“I’m Hungry Now! I Want It Now!”
I flew from Denver to Los Angeles earlier this week. Dinner was served after takeoff, which these days is a sandwich or snack box.
After dinner, I leaned back for a moment, closed my eyes, and suddenly heard a scream.
“I want another snack box! Get me another one.”
It was a kid in row one screaming at his father sitting next to him.
Sitting a couple rows back, I could not see the kid, but I guessed he must have been three or four years old.
His father dutifully requested a second snack box from a flight attendant, who obliged his request and brought out a second snack box.
All of a sudden me (and the entire cabin) heard the kid scream, “NO!!!!!!”
“I’m hungry now! I want it now!”
His father whispered something to him.
“No! I want it now! I’m hungry!”
This continued…off and on for about 30 minutes. Not continuously, but every five minutes or so there was another shrill cry from the little boy.
We landed at LAX. The family stood up. As I mentioned, I expected the kid to be three or four.
He was eight or nine.
Suddenly, I went from being mildly amused to feeling very sad.
Please God, I prayed, may that not ever be me with my son…
As a father of a sometimes-rambunctious four-year-old, I understand how unpredictable and difficult children can be, despite the best efforts of parents. Some kids seemed wired to be mischievous.
But for an eight-year-old? Simply unacceptable. My point isn’t so much as to scold as to remind all my readers who are fathers (and I’m speaking directly to myself) that we must model and practice good behavior for our sons. We must work on it. Over and over.
The kid was given his second snack box…and devoured it. Glad to know someone loves the United “Select” snack box…
But a snack box was not what he needed…
Related to Veruca Salt???
Never say never . I don’t judge other parents because kid could have autism or sick..who knows
I agree, ive known multiple people including children in my family who have autism. You cant assume someone is expected to act as though you think they should because you don’t know them or their situation.
I do agree with the fact the child could be autistic however, all too often I see bratty, self-entitled children, some that I know personally, have outrageous fits when they don’t get exactly what they want, when they want it. Most of the time I want to mollywop not the children, but the parents for creating such an ill-behaved child.
The author has no empathy… Without knowing any circumstances of the kid wants to make comments.
You never know someone sintuation. They boy might have had autism or some other disorder. Maybe you should not be so quick to judge.
If the child devoured the second snack box maybe he was very hungry. Why would the father withhold the food? I feel sorry for the poor little kid.
Maybe because he was morbidly obese? (a detail I did not mention earlier)
All of the commenters siding with the child must be “me generation-ers”. I’m a baby boomer and that s**t wouldn’t fly with me.
One of my nephews could pick me up when he was 6 and I’m a size 14! He looked 12 when he was 6. I also have a nephew that could fit fine in an umbrella stroller when he was 6. The immature one here was the author. I use Bose noise cancelling earphones and my flights are always peaceful. You can’t change others, only yourself.
U go girl!! 🙂
I agree. I think the responses in here justifying the behavior shows exactly why the article was written to being with… niway too many people are justifying bad behavior because THEY are ASSUMING.. Ironic isn’t it? Lol
Yah before we get all high and mighty about modeling behavior for our children “as a father” we might want to think about what that child and his father are working with. This does seem like it could be ASD behavior, and as much as you might want to “model behavior” that typically does not work with children on the spectrum.
All the comments saying he may have had autism is just troll comments. I’ve noticed the tendency to play devils advocate when in reality you know it es a bratty I’ll behaved kid with parents who have not taught their kids manners. This kind of stupid excuses is why our society is full of sociopaths.
I tend to agree.
I’ve had ONE temper tantrum in my life. I will give u a guess of why it was ONLY the one.
Also, I do agree that autistic children are definatly a different case.
I hope that Mr. Klint is reading these comments and is gaining a more realistic and compassionate view of what undoubtedly was the situation that he heard. There is no greater challenge than trying to control the impulsive behavior of a child who has autism and/or another emotional condition such as mood disorder. This is true no matter what age the person is, including that of an adult. So please, before you judge a parent for failing to discipline their child, consider that there might be other factors that you have no idea exist and that the parent has been doing their absolute best.
Yes, there might be other things at play. And, there might just be a kid who is acting out, perhaps because he’s not getting what he really needs at home (rules, consequences, attention, routine, regular sleep, etc.). Sorry, but not every parent is doing the best they can. Kudos to those who are, but there are plenty of parents out there who are doing the bare minimum. Sad, but true. Let’s not assume every bratty child has autism: perhaps they just have selfish parents. It happens.
I felt exactly the same being a father of autistic son’s father. I feel very happy to read your comment and think some people are aware and realizes it. We worry much about how others might feel uncomfortable looking at a tantrum from a kid who is not a toddler, we dont travel much beacuse of that.
Maybe, just maybe, the child has a developmental disorder such as Autism Spectrum Disorder. Sometimes it’s best not to automatically assume crappy parenting. Sorry, buddy, but you’re getting no sympathy from me.
How incredibly ignorant
U sound like such s nice person … wish the best to u & your family…
The kid probably was probably just a spoiled BRAT who has Not gotten his butt swatted enough. I had 3 kids and would never tolerate that behavior.
It’s not like the child was screaming for a toy or sweets. He wanted food, he was hungry. Why didn’t the father just let him eat the second snack box? Why would a parent ever withhold food from a child that is freaking out because they need to eat?
Well said from a mother who loves to cook for her family. Amen
OR, it was just a spoiled rotten kid in desperate need of some discipline.
yes. thank you. i was thinking the same thing. perhaps the writer should be considering his own thoughts and actions instead of seeking parents to be better role models. hopefully he can be a better role model
What IF the child IS AUTISTIC.?
Obviously you never considered this. This comes from a father of 3 autistic 20 year olds. My 23 y/o son functions at a 4 year old mental level. There is more of a probability of a disability. I personally have experienced similar situations, even one where my son had a melt down in a store. We left the store, as I am struggling to get him in the car, I had 2 officers draw guns on me. They were screaming at me to back efusing, saying my son would run away. One of the cashiers came running out screaming for the police to stop, that the kid was my son.
DON’T JUDGE
Someine needs a whack
Yeah, like hitting a child on an airplane would do a whole lot of good….. just get the father arrested … that would be great, huh? NOT….
What if the child is not autistic?
Maybe the kid was just hungry? Did he have a decent meal before the flight, did dad not bring anything for him to eat on the plane? I’ve been on flights where the kids didn’t have a book, toy, snack, nothing of course they will have a meltdown.
Ok. Ok. Let’s play devils advocate here. I think our hearts go out to any parents who have a child with a medical condition. If that’s the case, I hope the Flight Attendants were kind and helpful. It appears they were. I feel for the dad as this is not an easy situation. As a former flight attendant, I found myself assisting many parents and distracting/entertaining children on long haul flights etc. Now… with that said, if that was not the case, SHAME on these parents. Control your children. My brother and I have been flying since we were two. We had the fear of god put in us. WE were NOT allowed to behave in a fashion that as disruptive. If we did, we were asked, “do you want to take the next flight home?” Obviously not! Discipline your kids! No one does this anymore. I can’t tell you how many times, I arrived at a seat to speak to parents and they would just stare at me and shrug! What a shame! It was the best job in the world, however, some of these passengers were just unreal! Just follow the rules and behave!
