Do you think the obese should pay for - 2 airline seats?

cameragirl21 wrote: Interesting article:
http://travel.aol.com/travel-ideas/article...ravdynlprim0707

The author brings up a good point that I hadn't considered--a guy that size would never fit thru the emergency exit and the panic that could ensue could harm many passengers. I guess I'd assume that at his size, he'd let the others get out of the exit first and then everyone would try to get him out but I imagine that he' likely panic and wig out if others were getting out and he had to wait.
I did sit next to a very overweight man in an airplane once and oddly enough, he was a heart surgeon. He fit in his seat but couldn't put the tray table down over his belly so I had to share mine with him which was no problem for me. But if he cut into my seat, I'd surely not like that.
Personally, I think that for anyone as large as the guy in the pic, lap band or gatric bypass should be free and readily available because people that size can't truly function in society imo and something needs to be done, even if it is his fault that he got that big.
Your thoughts?

PrairieMom replied: Once you get to be to big gastric bypass gets to be to dangerous for them. A lot of times Obese people have to actually loose weight to be considered candidates for that surgery.


I do agree that they should have to pay for 2 seats, he can certantly not be allowed to block the isle, people need to be able to pass in that space, and its true that they should be able to pass thought the emergency exit. I read that one airline will make people buy a second ticket, but if the flight isn't full and all seats aren't needed then they will reimburse that person the cost of the second seat. that sounds fair to me.

Danalana replied: I've never really thought about it. I guess it's just my soft heart speaking here, but i don't think they should have to pay for 2 seats. I guess that's not very smart, economically. Economically, they probably should charge them for 2 seats. I just know that people who are larger have a hard enough time in society...I know I will be in the minority, but that's cool because I'm on a roll

bluebear replied: yes because it's very uncomfortable to sit next to them. I sat next to an obese lady on the airplane and it was three people across- I literally could not move my body for the entire flight. thankfully it was only a 2 hour flight!

jcc64 replied: It looks to me that the guy was very conscious about not taking up the other guy's seat space. The passenger next to him seems to have every bit of space that is ordinarily available to him in the middle seat. The flight attendants who have to pass up and down the aisle--that's another story, and clearly, they were pissed enough to take a pic and post it.

Nina J replied: Making obese passengers pay for 2 seats is going to do nothing for safety. Having 2 seats changes nothing about the structure of the plane. If an accident were to occur, the obese passenger with 2 seats would still have to get out of the plane some how.

Obesity is becoming a real issue in today's society. I think people are people, no matter if they're underweight, normal weight, or overweight. But I do think that more needs to be done to discourage obesity and to encourage obese people to be able to lose weight and live as healthy a life as possible.

In my mind, the only real way to accomodate obese passengers on airlines is to change the structure of the plane - larger seats for obese people, larger exits. But in the end, isn't that just accomodating an unhealthy lifestyle? And doing more to exclude obese people from society?

I don't think issue's such as what this picture causes warrant solutions to accomodate obesity, but rather solutions to reduce obesity and help people with weight problems. They're people - it may be uncomfortable to share a plane ride next to a larger a person, but the person next to them leaves the plane. The obese person is still obese and I am sure there are countless day-to-day situations where their obesity causes them discomfort, be it social situations or physical constraints. I think the solution is in helping obese people, not coming up with quick fixes for the comfort of others.

My3LilMonkeys replied: I honestly don't know where I stand on this....on one hand, it's not fair to the seatmates of someone that size to have to be squished....on the other hand, how do you fairly apply the standard? I can only imagine the discrimination lawsuits you would get if people were asked to step on a scale or sit in a 'test seat' in the middle of a crowded airport. And you certainly couldn't rely on the passengers themselves to declare when an additional seat was needed.

kimberley replied: personally, i think airlines, theaters, etc should be required to make "XL" seating available for people who require them just as they did for wheelchair access. should they charge more? i suppose they could but double-fare is unreasonable imho. the obese are entitled to safety too, not just mockery.

Hillbilly Housewife replied: Considering he's only got one cheek on that seat, I'd say it's safe to assume he'd have been more comfortable with two seats.

In all honesty, eat a salad now and then.

mckayleesmom replied: I think its time for the airlines and other public travel buisinesses to start making seats to accomidate these passengers.

I do think they should pay for 2 seats in the meantime. I was on a bus one time and there was only one seat left on it..next to me. At the next stop this lady got on. She was about 400 lbs and she sat next to me and her leg overlapped mine. I didn't make a big deal out of it because I didn't want to hurt her feelings. We were on the bus for about 4 hours and at her stop she got up to get off and my leg was drenched in her sweat....

moped replied:
Yeah I have to agree with this!

PrairieMom replied:
bleh!

mckayleesmom replied:
Ya..it was pretty gross and I still had another 20 hours to go on that bus...Its amazing how you can almost take a complete shower in a tiny bus bathroom when your grossed out.

My2Beauties replied: I'm on the fence with this one only because I have a soft heart as most of you do and wouldn't want to hurt anyone's feelings especially because of something physical BUT I also know that I would not enjoy spending an entire flight sitting next to someone whose butt was practically on top of me because it was too large to fit in one seat. I don't know I'm just on the fence. I am also one of those people that on one hand feel sorry for obese people but on the other hand think to myself unless you have a serious health issue that causes you to gain weight so rapidly, you brought this on yourself, I'm like Rocky eat a salad every now and then! It's a sad situation but becoming all too normal in our society.

PrairieMom replied: For me its not so much about feeling sorry for anyone. On an airplane space is at a premium. You pay $50 per bag for petes sake. You should pay for the space you use. If you are using 2 seats, then you should pay for them. Same with people that travel with small children. If you have a lap baby, and didn't pay for that baby to have a seat, then don't expect to be able to use a seat for that kid.