NDRU said:

They weigh our bags, why not us?

I think we should all get on scales with our luggage to determine our ticket prices. It's all about space, weight, and fuel on planes.

Light packers and small people should not have to subsidize everyone else's fuel consumption. I am for treating us all equally like chattle

if i recall correctly, one airline proposed this a while back and oh my! what an uproar.

XxAxX said:

NDRU said:

They weigh our bags, why not us?

I think we should all get on scales with our luggage to determine our ticket prices. It's all about space, weight, and fuel on planes.

Light packers and small people should not have to subsidize everyone else's fuel consumption. I am for treating us all equally like chattle

if i recall correctly, one airline proposed this a while back and oh my! what an uproar.

yeah it would never fly!

but honestly, I think about it with my girlfriend who is a lot smaller, and I know I have no control over being bigger than her, but I wonder sometimes why she pays the same as me for dinners, clothes, airline tickets, etc, when she uses less material for all of those things

Plus the price for shipping just about anything is determined by size & weight.

It's a slippery slope, they are a business wanting to not offend people and wanting to save fuel costs, but if they already charge us for extra baggage...

[Edited 5/19/11 10:20am]

Strap her to the wing and let's go already.

formallypickles said:

i dont feel sorry for her

she is 400 freaking pounds its not like shes 270 or even 300 that is a fair weight to accommodate to

this big bitch has some nerve shes sitting up hear eating cakes and junk food and or not exercising

if they made special room and seats for fat folks in cargo planes some fat people will still complain about being discriminated against for being fat and having to ride with cargo

so NOOOO get your big ass in the gym and/or stop overeating

[Edited 5/19/11 7:30am]

I don't know this lady, but believe-you-me, people with liver, kidney, and other internal organ failure/malfunction can gain massive weight. Not to mention, some prescriptions. NOT SAYING this is why she is fat, but I stay not judging fat people cuz I don't know their lives. If I truly thought every overweight person sat around eating cake, I'd be one misinformed guy.

I ain't in the business of making people feel bad about themselves. Airline seats SHOULD be bigger, we SHOULD NOT bitch and moan about it becauise you KNOW those seats are too small, and if this big bitch can't fit in them FINE, but my big ass at 6'1" and 200lbs is extremely uncomfortable on airplanes too.

I'm beginning to think we should not be flying anyway. The question may be moot in a few years

CarrieMpls said:

tinaz said:

And this i agree with 100% but sometimes its called being an enabler... Someone doesnt get to be 400 lbs by accident... And while I really dont care how large someone wants to be, when it becomes something that starts to affect my bottom line im gonna say enough is enough... I will help you become a healthier person and support you mentally, but I for one will not be an enabler... Its not a handicap... they choose that hard road...

I guess I don’t agree that allowing someone to simply be a member of society, to be accommodated for a service like transportation or a table to sit at in a restaurant is “enabling”.

I didn't actually read the article so feel free to ignore this post; however she can be accommodated by buying an extra seat for that fat ass; sitting in any seat no matter how comfortable it is supposed to be for any length of time will feel uncomfortable after a while.

Airlines are providing a service, there are many of them out there and if you are not happy with the service provided chose another.

NDRU said:

Serious said:

NDRU said:

They weigh our bags, why not us?

I think we should all get on scales with our luggage to determine our ticket prices. It's all about space, weight, and fuel on planes.

Light packers and small people should not have to subsidize everyone else's fuel consumption. I am for treating us all equally like chattle

I agree. It would be fair if I am allowed a heavier suitcae and piece of cabinluggage if I weigh less than other people. It is not fair IMO that I have to pay if my luggege is too heavy when my weight is about half the weight or less of many other passengers.

Um, yes it is fair. Luggage is an option. Your person is not.