Which is worse? The 8 year old throwing a tantrum or the grown man publicly ridiculing a child online?
That kid had his capacities intact. Most of you are in a tiny selfish bubble. Do you think a child with autism is going to enjoy being in an airplane? DRIVE if you can’t control your offspring in a small space with others. I had gran Mal seizures bug don’t drive even though it’s been over 11 years since I had one. They will allow your DL returned to you after 3 months of no seizures. That doesn’t mean it’s right, so I don’t drive out of RESPECT for others.
Just because I have an illness that is fatal, already killed me, etc., doesn’t give me the right to put others in a stressful situation.. That is MG problem, not others’!
Grow up so there are places where people CAN relax. For some, like me, just the flight itself is a rare luxury.
I didn’t detect any ridicule. Hunger between meals has never killed anyone. Self control can be taught. The behavior described doesn’t sound like an autistic incident. It’s past time that parents should be excused for inflicting their ill-behaved children on the public at large in a confined space. Especially during a pandemic.
I have autism. I didn’t fly on an airplane until I was in my twenties because by then I learned not to have a meltdown. If you know your kid has autism, you shouldn’t be bring them on an airplane. This father has no respect for anyone else.
Heck, my sisters had to watch me while my mother went to the grocery store because she knew it would be a shit-show if she brought me.
It REALLY pisses me off when I see people using autism as an excuse for bad behaviour. I’ve learned to be a responsible adult. Yes, even at 55 years old, I have co-workers who forget small things because they know I’m autistic and it is a struggle for me but they know I’m trying.
Kudos to you, Darrell. You must have phenomenal parents. You sound like a responsible, well adjusted person who is managing a challenge with great commitment and determination.
Well said and I agree.
Thankyou. Happy Holidays.
Yeah, I was wondering myself..
Exactly, I have a child over 7 years who at times have extreme emotional imbalance, and has autoimmune and auto inflammation disease that has no cure nor any medication. Getting hung up on something daily for an hour and screaming for it, non stop, no matter how much love or affection or attention is given, is part of the illness and other times normal sensible behavior as well as a very high IQ. Sorry, this article writer is an inexperienced traveller not only in general but in life’s journey he doesn’t know much and is a judgemental prick.
As an autism mom I know firsthand the struggles. Instead of judging maybe just offer some help. Everyone battles something.
Great. So the comments rapidly devolve into a rants back and forth about political parties and politicians. That’s not relevant and yet entirely so.
I have to admit throwing two temper tantrums as a child. But I was really young and they didn’t end well. It’s funny that I remember them after all these years.
The first was over a roll of wild cherry Lifesavers. Hmmm. maybe I wasn’t that young if I could read. The second was at McDonald’s. I wanted a Big Mac and a large fry. NOT a regular burger and regular fries. That time I got a slap across the face and was told to stop it. And it worked! Quelle surprise.
It does make you wonder how much control a parent has. To a certain degree some have little angels and some have little monsters. That’s just the way they were born.
He’s Lucky he wasn’t with Hispanic Parents, he would have gotten a good seat in his Ass, and NO DAMN SECOND BOX!!!
Order on Amazon a book for boys, Way of the Warrior Kid, by Jacko Willink. He is an inspirational speaker on Leadership and former Navy Seal. The 3 books have helped my 10 yr old grandson with purpose.
Girls too, could benefit.
This is an extremely biased article. You take in to consideration only how you felt and didn’t stop to think that maybe the child isn’t able to comprehend the situation at an adolescent level. Parents deal with a lot of things and don’t need another person blasting their struggles. If you aren’t going to help, then you, sir, are the problem.
What you also don’t know is if this child had an unseen medical condition or was autistic. Just because he looked “normal” doesn’t mean there wasn’t something else going on beside just bad behavior.
If you know you have an autistic child that acts out, don’t be surprised if people who have paid first class prices for a first class experience are annoyed that your child is ruining the flight for them.
Spectrum is the key word.
Not one in 6 boys are severe and if that was the case we would all live in chaos!
This is the first thing I thought of: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wAlQf4WdiE (Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory: I Want It Now Scene)
Please don’t sit there and assume you know anything about that child. Behavior like that can be caused by a myriad of reasons that you- the obviously expert, perfect parent- just can’t know. I recommend that you count your blessings that you don’t have to deal with such problems, stop assuming you know the first thing about that child or his parents and try practicing a little compassion.
Where was the fathers compassion to the other passengers while his kid was being demanding vent? And even if the child had special needs, giving in to their demands is not the way to solve the issue. As a parent of a special needs child, I’ve been taught better ways to help my son get through those moments and I would hope other parents are doing the work to help their kids get through moments where they can’t get what they want. Regardless if neurotypical or not.
Giving into a child’s needs on an airplane is SURVIVAL. Likely that’s not how it is at home especially with a special needs kid which this very much sounds like is.
People need to stop judging. You have no clue. Unless you’ve had a kid on the spectrum, you don’t know. They can appear completely ‘normal’ but freak out to no end because of the wrong shirt for that moment. You work so hard and think you’ve made progress and then boom the behavior is back.
What would you expect the father to do in this situation? Leave the unruly child to go up and down the aisles to apologize to each and every passenger? Or maybe just stand up from his first row seat in first class and holler out his apologies? Yeah right. I’m sure you’ve got a child on the spectrum that acts out at unfortunate times and refuses to be controlled.
I have a 23 year old, almost 6 foot tall, nearly 300 pound daughter (and she’s not fat thanks to the steroids that keep her going), with developmental issues due to a brain tumor at age 5 that in many ways has kept her mentally/emotionally at about a 5-6 year old level, yet in other ways she is an extremely intelligent, well-spoken young women. Until something happens that her childlike mind cannot handle. Then I have basically a 5 year old WWF wrestler that outweighs me by 80 pounds and is far stronger than me (try 200lb+ single leg lifts at 8 years of age) even though I am a 6’2″ 220 pound Kansas farmboy that lettered in 3 sports in high school.
If she doesn’t want to calm down there isn’t much anyone can do, mentally, emotionally, or physically to change her mind until she’s good and ready to; and trying to force her only excaserbates the problem.
So the only thing to do is to give in to her demands until she can be removed from the situation or the issue causing her problem is solved. Which on an airplane is not really feasible.
Therefore, my thoughts would not be to apologize to others or to even be embarrassed, but only to solve the problem with my daughter. Period.
The father in this instance obviously did what he could to minimize the stress of flying on his son by obtaining first class front row seating enabling them to board at will, reduce contact with other passengers, and to deplane before any other passengers. Along with premium services while on board.
There was not much else he could have done outside sweating his child for the trip which would bring an entire new set of issues.
Whenever we have large groups of people gathered into small spaces for extended periods of time these things can happen. Whether it be to children on the spectrum, kids just tired of being cooped up, or even adults that have reached their limit of the pushing, shoving, cramped, and often evil smelling places we encounter when travelling commercially.
Getting upset about it only makes it worse. The only thing we can do is close our eyes, plug our ears, hold our nose, and try to mentally put ourselves into a better situation for the remainder of the trip.
