The more I read about it, the more sick to my stomach I get. Can you seriously imagine? You have checked in at the front counter, got your boarding pass, checked your baggage - made it through security, sat for about an hour or so, and finally your section is called to board the plane.
But wait - after you have placed your carry-on in the proper compartment, and are sitting and have your seat belt fastened, the idiot airline attendant walks by and will inform you that you will have to pay a "tax" and purchase a second seat (Fat Tax) or you will have to exit the plane.
Are you f-ing kidding me?
Yes, there is a serious obesity issue in this country. And yes, I actually support taxing junk food and fast food. But asking someone to exit a plane if they don't cough up a couple hundred extra dollars is cruel and distasteful.
I have read two different view points on this subject - Check out Elena Gorgan is against the Fat Tax and raises the question as to whether it is fair or not and then there is Bianca Bartz who actually agrees with the Fat Tax.
I would (and I will use the term my mom sometimes uses) "show my ass" is the person sitting next to me was asked to leave the plane. God forbid an attendant asked me to pay up. I would probably be sent to Gitmo. ;-)
What are your thoughts on the FAT TAX that airlines like United and others are implementing? I think it is discrimination. Sure, we all like to sit comfortably, but I will NEVER discriminate against someone else due to the size of their body.
I mean.. if we are going to tax someone .. how about people with loud Mp3 players and body odor? LOL
5 comments:
Holy Cow ... this is killing me. Kind of reminds me of my random thinking moment and the elevator last week - you know that will be next, right? A Fat Tax when riding a damn elevator. That's how ridiculous I think the whole Fat Tax on an airplane is. Then again, maybe if I was a size 6 (and not a size ... not 6), then I would feel differently. But, I don't think so. (BTW - LOVE the blog background - makes me happy!)
I am torn on this issue. I don't think it should be based on a certain weight, but if the person next to me is large enough to encroach on my seat, then I do think they should have to pay for an additional seat. Airplane seats are tight to begin with, so to spend a flight with another person sitting in your lap is not really fair.
On the other side, not all "large" people take up extra space. I am on the larger side and I am considered "obese" but I don't encroach on other seats on a plane. So I think the tax should be based on person to person basis and the airline must be able to prove that the "fat" person is truly taking up more than one space.
This is TERRIBLE! I have been watching this and it makes me SICK! So very, very sad:( I have several dear friends who have serious weight issues. They already face so much discrimination in their lives that this would just kill them if they had to do this, too. And like you said, Nicole...what about LOUD MP3's, body odor, bad breath, rude behavior, etc.
As a person who likes her personal space, I think there should be rules on a airplane and honestly, a fat tax is one of them. I have flown on a plane, squished by a person who didn't fit in their chair. Is it fair to me, who paid for my seat, to not even have a semblance of enjoyment on my plane ride, because we don't want to hurt someone's feelings???
But I also think that if someone carries medical paperwork saying their obesity is unavoidable, due to diabetes or thyroid issues, then they should be exempt. Only the people who eat Mcdonalds and refuse to work out should be punished.
I have to admit that there must be some sort of criteria set in place to determine who gets taxed and who doesn't. Considering the time spent in air, it doesn't seem very appropriate to tax some individuals just because they are larger than the average person. Seats in airplanes are however tiny, and if someone is large enough that they would indeed require 2 seats in order to be comfortable, maybe that should be left up to the traveler to decide. We are a society who seems to have become obsessed with size.
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