Spinlight said:

Spinlight said:

formallypickles said:

i dont feel sorry for her

she is 400 freaking pounds its not like shes 270 or even 300 that is a fair weight to accommodate to

this big bitch has some nerve shes sitting up hear eating cakes and junk food and or not exercising

if they made special room and seats for fat folks in cargo planes some fat people will still complain about being discriminated against for being fat and having to ride with cargo

so NOOOO get your big ass in the gym and/or stop overeating

[Edited 5/19/11 7:30am]

I don't know this lady, but believe-you-me, people with liver, kidney, and other internal organ failure/malfunction can gain massive weight. Not to mention, some prescriptions. NOT SAYING this is why she is fat, but I stay not judging fat people cuz I don't know their lives. If I truly thought every overweight person sat around eating cake, I'd be one misinformed guy.

I ain't in the business of making people feel bad about themselves. Airline seats SHOULD be bigger, we SHOULD NOT bitch and moan about it becauise you KNOW those seats are too small, and if this big bitch can't fit in them FINE, but my big ass at 6'1" and 200lbs is extremely uncomfortable on airplanes too.

i understand ya but i had family members and friends that gained lots of weight from health problems and meds and never in my life have a heard someone gain weight soley based off

meds or a health problem plus its not good to have that extra weight if your sick anyway.

Your weight and height is fine and i do think the seats could be bigger but i really dont think this massive big whale has room to complain.

its always the people who shouldnt be complaining that complain the most

if someone with your height complains fair enough you cant help it or maybe a 300 lbs pregnant woman ok fair enought=

but clearly this big bitch ate more calories than she expelled..

Serious said:

Spinlight said:

Um, yes it is fair. Luggage is an option. Your person is not.

No it is not fair. My weight is an option too, at least to some extent. If I was not as skinny as I am I'd be very willing to go on a diet if that would mean more free luggage . And luggage is also not always an option either depending on where you go, what you need to take with you, how long you stay etc..

I'm sorry, but we don't make laws and regulations to cater to just you. Laws and regulations need to have a wide enough birth to accomodate all people. What you're describing punishes all overweight people for the sins of a gluttonous few.

My boyfriend is 6'5" and can barefuly fucking fit in one of these chairs. In fact, he can't fit in them at all and has to have his legs in all sorts of inhumane positions. Is he fat? Not at all. He was born tall. He shouldn't be penalized for weighing more than you do just because you were born short.

formallypickles said:

Spinlight said:

I don't know this lady, but believe-you-me, people with liver, kidney, and other internal organ failure/malfunction can gain massive weight. Not to mention, some prescriptions. NOT SAYING this is why she is fat, but I stay not judging fat people cuz I don't know their lives. If I truly thought every overweight person sat around eating cake, I'd be one misinformed guy.

I ain't in the business of making people feel bad about themselves. Airline seats SHOULD be bigger, we SHOULD NOT bitch and moan about it becauise you KNOW those seats are too small, and if this big bitch can't fit in them FINE, but my big ass at 6'1" and 200lbs is extremely uncomfortable on airplanes too.

i understand ya but i had family members and friends that gained lots of weight from health problems and meds and never in my life have a heard someone gain weight soley based off

meds or a health problem plus its not good to have that extra weight if your sick anyway.

Your weight and height is fine and i do think the seats could be bigger but i really dont think this massive big whale has room to complain.

its always the people who shouldnt be complaining that complain the most

if someone with your height complains fair enough you cant help it or maybe a 300 lbs pregnant woman ok fair enought=

but clearly this big bitch ate more calories than she expelled..

Maybe she did, I dunno. But we can't punish everyone just cuz this person is.... not breaking the law. If there were laws about being fat, then maybe there'd be grounds for this kind of stuff. However, there is no law. And anything the airlines do to add charges are at their own discretion. Nothing is stopping airlines from doubling the size of current seats to accomodate both fatter and taller people at the expense of number of seats on the airplane.

And that's why there's an argument at all. The airplanes are JAMPACKED with seats so that the airlines make more money. Knock off 6 rows of 4 seats and you can expand the room for everyone - not just the fat people.

http://www.nydailynews.co...vouch.html

Some quotes from the above artictle...