I know I did that for about 40 weeks out of each year for several years back in my younger days and I got to where I could delve so deeply into a good book that I often would not hear the call to fasten my seat belt for landing.
As you admit to no longer being able to control your very strong adult plus-sized daughter, you should seriously consider driving for the safety of all aboard the enclosed metal tube defying gravity several thousands of feet up in the air.
Wow. Shameful article Mr. Klint. Who is the real baby here? The obviously overwhelmed child or the fully grown man who has to cry about it on the internet? Obviously you didn’t get what you needed as a child. And what behavior was the father portraying that he “should not have”? Empathy? Patience?
Man you are sensitive. I miss the world where parents figured out a way to discipline. I thoroughly enjoyed this article. Parents with money tend to be the worst at leading by example.
I believe as what I was reading that nobody was making fun of it I do get your point as a retired FA I never assumed any kind of behavior passengers experienced while 30 thousand feet in the air
Meee tooo! Immediately thought of Veruca darling! Lol too funny!
This child could also very well be suffering from some sort of autism. So while I understand your frustration – it’s fairly irresponsible to not even acknowledge that this may be the case in which case your complaints are very misplaced. I obviously possible he was just a misbehaving child, but there is no way for you to know one way or another.
Is every form of a child acting like a brat going to be excused as a form of autism? Sorry. But in the is case, it seems like a combination of bratty kid plus weak parenting.
Sound like another spoiled Trump in the making. This person is raising a sociopath.
Sounds like Biden raising Hunter. 48 yrs of failure and continuing!
Sounds like you prefer to be molested by your father
Yes! I 100% agree.
Kids with developmental issues look typical but have very different coping skills…at 8 or 9 and displaying that behavior leans a lot more towards a developmental issues. Sounds like a rough situation all around.
Kid needs disciplined! No way my kids acted like that. They knew there were CONSEQUENCES. This is how a sociopath is made!
Agree completely. Before I had kids I would judge all the time about bratty kids and their parents. Now that I’m a mother of twins, one child typical and the other twin with some behavioral problems I never judge. You never know what a parent is going through or for that matter what a child is going through. As the writer said he thought it was a 3/4 year old. Obviously some behavioral issues. Shame on this person judging like that. Until you have a child with behavioral issues keep your judgment to yourself and lead with compassion and empathy.
You are over the top!!!! Go Trump 4 more years!!!!! As a matter of fact you should never have left your parents basement. Grow up you shameless brat
4 more years of a man who does his daughter yyayyyyy.
Yes, instead of thinking the child is a brat you should think that he has autism. Maybe offer to be helpful or entertaining to the child. As a parent of children with Autism I should not have to broadcast their disability so people stop thinking I’m a bad parent.
Got that right Aaron! Sue…sorry so misinformed!
ooooohh Sue!! Aren’t we feeling witty today? GROW UP.
Yeah Aaron, you are TOTALLY CORRECT!!
Right!!!
So let’s just all have OUR nerve endings frayed because parents insist on foisting their misbehaving, autistic children in public settings that they cannot handle. Reminds me of another kid in F-class (United, of course) who, though was autistic, was allowed to lie down mid-aisle while everyone had to tiptoe around him (including the flight attendants)…. while they all put on those fake forced smiles as some sort of makeshift show of tolerance.
At what point does empathy and full-blown tolerance for any bad behavior – under the “autistic” banner – get divided ?. At what point is is okay to allow everyone else in that setting be inconvenienced with screeching, shrieks, outbursts and meltdowns and no place to go?. Seriously, parents who know their children are autistic and simply can’t handle public settings, face masks, noises plus, plus, plus should seriously consider not traveling. Pay for grandma and grandpa to come visit you at your home.
We should just put autistic children in a pillow case and toss them in a river so Karen, sorry, JoEllen isn’t disturbed. I mean, why should people with autistic children get to go on vacation? Their lives, both parents and children, are super easy.
I’ve read a lot of moronic comments on the internet. But I think JoEllen’s might be the absolute pinnacle. Congrats on absolutely sucking at being a human being.
(*question for future comments…can you use the C word on this blog?)
Nice strawman. Who says they can’t “go on vacation”? Drive in a car and put up with the little beauty themselves and not subject the public to them.
Vacation is just an example. You could replace vacation with a trip to the store, a movie, a restaurant, or a church. Should a child with autism, and their family, not be allowed to go anywhere if there’s a chance they will be disruptive at no fault their own? Pretty sure the ADA would have something to say about that. And if you don’t like it, who cares.
The difference is they know ahead of time that they can (and should) extract the kids from a store or movie theater when it erupts like this. They know ahead of time that they can’t do that in an airplane. No personal responsibility. None.
No Shaun, the ADA says nothing about this. The ACAA rules the sky, though, and there is not the faintest whisper in there that letting children scream and throw a tempter tantrum on an airplane is a reasonable accommodation of a disability.
Isn’t this why folx are so adamant about their abortion rights? Infanticide isn’t much different from abortion. Why not demand the right to that? The parent(s) would know better whether a kid was worth raising after he was born, no? Bodily autonomy for people who menstruate!
You go Shaun!!!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!
I agree completely Shaun. My son has autism and for the most part is flexible about going places so he doesn’t generally cause a big disturbance. But there is no way to predict what might trigger a disturbing event. Our lives are quite isolated as it is even before covid so when we make an effort to give him some societal exposure it’s a behavioral crap shoot. But if he is to function in society it has to be done. I won’t apologize for plucking on JoEllen’s nerves while trying to accustom my son to public outings! There’s no other way to do it. As for the people invthis article, they may have been forced to fly for some sort of family emergency etc. and if the child has autism or another developmental disability I’m sure the dad felt like crawling into a hole. Have some compassion for people in unknown situations around you…you never know what they’re going through.
Never judge a book by its cover there could the underlying medical conditions. Another hand there are children that just know how to push their parents buttons and get their own darn way those kids should be reprimanded.
I know you are a “D” word Shaun
Oh, so you’re okay with disruption on a flight by a child ? Screeching, screaming, laying down in aisles, scaring and annoying people is okay ? My comment is actually tame compared some others here – (using or wanting to use profanity such as yourself – “C word”, indeed – you need to go get help in anger management).
I admit I was too quick to diagnose the problem as autistic, in which case I will ease off as that is really an unknown here. It really could be a case of very poor parenting which is much more common and prevalent in today’s society from when I was growing up. It is evidence of poor, undisciplined parenting when you see 2-3 year olds with meltdowns that the parents are all too quick to shut them up with food, snacks, goodies and toys that last about five minutes of attention span as in evidence in the case above – attempt at parenting is only at the time of the problem happening instead of some sort of calming routine, training or discipline ahead of time.
This is what I mean about poor parenting (let’s leave autism out of it ) – they do nothing for years and then expect everyone else in society to adjust to their disruptive child and also complain loudly on social media. We see the results with many young people today – can’t accept any disappointments in life, make “entitled” demands, dare to defy any correction or admit to any of their own flaws with no apologies. Why? Because they’ve been coddled and accommodated with every childhood fit. LOL, Someone else commented on how it all started with Dr. Spock in the early 1950’s. Absolutely true. My mother was appalled at a parent/teacher meeting in about 1956 when this was all endorsed by liberal parents – no discipline should be given (lest their little darlings should be uncomfortable). The results?… as I stated above. Rinse and repeat.
