nliedel said:
I once had to ride 5 hours in a plane with a toddler kicking my seat. When I politly explained to the mother he was hurting me she told him to "kick the B**** harder". I was appalled.
What a terrible response for the mother to have! That is completely unacceptable. That said, I do fly with carseats for my little ones, as it is just not safe for them to use seats designed for adults. Unfortunately that puts them in way to close of proximity to the seat in front. Months before our trip, I begin buying little toys to keep my children's interest and divert them from the seat in front. Once in awhile, I am unsuccessful (usually for a very brief period and then they are diverted again). I usually worry that my son will decide to kick the poor person in front of him (we're flying in November and I've already started to worry) and I'm willing to do anything in my power to make him stop, except take him out of the careseat! If I'm flying with another adult, I'm willing to have them (or me) move in front of the carseat, so that they will take the kicking, or if there is another area that I can move to in the back of the plane, I will move. However, in the long run, my child does deserve to be equally safe in the plane. But I would be very courteous and go out of my way to stop the kicking!
Back to the original topic though, I fly alot for work and have been in coach class of most major airlines (both small and large planes). I almost always end up reclining the seat for the duration of the flight, I don't think I could function if I had to sit up straight! For this reason, I usually avoid emergency exit rows. I would expect (and encourage) the passengers in front of me to recline their seats. I often work with my laptop, and I haven't had a problem yet. However, if I did need to share my monitor, that could pose a problem because most laptop and portable dvd screens can be really hard to see at certain angles. Personally if it bothered me, I'd sit in the row right behind the emergency exit row (in some planes, these can't recline) or I'd sit in the front (bulkhead) seats (no seat in front to recline).
I just can't see how reclining an airplane seat that is meant to be reclined can be compared to passing gas or changing diapers in the airplane cabin! Car seats are designed to recline when the vehicle is off! By all means, recline your seat into my space when I am a back seat passenger in your car, but don't expect me to car pool with you any longer! That is your right and your car. On the plane, that is my space and my right. I paid for the seat with the recline! (But if someone has obvious physical limitations or asks me not to recline the seat because it is giving them discomfort, I'll probably oblige. It is not in my nature to try to be a pain!
Just my 2 cents worth!