Spinlight said:

Spinlight said:

formallypickles said:

i understand ya but i had family members and friends that gained lots of weight from health problems and meds and never in my life have a heard someone gain weight soley based off

meds or a health problem plus its not good to have that extra weight if your sick anyway.

Your weight and height is fine and i do think the seats could be bigger but i really dont think this massive big whale has room to complain.

its always the people who shouldnt be complaining that complain the most

if someone with your height complains fair enough you cant help it or maybe a 300 lbs pregnant woman ok fair enought=

but clearly this big bitch ate more calories than she expelled..

Maybe she did, I dunno. But we can't punish everyone just cuz this person is.... not breaking the law. If there were laws about being fat, then maybe there'd be grounds for this kind of stuff. However, there is no law. And anything the airlines do to add charges are at their own discretion. Nothing is stopping airlines from doubling the size of current seats to accomodate both fatter and taller people at the expense of number of seats on the airplane.

And that's why there's an argument at all. The airplanes are JAMPACKED with seats so that the airlines make more money. Knock off 6 rows of 4 seats and you can expand the room for everyone - not just the fat people.

so they can make two rows of jumbo seats and if a jumbo seat is empty two people could fly jumbo and of course you have to pay extra for the jumbo seat.

but i can see someone (probably this big bitch ) complaining about the price

the larger planes do have wide seating for people but the smaller ones dont

jumbo seats= two regular seats in a smaller plane

[Edited 5/19/11 16:13pm]

formallypickles said:

Spinlight said:

Maybe she did, I dunno. But we can't punish everyone just cuz this person is.... not breaking the law. If there were laws about being fat, then maybe there'd be grounds for this kind of stuff. However, there is no law. And anything the airlines do to add charges are at their own discretion. Nothing is stopping airlines from doubling the size of current seats to accomodate both fatter and taller people at the expense of number of seats on the airplane.

And that's why there's an argument at all. The airplanes are JAMPACKED with seats so that the airlines make more money. Knock off 6 rows of 4 seats and you can expand the room for everyone - not just the fat people.

so they can make two rows of jumbo seats and if a jumbo seat is empty two people could fly jumbo and of course you have to pay extra for the jumbo seat.

but i can see someone (probably this big bitch ) complaining about the price

the larger planes do have wide seating for people but the smaller ones dont

jumbo seats= two regular seats in a smaller plane

[Edited 5/19/11 16:13pm]

I'm sorry that I can't give a reference, but I'm almost certain that the US Supreme Court handed down a ruling a few years ago in the case of a passenger who was told to buy two seats because of weight/size. If I am remembering a correctly, the Supreme Court ruled that this violated The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). I'm sure that is why the woman in this situation refers in the video several times to "equal access" and "equal rights".

I'm actually rather shocked by some of the things people are saying in this thread. This is someone's sister, daughter, friend. Comparing her to luggage is dehumanizing, to say the least.

Incidentally, if you watched the video, you would know that she is not 400lbs. She used to be. Obviously, that number has been used to sensationalize the story (at her expense, I might add).

Let that fat-ass pay for two seats!

We shouldn't take on that expense!

Let that blind person keep that fucking dog at home!

I have allergies dammit!

Let that cripple crawl up the fucking stairs! Chair lifts and elevators?

Not MY problem!

We need peanuts on a plane, fuck that little brat and his peanut allergies!
I'm hungry dammit!

Shit... maybe we should ban those Middle-easterners from flying!

I'm tired of waiting in long lines and taking off my shoes!

We only care about issues if they affect us directly, and we all have our prejudices don't we? When we don't consider one type of person then where will it end?

Enable someone to get fatter? Really? Do you really hear yourselves? Wow.

paintedlady said:

Let that fat-ass pay for two seats!

We shouldn't take on that expense!

Let that blind person keep that fucking dog at home!

I have allergies dammit!

Let that cripple crawl up the fucking stairs! Chair lifts and elevators?

Not MY problem!