I agree with JoEllen 100%. Autism is just an excuse for poor or no parenting. I was this child’s age in the late 40s and early 50s. There were no Autistic children in my recollection. There were children who were, sadly, mentally disabled (retarded) and there were children whose parents let the ‘little darlings’ run them over at each opportunity; then there were children who pushed the envelope too far (usually just once) and got the stick or belt or just a few swats on the rump with their hand. My parents each gave me the ‘treatment’ just once for each of them. I made certain that would be the only time as it was a painful experience which I clearly deserved. It did not effect me in any negative way as I realized all I had to do to avoid such a repeat performance was to obey the rules. A very simple and effective solution.
Karen, apologies “JoEllen”, this is called living in a society and no matter what social status you think you are entitled to any type of uncomfortable situation. As a father with an autistic son, I understand these outbursts and they are not doing them for attention, there is something else going on in their environment that triggers responses.
Until you have the means to fly privately, remember airplanes are still public forms of transportation that is open to anyone – including autistic children, screaming infants, etc.
Get off of your high horse and deal with it, it is called LIFE!
This is terrible to even have an article like this. No parent should ever judge another parent’s parenting due to ONE situation. You have no idea what they are going threw. First of all there are many things that child is facing and in a situation like an airplane it can make it 10 x harder. Add. Odd. Mental emptional issues. Anxiety. All this can make a child act out. And yes maybe the parent should have brought the child in the bathroom and had a stern talk with him but sometimes that can make it worse. He might have picked and chose his battle on that one.
My first thought, when you mentioned the child’s apparent age was that he probably suffers from some developmental or intellectual disability. Being the parent of a now adult son with autism, and having worked the field providing services for adults with similar disabilities I know that unfamiliar situations and stress can trigger volatile behavior in a person with said disabilities.
For the sake of the parents who struggle to support and care for their children in dealing with a difficult situation, please, unless you have ever walked in their shoes, leave your judgemental assumptions at home and show some compassion.
He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her
Did you confirm that maybe the young man was not on the aspergers spectrum or some other disability before the criticism. Remember ABC (always be charitable)
Agree. So tired of people making excuses for bad behavior and their lack of parenting as well as not giving one damn about this spoiled kid annoying other travelers.
Kid should fly in baggage from now on.
NO ONE SAID THE KID WAS AUTISTIC
Shut up Sue. This is clearly a spoiled selfish indignant brat just like that Harris mess in our vp office
Did anyone consider that this may be a severely mentally disabled child?
You are right
Agree wholeheartedly, JoEllen. Basically, it seems the world has to cater to each and every issue. The airline may have a legal duty to accommodate, fellow passengers have no such duty. Yes, passengers may not be nice people then, but no law requires anyone to be nice, understanding or uncomfortable. We grew up to avoid imposing even our little quirks on others. Nowadays, everyone does what they want and all others have to suffer. The argument that you should have such a child doesn’t fly–you just don’t hear from those responsible parents who recognize their own issues and don’t force others to bear with them. Maybe they do have grandma visit or drive. If I paid dearly for first class I’d be annoyed too, and I don’t have to care if a fellow passenger has XYZ condition.
You hit the nail on the head JoEllen. People KNOW when they have autistic children or those with disabilities and they also KNOW that these children can be very uncertain in public places. It’s no surprise to them when their children “go off.”
To take them in a situation where their behavior can disrupt others, especially in an airplane where there is “no walking them to another room”, they are quite likely to make a scene.
So who is the one who is inconsiderate of others knowing full well the situation is more than likely going to happen? Should they not take vacations? Of course they should. Should they visit gramma in another city, Disney World, Sea World? Definitely. But knowing what could and would be likely to happen, they should be driven, not flown. Let the parents deal with them in their “own” closed environment, not in an airline where they impact dozens of others. Why should a plane full of people have to deal with a temper tantrum?
It is no different with a bratty kid who has a family that indulges him or her so they don’t have to deal with them.
We don’t know the real circumstances of the particular situation being described here. What we do know is that it was disruptive behavior that was indulged in. Parents, I would hope, know what kind of children they have and how they will act most of the time. Autistic children can be uncontrolled under the best of circumstances, just like bratty ones.
I’m sorry, but being a passenger on a plane with a screaming child is not my idea of a pleasant journey nor one I would want to have to endure. I honestly don’t care what the reason “or excuse” is as to what “causes” the behavior. A parent DOES NOT have the right to spoil anyone else’s flight just to get an unruly child from one place to another. There are other options besides flying….. driving comes to mind.
Ghashi:
Yes. . .thank you for stating the obvious — however non-PC.
Well said.
A agree. This could be a child who is on the autistic spectrum or have another disorder, such as ADHA. I work with this population and this behavior can be common place. I understand others just might see a “bratty kid”. But unless you understand the Dynamics of these types of disorder your always going to “blame the parent for not doing this or that”… what it come down to is people making a judgment call on a family (who might be at there wits end and have gone to see every specialist in the book to get help for that child). Anyone who works with this population knows the charges that these parents face daily.
You have a point with your arguments, but why is it ok for the other passengers who had payed up their ticket to put up with someone misbehaving in that manner? If the ” child” has autism or any other medical problem why put him with other passengers who deserves a quiet and safe flight? Did the father explained to the airline about traveling with a child with an unpredictable behaviour? Or he just hoped his child “handled” himself good on his own ( fingers crossed )?
Even children with autism can be educated to understand the concepts of delayed gratification, good manners and lowering one’s voice in public places, if the parents understand these concepts themselves. Sadly, many do not.
Amen……I teach 4th grade ….even the best kid can have a melt down….judge not……
Seriously? Less than 2% of children are autistic. That means that there’s a 98% chance that this kid is just bratty and entitled. When my niece was a toddler, she would kick her legs to cope with turbulence. I would extend my arm in front of her legs so she wouldn’t hit the seat in front of her. The consequences of her behavior were my responsibility, not that of the passenger in front of her. When parents choose to bring their kids on planes, they don’t survey other travelers on whether its OK. Those other travelers have paid for the right to enjoy their travel in peace.
As the parent of a child with autism this is exactly what I was thinking. Could have been us and we would have done the same ti try to keep the outburst as minimal as possible on a long flight!
When I read the ad (which is totally misleading) i wondered what would cause this child to send blood & guts everywhere! Sad case of words. Should’ve been “Brat causes big scene on plane.:
The autism card is played to often David. People who are traveling in first class pay to have some semblance of peace and quiet. Matt is right. Leave the brat at home. 8 yrs old come on. You are possibly traveling non Rev or as a freebe.
As a parent of a handicapped child, who appears “normal”, it is a possibility. Usually not. But we have had strangers approach us and tell us what they would do if that were their child acting up, without knowing the situation.
Wow! That’s your answer
Thank you David . That’s exactly what I thought. As I still travel today with my autistic son. I still get stares and people wondering what’s wrong with that kid. I don’t blame them from wondering, but just understand.
