expert on capitalism, Latin America and mad women.

Dr Halnon was award her PhD from Boston College in 1995 with a thesis about treatments for women and hysteria.

She has two published books, and more than 25 journal articles to her name.

She also cited Hugo Chavez as a 'hero' of hers, and allegedly said that Obama 'kills people on Tuesdays'.

She shouted: 'The United States has declared war on Venezuela. Venezuela has been declared a national security threat.'

Flight attendants warned the woman that the police would be waiting for her once the plane landed if she didn't calm down, according to The Daily Dot.

Was she doing research for another thesis on hysterical women? LOL Woman, know thy subject matter! Apparently she was really knocking them back before she got on the plane and took some prescription meds to go with it. We all know that always mixes well. *Eye roll* Bartenders can cut you off before driving, why not with flying as well if this is how people are going to behave? Personally I'd have no problem with it. No more than 2 drinks before the flight, and one drink on the flight, or one drink before and 2 drinks on. Something to that effect. Flight attendants shouldn't have to take care of drunks. Especially belligerent ones who go psycho on you in the middle of the flight.

That was my first thought too!! Even if she wasn't,she is now. What a great way to keep her job.

originally posted by: Iamthatbish
That was my first thought too!! Even if she wasn't,she is now. What a great way to keep her job.

Just lie and say I'm doing research. LOL

Poor Venezuela, once there were weekly concorde flights to there, a beacon of peace and democracy, now its only mentioned in relation to crazy ranting women and lack of toilet paper.

By the other hand Penn State is also now forever related to child sex abuse and ranting crazy women.

Both should consider a change in name sometime in the future...

I blame Obama of the hardships Penn State and Venezuela endures, blaming Obama is the American thing to do

a reply to: Indigent

Why do we have to blame Obama for everything? He's just following orders.

So I guess she was writing from experience