We need peanuts on a plane, fuck that little brat and his peanut allergies!
I'm hungry dammit!

Shit... maybe we should ban those Middle-easterners from flying!

I'm tired of waiting in long lines and taking off my shoes!

We only care about issues if they affect us directly, and we all have our prejudices don't we? When we don't consider one type of person then where will it end?

Enable someone to get fatter? Really? Do you really hear yourselves? Wow.

CarrieMpls said:

imago said:

Airlines *do* need to increase seat size--they're simply terribly uncomfortable (they were uncomfortable when I weighed 160 lbs!).

That's all she's saying. Two thirds of americans are overweight or obese. We are the majority. It doesn't make sense for a business not to recognize that and make accomodations.

I have no problem with her approach. She's very reasonable about it. She's not acting "entitled".

Why does being the majority mean you should be accomodated on your terms?

Anyone is free to start an airline to accomodate overweight people. IF you are the majority, it should be a successful venture.

Should aisles in the grocery store be mandated to be wider to accomodate this majority too?

CarrieMpls said:

tinaz said:

Agree that she isnt acting entitled, but then restaurants need to make their booths bigger, toilets should be made bigger, etc etc etc... and thats going to end up costing us more money in the end just because some people are so large they cant "fit" into society... Im not talking overweight... I dont consider her overweight, she is morbidly obese... And she is not the majority

[Edited 5/19/11 6:18am]

Frankly, I don’t care about the “who’s going to pay for it?” argument. None of us lives in a vacuum. We are all better off as a people if we take care of each other. That costs us, whether it’s in time and work we give or money we spend. If I am accommodating to others, if I have compassion for them, they will be accommodating back to me when I need it. That’s how it’s supposed to work.

We can talk all day long about personal responsibility and how best to address the obesity epidemic, but we also have to deal with the reality of where we are today.

But no one overweight HAS to fly. It is a personal choice to do so.

She wants her personal choice accomodated.

CarrieMpls said:

tinaz said:

And this i agree with 100% but sometimes its called being an enabler... Someone doesnt get to be 400 lbs by accident... And while I really dont care how large someone wants to be, when it becomes something that starts to affect my bottom line im gonna say enough is enough... I will help you become a healthier person and support you mentally, but I for one will not be an enabler... Its not a handicap... they choose that hard road...

I guess I don’t agree that allowing someone to simply be a member of society, to be accommodated for a service like transportation or a table to sit at in a restaurant is “enabling”.

They are a member of society whether they use transporation or eat in restaurants or not.

They are not being excluded.

How endless is the accomodation going to be? For any and every obese individual?

strmn said:

CarrieMpls said:

I guess I don’t agree that allowing someone to simply be a member of society, to be accommodated for a service like transportation or a table to sit at in a restaurant is “enabling”.

I agree with everything CarrieMpls has said in this thread so far, except I think that making seats bigger to accommodate people of a variety of proportions IS enabling AND enabling an increasing number of people is an EXCELLENT SOCIAL GOAL. At one time, workplaces only had washrooms for men, and in some places, only white men. This meant that only men, or white men, could work in those places. The list of examples like this is endless. The issue of seating on airlines is included on that list.

Right . .. . . . .

Because you have a 'right' to fly.

Nothinbutjoy said:

OnlyNDaUsa said:

Here is a short version of how I would like to see it handled.

We know that for some people they can not fit in a single seat. For one the seats are pretty small as it is. So I recommended a few rows of seats that can be easily widened as needed. When a person is booking their flight they would need to request special seating. (I do not see this any differently that special meal requests) if they are OUT of that special seat then they can book 2 seats side by side (assuming said seats are available)

Now this could be done at a small additional charge if necessary. Perhaps $10 to $20 (which is cheaper that the average taxes for a ticket anyway). If the plane ends up not being fully booked then that additional amount is refunded.

That's what I was thinking. If you are very large and need two seats there's no way you should be charged a full ticket price for the 2nd seat, but, the airline is a business and is losing a passenger behind one person needing two seats, so an additional charge is fair.