It’s impressive and scary how autism became a common problem. I do recognize we may have had them back then and didn’t know enough but still. We got to a level where instead of thinking the child is simply showing some bad behavior is more likely he was autistic? When this became the rule? What happened? Why most of us were educated in a way now it just can’t be because of mental disorders? Why aren’t we looking for the source of it? Maybe food? When did a tantrum became most likely a sign of autism than of bad behavior?
If I had done that as a child at that age, I probably would not be here to reply to the story. Showing out in public (or private) was NOT an option in my parents’ house.
I have 10 years experience as a caregiver for people of all ages with special needs including but not limited to autism. I have always insisted that all individuals attending events in public and private may it be staff, family or clients be on our best behavior so everyone can enjoy themselves. It is a simple rule. By the way, everyone has special needs as individuals some more so than others for sure, but most people can be held to the Golden Rule. Treat others as you would want to be treated. We all have bad days, it happens. It is not OK to take out our bad day on someone else. We can have empathy for the person having a tantrum but stop excusing it. That goes for everyone. We can all be better toward each other.
I am not believeing this .oh you cruel and inhuman beings . i dare you all to talk about a innocent child because they have autism. May God have mercy on you.speaking things like this about a autistic child. You have no ideal the suffering. The child goes thur having Autism. Not to mention the parents suffering see a child they love going thur all they do .then some heartless person adds to the pain and stress. Shame be on all of you heartless dirtbags.
Sir did you even consider this child was autistic? You are very judgemental without knowing the facts. Your term unacceptable behavior is some parents every day experience. As a mom of an autistic child this really makes me sad to continue hearing judgments of uninformed people. Sorry, autistic children don’t have a sign telling everyone that they have autism. O
Well have you considered a sign? It may help.
Are you saying your parents would have murdered you?
You are the definition of a monster hope you don’t have no kids ASSHOLE if you don’t like the noise then buy yourself a private plane and stop complaining
Kid needs disciplined! No way my kids acted like that. They knew there were CONSEQUENCES. This is how a sociopath is made!
Sad indeed. There’s still time for the parents to get this kid the right psychiatric treatment and psychological therapy he needs before his aggression becomes unmanageable. I know raising a kid is tough, and I really hope his parents aren’t just letting him walk all over them.
Thank you. My son is on the spectrum and we lived through many such incidents.
I agree David. And after reading his review about his kids in Santa Barbra Hyatt disrupting the neighbor, this does indeed seem very misplaced.
Passing judgment during these difficult times on others like this is not a good thing to do.
Not reading his blog anymore.
Why Matthew, whatever were you suggesting in the last sentence of the article?
As for another reader’s suggestion that the kid may have had “autism”, I observe that there is always someone ready with an excuse. So here is my response: maybe this child has rarely been told “NO”, so the child only knows “I want that (whatever ‘that’ may be) and I want that now.” Sadly, such behavior seems to be more the norm than ever, especially in young adults.
A spanking isn’t it. Maladaptive behaviours increase when the objective they’re designed to fulfill doesn’t happen… temporarily. By conceding and delivering the snack box the maladaptive behavior was reinforced. That’s not temporary. A pattern of reinforcement from the parents could be inferred by the encounter on the plane but it could also be the unusual setting caused a regression and the father was trying to consider the comfort of other passengers by conceding, despite it being a poor choice for behavior management.
These techniques apply to everything from pets to kids to adults. Neurotypical or not. If you give a mouse a cookie…
I would have been spanked big time had I threw a fit like that.
He needs parenting and discipline, not a snack box. He need sot understand you do not get what you want and you cannot throw a fit like that. If he doesn’t learn this soon, the consequences will be far more severe when he is older.
There’s almost certainly more to the story. There are lots of emotional and behavioral issues you can’t see or understand just paid on the age or size of the child. Of course, could it simply be indulgent, absent, parenting? Sure. Could it be the family is in the midst of a personal tragedy and he was acting out and the parent was just barely holding it together? Sure. But we don’t know, and will never know. Safe travel to them, to you and to all the rest.
Parents of ASD kids will in occasion explain what an outburst night be. Then everyone is empathetic. Maybe dad is new to travelling with him, and embarrassed. Spanking and verbal threats would have made things worse, of course.
I hope you’re are all as tolerant when a baby is on your flight.
It might be a medical issue ( …and/or parenting), but I’d bet money on it being related to the fact that we addict children to sugar and salt. Processed food is the most criminally negligent industry in the world ( aided and abetted by the lowlife sleazebags of advertising). They belong in prison.
So everyone throwing a fit has autism? I think the reigns of psychology has ruined the ability to discipline bad behavior. Do people understand this coddling of bad behavior will be the adults running the economy at some point?? Will EVERYONE be diagnosed as autistic because of an outburst? Slap the ******g kid, in public, like the rest of us got as kids acting up. Could that be traumatic to them in the future? Yea. Will they act up in public? Probably not.
Were growing weak as a society. Can you imagine this kid as a business owner? A politician? Hell, any job?? And this is how they act? The parent AND SOCIETY, allowed this.
Clearly we don’t have to imagine a politician acting like this. This is EXACTLY how the current POTUS behaves, and 73 million Americans wanted to endure it for 4 more years. Relatively speaking, one flight isn’t so bad.
Hey tony, I’m sorry we live in a society, a different kind of society with laws and rules, and plus I am in the spectrum as well, you can just slap a child in the face anymore, you know that’s considered illegal now since it’s is not the 50, 60 or probably even the 70s, this is not your era you stupid, ableist boomer, grow up next time and get going.
Why is everyone assuming the kid had major developmental issues?
There are plenty of kids that need discipline and get absolutely none! Even if he had a slight developmental issue, which children have had since before autism became a big problem, there are still some behaviors that came be corrected or at least try to correct.
The parent can buy him a sandwich before getting on the plane if they know food is a priority to the child.. they can make sure the child is relaxed by holistic means….but I am sure there are some things that can be done. If the child was autistic, don’t you think the father would have said something to the flight attendant?
Hey… Trump’s mom sent him to boarding school when she realized he had developmental issues lol.. did it work? well that’s for debate.
Let’s remind ourselves this is an article about a spoiled kid, which they do exist. Let’s relax here!
He is, and was Autistic. And Boarding School was one way to deal with it. Interesting that his wife deals with their son differently.
Thank you David . That’s exactly what I thought. As I still travel today with my autistic son. I still get stares and people wondering what’s wrong with that kid. I don’t blame them from wondering, but just understand.
Am I the only one that finds it mildly amusing that this kid was throwing a fit because he wanted a second helping of…airline food? And a United snack box at that?
Not that I had particularly high culinary standards when I was 8, but still, he could have saved the rage for the cheeseburger…
It’s rather dim to assume the child is autistic just because he’s throwing a tantrum. Just because he’s 8 or 9 doesn’t mean he has some mental defect. I’ve met some spoiled children several times who pull the autism Card but we all know they can think straight.
A bigger problem is the patent simply letting it happen. That’s how the spoiled child becomes an entitled ***hole when they’re adults.
Sometimes children just come out wrong. When that happens, it’s a parents responsibility to eat them. It’s true now more than ever with the burgeoning population.
The Select is my favorite of the 3 boxes.
Good reminder to parents that’s it’s a never ending job that requires consistency.
Tapas > Select. Still, a cheeseburger beats a snack box, as Matthew would likely attest.
