Is social isolation the new normal?
If you upholster it, they will come. Wendi Williams came to be sitting in seat 20D on American Eagle Flight 4392 — a brief two-hour hop from New Orleans to Charlotte on January 31.
We would never have heard about the trip had she not angered the person behind her by reclining her seat into his face once refreshment service was concluded.
He repeatedly hit the back of her seat — eight times in some accounts, nine in others. I guess we’ll never know the whole truth.
She filmed the event. Cabin staff appeared to take his side. They gave the guy a drink. She social media-ed the event. Virtual hell broke loose. CNN has described her as “an icon in the debate over whether it’s OK to recline your airplane seat” — surely not a role her parents ever foresaw as they were instilling a sense of entitlement in her.
The most misguided observer was the one who tweeted “None of this is normal.”
Everything about it is the new normal. It’s the sort of ruckus for which social media was invented. And battle lines were soon all too predictably drawn.
The one thing neither party seems to have done is have a measured and reasonable conversation with each other about their respective plights. A sad commentary on social isolation in a world where people would rather communicate with anonymous thousands through social media than face to face with each other.
One commentator advised: “filming someone who is unhinged is generally only going to make the situation worse, rather than better” And there are any number of wedding videos to confirm this. The ultimate fault lies with the airlines. If you don’t want the hassles arising from people reclining their seats, don’t give them reclinable seats. Purely in ROI terms I’m sure any statistician would probably conclude that in this matter, every one per cent increase in comfort for the recliner, is bought at the cost of a 10 per cent increase in discomfort for the reclined upon. Reclining seats should become a thing of the past — harking back to the golden age
HWhat’s your view? letters@hos.co.nz