If you are in fact taking up two seats, why shouldn't you be charged for the second one?

That's like saying married couples should not have to pay full price for two tickets because they are now "as one" since they became married.

XxAxX said:

NDRU said:

They weigh our bags, why not us?

I think we should all get on scales with our luggage to determine our ticket prices. It's all about space, weight, and fuel on planes.

Light packers and small people should not have to subsidize everyone else's fuel consumption. I am for treating us all equally like chattle

if i recall correctly, one airline proposed this a while back and oh my! what an uproar.

Of course, we wouldn't want an equal playing field . . . .

SUPRMAN said:

CarrieMpls said:

Frankly, I don’t care about the “who’s going to pay for it?” argument. None of us lives in a vacuum. We are all better off as a people if we take care of each other. That costs us, whether it’s in time and work we give or money we spend. If I am accommodating to others, if I have compassion for them, they will be accommodating back to me when I need it. That’s how it’s supposed to work.

We can talk all day long about personal responsibility and how best to address the obesity epidemic, but we also have to deal with the reality of where we are today.

But no one overweight HAS to fly. It is a personal choice to do so.

She wants her personal choice accomodated.

Neither do disabled people... we accomidate them.

This is an issue of equality. Not all people are one size so they shouldn't only make one sized seating.

We shouldn't exclude certain people with any restrictions because of the airplane designers lack forsight.

The people who built the planes were the ones that made the situation a problem. They lacked vision, they should have included all people in their original design when making the seats in the first place.

[Edited 5/19/11 19:00pm]

Genesia said:

Strap her to the wing and let's go already.

paintedlady said:

SUPRMAN said:

But no one overweight HAS to fly. It is a personal choice to do so.

She wants her personal choice accomodated.

Neither do disabled people... we accomidate them.

This is an issue of equality. Not all people are one size so they shouldn't only make one sized seating.

We shouldn't exclude certain people with any restrictions because of the airplane designers lack forsight.

The people who built the planes were the ones that made the situation a problem. They lacked vision, they should have included all people in their original design when making the seats in the first place.

[Edited 5/19/11 19:00pm]

I'm sure airplane designers have vision but by force of necessity it's all tunneled in the direction of a companies Return on Investment. An airline simply can't fly enough overweight people in order to make up for the money they spend on fuel and plane.

I know I'll get lambasted for this but I still feel that a pay by weight system needs to be considered becasue ULTIMATELY all we really are at this point is human freight...

It's how they calculate fuel usage, flight time and a host of other factors... it's just too crass to talk about openly...

and for the record, I have nothing against our voluptuous members of society (unless you're a man, then that's just nasty...)...

paintedlady said:

Genesia said:

Strap her to the wing and let's go already.

But seriously. They said the flight was delayed for...like...an hour because of this nonsense. If that was my flight, I'd be piiiiiiiiissed.

RenHoek said:

paintedlady said:

Neither do disabled people... we accomidate them.

This is an issue of equality. Not all people are one size so they shouldn't only make one sized seating.

We shouldn't exclude certain people with any restrictions because of the airplane designers lack forsight.

The people who built the planes were the ones that made the situation a problem. They lacked vision, they should have included all people in their original design when making the seats in the first place.

[Edited 5/19/11 19:00pm]

I'm sure airplane designers have vision but by force of necessity it's all tunneled in the direction of a companies Return on Investment. An airline simply can't fly enough overweight people in order to make up for the money they spend on fuel and plane.

I know I'll get lambasted for this but I still feel that a pay by weight system needs to be considered becasue ULTIMATELY all we really are at this point is human freight...

It's how they calculate fuel usage, flight time and a host of other factors... it's just too crass to talk about openly...

and for the record, I have nothing against our voluptuous members of society (unless you're a man, then that's just nasty...)...

I understand the profit margin requirements... but they can't do the pay as you weigh thing either.

That means more chances of some screaming kid sitting next to you.