I think it is very likely that the child is somewhere on the spectrum. Why don’t you just put your noise cancelling headphones on and stop being such a judgmental ass. I hope you choke on your next snack box, you ungrateful and self righteous clown.
Are you “on the spectrum?” You clearly don’t understand how noise cancelling technology works if you think it works against intermittent sounds like a child having a meltdown. I don’t know if that comment was directed at me, but I think you should do something about that rage. Judgmental much? Mental illness is more common among leftists, despite their attempts to pathologize the right. Relax, you’ll have your Harris-Biden administration with Joe Biden as President in a few weeks. Serenity now!
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/339541044_Mental_illness_and_the_left
https://spectator.us/liberalism-really-mental-illness/
Sound like another spoiled Trump in the making. This person is raising a sociopath.
To make up for Chris’ departure – bye Chris – I’ll read your blog twice.
So, if you’re a father and you’re judging another father who is actually with his kid…but you’re traveling without your kid….that is beyond hypocritical.
Your a father who isn’t even SPENDING time with your child, but judging someone who has theirs that could be having a bad day.
Perhaps you should actually go spend time with your kid. Sounds like that kid is going to be raised without a father because the father thinks he’s some awesome dude jet-setting all over and writing vapid blog posts.
I feel bad for your fatherless child.
Being the parent of a high functioning autistic/ADHD child who is now a young adult, I could say that this kind of behavior may have occurred when he was younger. Autistic children are each different and unique but they do tend to get overwhelmed on a sensory level and in new and unfamiliar environments. For example the change in pressure in an airplane, unfamiliar or unpleasant smells, not feeling like there’s enough air circulation but finding the directed air flow from overhead to be irritating, confinement to a seat, the discomfort of the seat belt across a lap, and maybe food was the only familiar thing on that airplane. Or perhaps the child was not autistic at all but maybe their parents are getting a divorce and they’re having to travel with their father who they feel really emotionally conflicted about and they were feeling powerless, without the emotional maturity to process such complicated feelings and therefore they act out. In general I find your column to be one of the more judgmental things that I see on the internet. I don’t really think you’re doing humankind a service with your narrow-mindedness and your lack of consideration for the unknown variables that come with being human. A more compassionate approach might have been to walk up and say hi to the kid, sometimes a person outside the bubble can help shift the energy, or offered your support and empathy as a dad or maybe you could have have offered your snack box to the distressed child. We can never know what’s going on in other people’s minds so it’s a good practice to always be kind.
While all that is true, even kids with autism or ADHD can learn proper behavior if they are taught. Heck, most times they’re smarter than average. Self soothing or outbursts of sound MAY not be fully in their control, but shouting demands at a parent? There’s no excuse for that except lax discipline.
The parent is also modeling the behavior of “travel on an airplane during uncontrolled spread of a pandemic” which is also bad for the child’s long term integration into society.
But I suppose they could have had some urgent reason to take DEN-LAX just as the child could have had some medical problem causing jerk-ish behavior.
Goodness…. this minuscule indent makes your blog?? Why would anyone care? it’s clear that you want to dig deep and search for ways to continue your week-long bashing on United Airlines.
I have a special-needs child, NOT on the spectrum, but also does not look like she has an intellectual disability. We should not assume poor parenting just because a child “looks” like they are old enough to behave. Some children have difficulty expressing their emotions appropriately, even with great parenting. Give them time, and a little grace. You never know what both the parent and the child is going through.
Perfect example of an ENTITLED kid probably ignored all day and night by his Entitled parents! Will the sue?
We have an autistic son who is 17, can grow a beard, but acts like a 6 year old. I understand people have expectations of a person once that person is a certain size. But you don’t live my life, his life, my family’s lives. You can walk away the second you are off the plane. If you are inconvenienced for a couple hours, so sorry. We try to keep him in control but sometimes we can’t. The writer of this story is really judgemental and I feel sorry for him
Thank you. Somehow the kid, all of a sudden, had autism. I’ve witness this behavior from children without autism. To imply that such would only occur from a child with it is offensive in it’s own right. I know my nephew (who is not autistic), tried this at the age of five. He did it, at Disney, after seeing another kid throw a tantrum and get his way. Kid of like the scene from Opie and the Spoiled Kid ( Andy Griffith). I just looked at him and said, “You know we don’t do that, right?” We never had to have that conversation again. Uncle does not negotiate with baby terrorist.
Haha, that was funny! Baby terrorists! I will remember that good for uncle?
Lord have mercy, autism is not that common. 999/1000 screaming little shitheads are raised by shitty parents. Parenting includes teaching children to deal with difficult circumstances and grief. Put up with screaming children? Put up with violent children who eat like oinkers, pack AR15s and threaten death to libtards?
Deal with the 8 year old before he is jailed for murder.
1 in 6 boys, and something like 1 in 50 girls in the US is on the Autism spectrum, so do the math.. that is a whole lot of people. And also the archaic idea that slapping a child really hard fixes behavior, whether a child has autism or not is archaic and not supported by behavioral studies that have been running for decades. I work as a behavioral technician and have worked with adults with disabilities for the last 16 years.
the ‘child’ may have been ADHD or austistic or had special needs… How could you judge the child or the parents… So wring of u…
What is the point of this article besides someone’s annoyance with a child, a snack box and an airplane? Judgemental much?
As a former foster parent I have been told n that situation. Everyone stares and talked but what they never knew was that boy could have been abused and mental and emotional problems. ONE little girl we had went up to men in stores and said and really bad things. They think I am a white and you can’t say oh,it’s a foster kid with problems. But otherwise the kid needed to be taken to the bathroom and not come out till he behaved and hope don’t hurt to bad when he has to sit
It
all started with Dr. Spock. Anyone remember that SOB? He demanded that parents not be allowed to spank their children b/c it “stunted” their self esteem. And so all the lazy parents fell right in line with that so and so and quit disciplining the kids. And it snowballed over the decades and now you see how they act………..spoiled brats who think they are entitled to ANYTHING and EVERYTHING they want
I am not believeing this .oh you cruel and inhuman beings . i dare you all to talk about a innocent child because they have autism. May God have mercy on you.speaking things like this about a autistic child. You have no ideal the suffering. The child goes thur having Autism. Not to mention the parents suffering see a child they love going thur all they do .then some heartless person adds to the pain and stress. Shame be on all of you heartless dirtbags.
Nancy, oh you hysterical liar. Nowhere in the article does it say this boy has autism. Complete fabrication… from might have in comments to your hysterical condemnation of HAS autism you monsters. Take your meds.
This is a good time to implore people to have fewer kids and i want to bring their attention to abortion and castration as effective family planning techniques, the former voluntary and the latter forced on you if you also happen to be a loser with more than two kids while relying on govt help.
Good old fashion spanking will cure that nonsense. Yes he could have some sort of disability but chances are the kids d doesn’t hear the word “No” enough: kids middle class and quo are far too over indulges these days = bad parenting; most of folks out there are crappy parents; you want to always be your kids friends; hate to break it to you but that can’t always be the case; have I offended 90% of you? Who cares my kids are respectful and considerate to others…most of the time; I mean they are still kids; child psychology is easy; get your bluff on early and mom and dad should not undermine one another in the discipline department;
Could it be the child has autism or some type of issue? We may never know, but I save judgment, because the work a parent of a special needs child never ever ends. Just saying, it is possible.
