Discussion for article #226928
This story just says it all.
Everything you need to know about the present-day American public is in there.
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The guy was a major league jerk.
By the way I just few on one of those economy plus seats. It was considered an upgrade. I am glad I didn’t pay extra for it. Not really bigger than the economy seats in the back of the plane and the extra legroom was hard to find. Of course the seat was proudly emblazoned that it was an upgrade.
I am 6’2". It is actually painful when someone slams their seat back in front of me. There is no place for my legs to go. I have found that if I ask the person to give me break, most of the time they will. Really considerate people will look back before reclining. I don’t think this says bad things about Americans. I think it says bad things about corporate greed.
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What a peculiar photo choice.
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Same here, 6’2" and it is just not acceptable to have someone in my lap. Frankly this story disturbs me a bit as I had always assumed that if I got a flight attendant involved they would ask the person in front to put their seat back up if it was in my lap. Good to know I am on my own. I guess fake coughing fits that drive my knees into the back of the chair and make the person concerned they are getting SARS coughed on them for the win!
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I have never asked a flight attendant for assistance. Knees in the back, which is unavoidable for me, often works.
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See, this is why guns should be allowed on planes.
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Tough to spot the asshole here, both of them deserve the title. I’d like to include the writer in that as well: " Airline passengers have come to expect a tiny escape from the confined
space of today’s packed planes: the ability to recline their seat a few inches."
I think he has this a little backwards, reclining your seat restricts the space for the person behind you it doesn’t really increase your space, not where it matters anyway.
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Totally agree. It’s bad enough flying coach without having someone’s head in your lap. I don’t recline my seat and it’s been my experience that most other people don’t either. But these two jerks could have avoided conflict by discussing the problem. “If you recline your seat, I won’t be able to finish this report that needs to be completed before we land. Can I buy you a drink to compensate?” On airplanes, we’re all in this misery together.
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Very bad choice of the photo accompanying the article!
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If we outlaw Knee Defenders, only outlaw terrists will have Knee Defenders!
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Seatbacks have reclined for ages. What has changed is that airlines now have the rows crammed so close together that they can now charge people extra to get the “extra” row spacing that used to be standard.
But, if you complain enough, the airlines will respond. Unfortunately, the response will be to designate passengers over 5’11" as oversize and to require them to purchase a premium seat.
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You have got to be a real jerk to actually BUY a device to deny another person their rightful amount of space on a plane.
I’m with the water tosser.
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That’s not how I see it - the seats have that range of motion for a reason. People that try to turn an airplane into their personal office are the main problem - the tray is not your goddamn desk.
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Childish jerk. Most people are considerate and will meet you half way.
I am 6’4" (beat you!) and there’s not enough leg room anywhere. When I fly, domestic or international, I just plan to be cramped and to sit bow-legged. It’s not comfortable, but I haven’t convinced any airline to install seats that are 4" taller as well as have more leg room. They tell me that is called a throne and I would need my own plane for that.
Also, I find Southwest has at least 2" more leg room in economy than United.
The seats have range of motion because they were designed before the airlines moved things around to give you a thirty inch pitch. People who insist on their absolute right to recline are generally the kind of assholes who also shift and buck in their seats incessantly, and, in general, have absolutely no awareness that anyone else in the world exists – or if something forces that awareness into their consciousness, they don’t care. I’m with the guy with the seat lock. Sick of children with the privileges of adults victimizing everyone around them.
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If I need to be able to use a laptop on an airplane, I pay for an “extra legroom” upgrade seat. It takes a real jerk to think that it is someone other passenger’s responsibility to give him a few more inches that did NOT come with his ticket & that he could have purchased.
I’m 6’ 3" and even in an extra legroom seat, using a laptop is tough. In a regular seat, just sitting is tough. Eventually I’ll deal with the former problem by getting a tablet or a two-in-one (works as laptop with keyboard or tablet).
As for the woman who threw water at him, I’m guessing there were some stages in between that they didn’t report. I’m not prepared to criticize her without knowing the rest of the story.
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I’m 6’5" (winning here) and the assholes are the airline companies who have crammed seats so close together that knees bump up against the seat in front. It is actually physically painful if the person in front of me moves their seat back without me realizing.
It is everybody’s responsibility on the plane to be polite to one another, which includes taking into account the physical needs of those you’re in contact with (indirectly through your seat).
I have not found stewardesses to be helpful. I’m also broad shouldered and on some planes, my shoulder will be slightly in the aisle. I’ve had stewardesses ram carts into me and when I ask them to please warn me they tell me I need to not be in the aisle. When I point out that I’m sitting up straight in my seat (if they give me the courtesy and don’t just walk away), they usually roll their eyes and tell me to watch out for myself.
I’ve never had these problems on Amtrak, which is one of the reasons I’m all for national high speed rail.
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I side with the recliner. You don’t need to work on your laptop. If you don’t fit in the seat, don’t fly or buy first class. No one needs to fly.