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Consolidated thread: Seat recline etiquette.

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Consolidated thread: Seat recline etiquette.

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Old Jan 9, 2013, 12:44 pm
  #91  
 
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Oh except the question about the back of the D row. The issue with that seat having limited recline is a published fact. If you buy that seat, you accept the fact that it has no recline. There. All questions answered.
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 12:51 pm
  #92  
 
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Originally Posted by SeriouslyLost
I'm honestly amazed at the selfishness and one-directional nature some of you think "rights" go. It's all about reasonable compromise with your fellow passengers. The immediate snideness of the replies is disappointing.
I think it's jealousy - perhaps some of the most vitriolic posters have never got over failing to make the basketball team...

PS I'm quite exceptionally short.
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 12:59 pm
  #93  
 
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Originally Posted by Triceratops
I think it's jealousy - perhaps some of the most vitriolic posters have never got over failing to make the basketball team...

PS I'm quite exceptionally short.
So maybe you could be a great wrestler.

It's just that I'm tired of people who want to impose their personal issues on everyone else like they have a RIGHT to do it. Overweight, smoking, peanut allergy, vegan diet, now tallness, whatever... everyone has something.

Play the cards you're dealt.

...or jockey, if you're that short.
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 1:03 pm
  #94  
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Let's just re-cap for those late to the thread:

If TomA buys a seat he has an absolute right to do whatever he pleases with it within it's limits because he paid for it. That right isn't the same for anyone else though. He has the right to cause actual pain and discomfort to others and has no responsibility, shared or otherwise, despite being in a shared situation. Convserely, other passengers, despite having also paid for their seats, have no right to get up out of their seats (in order to avoid said pain & discomfort) if that might cause any discomfort to TomA reclinging. He also has the right to endanger other people's safety and life by doing as he likes with the seat during taxi and takeoff because, well, he paid for his seat and that's all that matters. FAA regulations don't trump his right to comfort during taxi and takeoff. He must be right because a majority of people agreed with him and mob rule is how you decide things and besides if you just keep repeating yourself then you must be answering questions and "discussing" something. If I don't like having less space then I should have bought an Amtrak ticket for my flight to China.

Did I miss anything, Tom?
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 1:04 pm
  #95  
 
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Why is it always those who want to impose on a stranger by taking away part of their seat are the ones who call others selfish? That never ceases to amaze me in threads like these.
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 1:07 pm
  #96  
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Originally Posted by Triceratops
I think it's jealousy - perhaps some of the most vitriolic posters have never got over failing to make the basketball team...
If they start doing lay ups in the seat I actually will get upset.


PS I'm quite exceptionally short.
Want to fly in the seat in front of me? I go to an interesting range of places where not everyone is trying to shoot at me.
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 1:09 pm
  #97  
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Originally Posted by hedur
Why is it always those who want to impose on a stranger by taking away part of their seat are the ones who call others selfish? That never ceases to amaze me in threads like these.
Didn't you hear? They paid for their seat.
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 1:18 pm
  #98  
 
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Originally Posted by SeriouslyLost
Let's just re-cap for those late to the thread:

If TomA buys a seat he has an absolute right to do whatever he pleases with it within it's limits because he paid for it. That right isn't the same for anyone else though. He has the right to cause actual pain and discomfort to others and has no responsibility, shared or otherwise, despite being in a shared situation. Convserely, other passengers, despite having also paid for their seats, have no right to get up out of their seats (in order to avoid said pain & discomfort) if that might cause any discomfort to TomA reclinging. He also has the right to endanger other people's safety and life by doing as he likes with the seat during taxi and takeoff because, well, he paid for his seat and that's all that matters. FAA regulations don't trump his right to comfort during taxi and takeoff. He must be right because a majority of people agreed with him and mob rule is how you decide things and besides if you just keep repeating yourself then you must be answering questions and "discussing" something. If I don't like having less space then I should have bought an Amtrak ticket for my flight to China.

Did I miss anything, Tom?
LOL. You added a lot. Make it simple for you one point at a time:

1. If you buy a seat with full recline, expect to be able to recline it fully beginning 10 minutes after take off until the captain begins decent. (Emergencies and meals excluded.)

2. If you buy a seat that doesn't recline, don't expect to recline it.

3. If you buy a seat with limited recline expect to recline it in a limited way under the guidelines set forth in (1) above.

4. If feel you won't fit in the seat that you have purchased for yourself and that your safety will in any way be endangered by the person in front of you reclining, you have the right to tell the FA and ask to leave the plane before takeoff. Safety is a serious issue and you should not take yours for granted over something as silly as an airline flight.

5. You have the right to get out of your seat anytime the seatbelt sign is off. Enjoy your stroll around the plane. I always do; especially on the wide bodies. If you've been nice to me, I might put my seat up as I stroll.

6. You have a right to buy a business class ticket for your flight to China.

7. You have the right to ask someone else to buy you a business class ticket for your flight to China, but this is absurd and they are not required to do so.