I hope you and your family are following the California State Travel Advisory after your trip to Denver. Here is the relevant policy:
Persons arriving in California from other states or countries, including returning California residents, should practice self-quarantine for 14 days after arrival. These persons should limit their interactions to their immediate household. This recommendation does not apply to individuals who cross state or country borders for essential travel.
Its a bit unclear whether other members of your immediate household should also self-quarantine for the same 14 day period. What is your interpretation?
When my child was 8 or 9 I flew with him in United First. When we sat down all the other passengers in First glared. He is well parented and knew how to act. When we were on approach the flight attendent made it a point to speak to my son and praise him for his good behavior, making me think that wasn’t a common occurence.
While I enjoy most of your articles, I would kindly ask you to at least wonder if the child have a cognitive impairment or developmental delay. I’m a United Airlines Flight Attendant and mother of 3. My 14 year old has autism, seizures, he is deaf and has mild CP on left side. Sometimes he misbehaves but that’s how he communicates. We always prepare for the worst but so far, things are being smooth.. My youngest has Sensory Processing Disorder which makes a little difficult for him to handle sensory input and he is a little more anxious and active than usual. The modern world didn’t just created a huge increase on cancer, but also increased the amount of kids with developmental delays. I used to think like you, until it happened to me. Today I try to control my negative and judgemental thoughts on others because we never know the full story.
I used to be a Psych nurse at Duke before, and one of my patients used to be a Psychitrist, who tried to escape his bed and take off his clothes… Cognitive impairments and other mental illnesses can happen to any of us, in the future. Not even a Psychiatrist can save himself. If your kids are healthy today, schizophrenia happens during teens and early 20s, Alzheimer and dementia later in life… When a child is acting too far from his age, he probably have something going on.
What I do, if kids are in distress on my flights, I offer the parent if there’s anything I can do, as long as I feel safe to walk in the cabin. I was able to help hundreds of situations and everyone on my flights were happy when the child was calmer, including the parent. I recommend people to bring some good headphones or ear protection in case someone is being loud. I know loud voice can hurt your ears too, if you are an adult with SPD… I participate on groups of parents of disabled children and I help them with tips on how to prepare for a flight, because some parents don’t bring anything and expect the airline to provide all their dietary needs. Most of them don’t know that TSA allows liquids and creamy foods if the passenger disclaim it is for a disabled person. They might go through extra screening but that food is allowed.
* This is my own opinion based on my life experiences, I’m not writing on behalf of the company I work for.
A Trump voter in the making.
Do you have to bring politics into this?
I am a mental health professional and I believe it is quite possible that this child may have a mental health disorder. Quite often, we assume that people have all of the proper equipment to deal with life’s challenges. However, this is not always the case. He may have aspergers or another mental health problem that causes one to become emotionally dysregulated. I hope that people can take this into consideration. It is also possible that the child feels entitled and doesn’t have good manners. Regardless, we do not know the other person’s story and my hope is that people can look at others with compassion.
We don’t want excuses. He should of had that thing over his face & mouth. That kids who spit, bite and shout. My child never ever did that and it’s best parents don’t subject others to it. Society isn’t a school nor babysitter. I’d think the kid with father should of been arrested. I myself have nitroglycerin for heart. I get in big trouble if there’s loud noises. I go into a term I can’t spell. That kid is a safety issue. He could send someone into an cardiac event or panic. My nephew & room mate has what you speak of. You can tell they know what they’re doing. Until you call them out on it. They will keep on doing it.
I would be screaming to shut the child up. That’s intolerable to subject other people to that. For some reason loud vocals make my eyes open WIDE & RAGE ensue. The father child should of been arrested. Screw your excuses. You wouldn’t want to be seating close to me screaming. Unless it’s a baby. I’m 100% okay with that. But that 9 yr old would need to wear cotton in his ears. I can feel strong & be vocal without profanity though it helps
I’m glad that I’m not the only one thinking what you just said. It doesn’t matter whether the child had some mental disorder, there’s still such a thing as manners and decorum in a civil society. If you can’t control your child, leave them at home or find an alternative means of transport that doesn’t require disruption to others.
Thank god for noise cancelling headphones, but that’s assuming they only make noise…. and unfortunately, you can’t hit other people’s kids once they start to become physical. I’m pretty sure when we hear kids like this on the plane, most of us are thinking the same thing.
This article is ridiculous and should be removed. Shame on the author for being so closed minded, shame on him for actually putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) and shame on this website for publishing it.
Tell me this is the first time this devil spawn has acted out in public? Doesn’t sound like it
Look at the apologists rolling in, claiming that the kid had ASD (or something else) without any way to back that up.
News flash, there are over 7 billion people in this world. It isn’t society’s responsibility to sanitize everything and/or put up with shitty behavior. In the case of minor children that responsibility is on their parents. Period. End of story. If your child cannot behave, you need to make alternate arrangements.
2nd dRump in the making
Friends of the families had a son who acted terrible at around 3 or 4. The parents refused to listen so the kid was banned from a home with a home daycare. One day the kid was brought over anyway, daycare kids were taking a nap. He jumped one a one year old and broke her arm. Only then did parents finally listen to others and sought medical help for their child. Sometimes a child acts out for a reason.
That boy might have Autism or other mental health problems. Have you given any thoughts to that before writing this article? Must be nice to judge people from afar without any real understanding of the situation.
Yes, there might be other things at play. And, there might just be a kid who is acting out, perhaps because he’s not getting what he really needs at home (rules, consequences, attention, routine, regular sleep, etc.). Sorry, but not every parent is doing the best they can. Kudos to those who are, but there are plenty of parents out there who are doing the bare minimum. Sad, but true. Let’s not assume every bratty child has autism: perhaps they just have selfish parents. It happens.
Wow I read nearly every comment and I saw were people quickly ran to “something is wrong or developmental issue”. Even stated that the author showed no empathy. Really? Inside of every home things go on that as a parent to child relationship shouldn’t. Kid get in public, you try to redirect no matter the circumstances from toddler to teen. I have a 3 year…pep talks, the love yous, and redirection is done on a daily and pretty much all day…guarantee get in public…btw I know he’s three…it’s a different story and I don’t cave. Just kidding I do! I have a 14 year that I have to the same thing…she have moments of frustration when we get out due to not getting her way. That’s what girls do right. Sometimes…
However, Idc the age or “the issue”. It starts in the home and the kids know what to do and how to get over. Since autism was commonly used…my personal opinion…kids with autism are very smart and can still be steered in the right direction. My nine year old if I had one, would’ve never gotten another snack box. Giving in because you in public is the reason that child screamed. Kids are smart. They live with us parents. they learn us parents. And they get over parents. I am a mother.
I agree with Lukas! If a child act out something is wrong. Why??
Yes, this is not normal behavior in our culture. I do not know the parenting style of his father. However, children who are autistic or have other mental conditions do not act “normally”. Although normally a child would need to be corrected, but with impared children a confrontation escalates the incident. We have no idea if we are seeing a spoiled, indulged child or one who is truly ill. Either way we are seeing can exhausted indulgent parent who deserves it, or one equally exhausted who had no choice in his child’s condition. Both need our prayers. Been there.
