jclark- Whitney easily qualifies as high altitude mountaineering. The Alps, where Alpine climbing got started, have few mountains much taller than Whitney. More to the point, people have died from HACE and HAPE at and even below 14,000 feet. As for glissading not being dangerous, one person already died on Whitney this year glissading. Many people break ankles glissading every year, which is a big deal when you are several hours hiking/climbing time from the base of the mountain. Obviously Whitney can be climbed safely by people with minimal skill or experience and is done so every day in the summer, but you shouldn't trivialize the risks.