8. You have the right to ask someone not to recline their seat, but this is absurd and they are not required to do so.

9. No one has the right to "doing as he likes with the seat during taxi and takeoff because... blah blah blah..." and pretty much everything you said after that is crap you just pulled out of thin air because you probably understand the difference between a "right" and a "want" and you are upset that you didn't get your way over the poor little lady on your last flight.

Last edited by TomA; Jan 9, 2013 at 1:38 pm
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 1:23 pm
  #99  
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Cool

Originally Posted by TomA
No need. I buy seats I can fit in. You should too.
I've never been on Greyhound. How have your experiences been?

I'm guessing they have been unpleasant no matter what mode of transportation you take.
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 1:25 pm
  #100  
 
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Originally Posted by SeriouslyLost
Didn't you hear? They paid for their seat.
You missed it. Read it again.
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 1:27 pm
  #101  
 
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Originally Posted by Doc Savage
I've never been on Greyhound.
Me either. As I said: I buy seats I fit in.
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 3:59 pm
  #102  
 
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I've always skipped Greyhound because I hate the smell of patchouli.


....and this thread is dead. Can we agree to disagree? The overweight and tall get no sympathy but try to extend courtesy to tall people behind you if possible?
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 4:54 pm
  #103  
 
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Why is it always those who want to impose on a stranger by taking away part of their seat are the ones who call others selfish? That never ceases to amaze me in threads like these.

Originally Posted by SeriouslyLost
Didn't you hear? They paid for their seat.
Read it again.....think you've got it all wrong
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 6:36 pm
  #104  
 
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I have a serious back injury that has resulted in permanent mobility issues and nerve damage. I have difficulty walking and use a cane or walker depending on the day. I wouldn't be able to sit on a plane in coach if I couldn't recline as the pain would be unbearable. I have read enough threads like this one and of parents bringing car seats on board that prevent the seat in front from reclining that I made the decision for my own comfort to always buy F domestically and at least Y+ or higher internationally. It gives me the extra space I need for my situation. I am by no stretch rich or even well off and I am fairly young. I just made a conscious decision to ensure my comfort. If I can't pay the price, I don't fly, simple as that.

I am sorry, but I would not accept being told by the person behind me that I couldn't recline in a seat I paid for and selected based on my needs. I do feel bad for those who are uncomfortable but I take steps to ensure I have what I need to be comfortable and not impose on other passengers and I expect others to do the same. I wouldn't pull the 'disabled' card, although I could - that isn't the point. It's just a matter of not imposing your situation on others. I don't expect others to accommodate my limitations, which by the way are not visible when I am sitting, nor would I expect an upgrade out of sympathy. I make sure that the seat I buy is adequate for my comfort. It costs me a lot more but if I want to be comfortable, that's the price I have to pay. End of story. If you are tall, heavy or whatever, buy the seat that fits you, either in width or legroom. Don't expect others who paid for their seats to accommodate your needs. You know you are tall and you know the seat in front is going to hurt your knees so buy one that has a bigger pitch. Don't wait until the person in front very reasonably wants to recline to play the 'my legs are too long' game. Take responsibility for yourself.

Sorry for the rant - I just don't believe in expecting total strangers to sacrifice because one person figures their needs are more important than anyone elses when it could have been proactively dealt with.
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Old Jan 9, 2013, 7:13 pm
  #105  
 
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Originally Posted by Y29M
You're making a generalisation here based on a very wrong assumption. You are repeatedly suggesting that tall people purchase E+ or First Class, both of which require additional cost on top of a standard ticket, have you considered that this is an expense that some people simply cannot afford?

Do people have the right to recline? Yes. However, a little bit of common courtesy wouldn't go amiss; I would never recline if it was clearly putting the person seated behind me in severe discomfort.
It puts me at severe discomfort not to recline!

What gets me is these seats are fairly narrow and uncomfortable. The people on either side end up touching me, which I find repugnant. But as for the space in front of the seat, I find there to be more than ample space. On most planes I've been on, if the seats were allowed to recline two, three, or even four times more than they currently do there would still be ample room for all. I just don't mind the seat in front of me being in my face a bit.

The only way there isn't enough leg room is if one insists on putting one's feet flat on the floor so that one's knees poke up really high. This provides these people with something to complain about.

The seats currently only recline an inch or two. It's really impossible to only recline them "a little bit."

This is basically a "personal space" issue by people who wants lots of empty air in front of their face versus people who are in terrible pain, can't sleep and perhaps have trouble breathing with their seats tilted forward. Well, it's not your empty air, and if you really need the empty air, just lean your seat back, too!

Also as to your first point, many 450-lb. flyers declare that the cost of an extra seat is something that they just can't afford and so they buy one seat and expect their neighbor to give up a third to half of their seat for their comfort. How is this any different from someone who knows they need to pay a few dollars extra for an E+ seat but instead would rather try to boss around the person in front of them?
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