There is a 98% chance that the kid was not autistic and simply an entitled brat. I’m shocked how many people grab that tiny chance and defend the child making all kinds of excuses for him *rolls eyes* This is the problem with America – very few people accept responsibility for their actions.
I saw a teenager acting unusual but I saw he was with people who I guess we’d his parents. He was being disruptive but being able to see how out of sync with a person his age, maybe 17 on up, it made a difference in being judgmental. He was still annoying but it was fairly obvious both he and his parents have never had a life without being on display.
What a fucking ignorant comment and done with this blog since the author is apparently also as ignorant and entitled as well. You know nothing about what the “odds” are. You’re just an asshole.
You are correct. Sorry that David’s comment is so profane towards you…… maybe he was undisciplined by his parents.
Amen Lukas!!! Well said
Where are all these comments coming from? They do not appear to be regular readers. Was this blog post shared on a website for parents of Autistic children? I am curious.
I literally thought the same thing as I was scrolling thru them!!
LOL, it does seem like that, doesn’t it.
Thank you for speaking out about this l. Too many parents feel entitled to take their ill behaved kids on planes, as well as to cruise ships and resorts. Too many parents don’t train their kids how to behave in public and could care less that they disturb everyone else. Parents need to remember that especially on a plane, other people can’t get away from their precious Princess or princling screaming. Who wants to pay for first class tickets to listen to someone else’s kid scream? All these parents are assuming that the kid in this case was autistic, but that is an assumption. I have seen plenty of bratty kids who simply needed parenting. Remember, nobody has an obligation to put up with your kids except you.
A family was kicked off of a flight for absolutely no reason other than they couldn’t keep a mask on their 2 year old toddler and THIS is the garbage they decide to write about? The family wasnt allowed to get their luggage and carseat and UA did nothing but reply with a heartless statement.
I was EXACTLY that kid growing up, and now? I turned out to be just fine. I’m an honors student at a top university in the US, and co-founded a startup focusing on social good. Kids need to be kids; stop treating them cruelly.
Peoples opinions usually say more about themselves then who they are judging. In this case, 2020 has been horrific for so many people and the fact that none of us are perfect makes passing judgement without knowing the full story particularly sad.
Been around long enough to have seen many parents with the “I CAN CONTROL MY CHILD! attitude who are clueless to just how laughable they are behind their back and occasionally are subtly (or not so subtly) abusive.
The kid belongs on the “No-Fly” list.
I’d put his name on the list pronto-pronto !!
@ (For all those offended by my presumption of autism)….
I admit I was too quick to diagnose the problem as autistic, in which case I will ease off as that is really an unknown here. It really could be a case of very poor parenting which is much more common and prevalent in today’s society from when I was growing up. It is evidence of poor, undisciplined parenting when you see 2-3 year olds with meltdowns that the parents are all too quick to shut them up with food, snacks, goodies and toys that last about five minutes of attention span as in evidence in the case above – attempt at parenting is only at the time of the problem happening instead of some sort of calming routine, training or discipline ahead of time.
This is what I mean about poor parenting (let’s leave autism out of it ) – they do nothing for years and then expect everyone else in society to adjust to their disruptive child and also complain loudly on social media. We see the results with many young people today – can’t accept any disappointments in life, make “entitled” demands, dare to defy any correction or admit to any of their own flaws with no apologies. Why? Because they’ve been coddled and accommodated with every childhood fit and probably their own parents were accomodated the same way. LOL, Someone else commented on how it all started with Dr. Spock in the early 1950’s. Absolutely true. My mother was appalled at a parent/teacher meeting in about 1956 when this was all endorsed by liberal parents – no discipline should be given (lest their little darlings should be uncomfortable). The results?… as I stated above. Rinse and repeat.
Simply dumbfounded that you post about violating California’s stay at home order so brazenly. Aren’t you a member of the California bar?
My travel is deemed essential. I didn’t hop on a plane for giggles. Therefore, the premise of your question is flawed.
https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/COVID-19/Travel-Advisory.aspx#
When I first read the headline, I was convinced that Matthew was posting a video of himself having a meltdown because he wanted a snack box. I also popped over to Flyertalk to see if anyone had posted a thread about the lack of meals in UA F during the pandemic
So 8-year olds are never supposed to have a tantrum? What are you proposing the parents should have done, hit him?
Depends if he had autism or not.
If this “incident” happened on a city bus in any town in America, we’d never read about it, Which serves to tell why aviation writers/editors are simply full of themselves. What a bunch of manure.
You think a city bus is the same thing as a first class cabin at 40,000 feet?
You’re obviously still an AHole by virtue of your reply to Edgar, and obviously you like the attention you’re getting right now. .
Your feedback is greatly appreciated.
It’s obvious that the author (Matthew) owes an apology to the parent of this child in question, and to all parents since as a writer he likely did not do his homework. Even better, have a spine and maybe ask the parent if everything is okay and if there is anything you can do to help rather than sit there drinking your bourbon and judging people with your highbrow attitude. My son at 9 yrs old had a tremendously painful toothache while in FC a few years ago and thankfully all but one of the FC passengers were so thoughtful, yet however there was one AHole who made the flight attendant cry since he berated her for not bringing him his vodka tonic fast enough while she tried to help my son! Oh wait, is that you again Matt? Matt, do you homework on your stories next time otherwise we will tell your parents that you are not behaving the way you should and maybe they must therefore have raised you poorly!
What else is “obvious” to you TJS?
Hey Matt – you don’t have a clue WTF you’re talking about. Adding that the child obese is an important detail and shows the depth of your ignorance. Medications such as risperidone commonly prescribed to autistic kids to help modulate their behavior (I’ll keep it simple for you) also drove intense hunger and weight gain – along with many other long term health risks. Did you bother to get up and ask the father if there was anything you could do to help? I suspect you would have got the truth one way or the other.
For others commenting about their autistic kids, remember it is a spectrum and unless you are the child’s board certified pediatric psychiatrist you should consider whether you earn random strangers giving you medical and behavioral advice.
Excuses, excuses, excuses.
If someone would have got up and asked if they could help when my wife and I were sitting with my kid (as was the case here – he was in 1A, his father in 1B, and his mother in 1C) I’d tell them, in far less polite words, to shove it where the sun doesn’t shine. If the two parents couldn’t handle it, what makes you think anyone else could?
The whole family was morbidly obese. The kid was glued to his phone. Maybe he was just spoiled.
But sorry for the lack of that pertinent detail. I don’t make it a point to fat-shame kids…
And you really missed the point. I wasn’t complaining as much as just recounting the experience. That’s what I do. I’ve been doing it for 11 years. If that’s not satisfactory, I’m pleased to refund your purchase price for reading this illustrious content…
Stop using Autism as a reason! It is an insult. I have a child on the ASD spectrum and you can STILL teach him manners and respect. It starts early and needs to be consistent.
So many snowflake comments on this. This is exactly why nobody and I mean nobody should be sitting in first class under the age of 21. If a child’s behavior is so deplorable that it disrupts service or causes great discomfort to passengers the parents should be put on a 1 year no fly list along with unruly spoiled brat.