The Video That Got A Grandmother Escorted Off JetBlue In Handcuffs
JetBlue really doesn't know when to leave well enough alone! Remember Marilyn Parver, the grandmother who was arrested for videotaping a fight between two other passengers, and then refusing to delete it? Well, it seems that after the whole thing had blown over -- JetBlue had to go and send the woman a nasty email in which they accused her of being “argumentative, condescending and belligerent” and refusing to obey the instructions of crewmembers. Dumb! Now Parver has released the tape in question and we can't see anything wrong with what she did. The fight is one of those basic "I've been on a plane for a really long time with your out-of-control child and I'm having a nervous breakdown" altercations. Nothing cookies and hugs wouldn't fix!
Here's the video. One passenger is heard telling a woman and a child to get the hell out of his seating area, and the woman says that he should go to sleep and take a sleeping pill. The man also asks why the woman can't control her child, blah, blah, blah.
Christopher Elliott says JetBlue could have handled this differently, and we have to agree. He's his take on it:
I think JetBlue could have handled this differently. Rather than sending a lengthy, defensive letter to the customer, the airline could have tried to patch things up. It’s obvious that she wasn’t taping the flight deck for nefarious purposes. Arguments between passengers such as the one she taped are pretty common these days.
The crew overreacted and the company overreacted. Its letter to Parver has just reopened old wounds.
Here’s the video that got grandmother detained on JetBlue flight [Elliott]
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Comments:
@juggler314: Exactly! Why do people feel like they have to bring their kids with them when traveling long distances. Why don't they just lock them in their bedroom for a week while they travel. Sheesh, the nerve of some people to travel anywhere with their offspring.
People need to learn to control their kids. Jetblue needs to learn to control it's attitude. She did nothing wrong. So she videotaped an argument. So what? Shame on Jetblue.
I see nothing wrong with what the person recording this did. JetBlue is full of ignorant idiots.
@juggler314: Yeah, I don't get that either. You had the kid lady, not me. Hire a babysitter. And if your taking a small child on a long flight, you better find something for your kid to do, it's not my job to entertain your offspring. It's yours.
Nothing cookies and hugs wouldn't fix!
Meg, is there ANYTHING cookies and hugs can't fix?
On a side note, either my comment got lost, or the new comments system is running slower than the economy.
@juggler314: I think some people want the cultural approval that comes of having children without actually having to do any of that nasty, difficult 'parenting' stuff.
Like JetBlue in this case, it's easier for them to inconvenience others than to get off their ass and do the right thing.
Seriously, that's BS. I think there should always be a video of people being idiots posted all over the internets, maybe then they'll think twice before throwing their stupid personality all over the place.
I don't know... I don't think that the video contributes anything to the grandmother's cause- it doesn't show the grandmother's altercation at all. Somehow I expected video of HER behavior, not just the argument of the entitled mother and her brat that she was filming in the first place (who should be banned from ever flying again).
From what I understand of the original case, the video itself isn't the issue but her reaction when told to stop filming/delete the footage- which isn't included in the video. In the end this is just... voyuerism.
I thought she was going to say
"There are Snakes! Snakes on the Motha-Effin Plane!"
@juggler314: Agreed. Mature movies in theaters, expensive restaurants, etc. I honestly don't understand why I should have to listen to a screaming kid in these instances. Babysitting IS an acceptable route, but everyone's special snowflake is now too special for babysitters. So I should spend $50 on a meal that feels like I'm in a kindergarten classroom.
On a plane, I sometimes understand (if the kid isn't a newborn), but the parents need to make SOME effort to control their children. This particular kid was CLIMBING on a man in a different row!
I worked late at a grocery store and would see parents with kids around 5-7 years old at 11:30 at night. Why would you do that to your kid? Leave your kid at home to sleep. It was usually (you can remember peoples faces when there are only 10 people shopping from 11pm-12am) these kids that were loud screaming ones too.
@juggler314: I know what you mean. I saw The Dark Knight twice, and twice there were children who were waaaaay too young. One couldn't have been older than 2, and the other seemed about 4. People are idiots.
I don't see a problem with asking people to keep after their children. 'They're just being kids' is not a defense for lackadasical parenting.
I was enjoying a quiet meal with my wife, my mother and I at Carrabba's when I was hit in the face by a ball of wadded up food from about 10 feet away. These cretins had the gall to complain when I asked them to take control of their children. The idiot manager was no help either. He saw their large party which had eaten, versus our small party which had not, and practically hustled us out the door.
Good job Carrabbas!
@MikeF74: Watch the video Mike, and if you still feel like this is acceptable behavior for a child please report to Kentucky for a special circumcision.
Big deal. Exactly what you described, Meg: a case of overtired pax, possibly a little more confrontation and rudeness than Emily Post would approve of, but nothing to get in a huff over, and certainly not putting the flight or anyone's safety at risk in any way. A smart flight crew would have defused the tension by dispensing complimentary drinks to the grownups, cookies to the kiddies, and smiles to everyone.
Jeez, what is it with the airlines, are they going to start being the arbiters of manners now? I know flying is miserable and I always take the route of compromise and as little confrontation as possible, but this is really a mild altercation as far as such things go. As for the video, I can't believe that JetBlue actually thought it was important enough to send that ridiculous email. And they have to be truly clueless eedjits not to realize that it was going to end up all over the 'net.
I don't know what Jet Blue thought this woman had on tape, but they can now rest easy.
@jwissick:
People need to learn hot to control their kids? Kids are individual humans that want to make choices; if you are so manipulative that you can control your kids at all times, what kind of person is that kid going to grow up to be? We are responsible to our kids, not responsible for them.
@juggler314: It seems to me like in this case the woman was allowing her child to invade some of the other passenger's seating areas, which is understandably a problem. But oftentimes a few people just immediately throw an attitude when they see someone with a child and start getting hissy about every little thing.
I'll be taking a 8-hour flight next year with my daughter who will be around 18 months at the time. She's very well-behaved, doesn't scream uncontrollably or any of that, but I'm sure any child that age will have trouble sitting still for that long. Not that I'd let her run off by herself into whatever trouble she could get into.
But really, it's not that I have entitlement issues or anything like that -- but I still don't think I should have to stay home or leave my child with someone just because some people never want to have to see or hear a child.
Since they prohibited smoking weed in the Coach section, things have gotten a lot more tense in the friendly skies.
@loueloui:
As someone with a two year old who occasionally gets in a projectile intensive mood around meal times, Oh My God Are Those Bad Parents. My wife and I would have been in a race to buy your meal and hustle our kid out to the car before we actually exploded from sheer embarrassment.
@illtron: I had the EXACT same experience. There were infants in the theater when I went to see Dark Knight (matinee showing at least). I have to admit, they were pretty good for the first couple of hours, but when the movie started in on hour 3, a lot of them just kind of lost it. You would think the parents would at least have the decency to leave the theater at that point, but no - they just gave the kid a half-assed hush every couple of minutes. Seriously - having kids involves making sacrifices.
And, bad conflict management: never meet an upset person by ratcheting up your voice while invading their personal space. Unless you like fireworks.
@brudosm:
I hope you are not a parent. If you are, I hope I'm never around your kids. A parent is absolutely 100% responsible for his/her children and their behavior. That means teaching your children to respect the world around them and act accordingly. If you aren't prepared to do that, don't bring more people into the world. There are enough ill-behaved, disrespectful people here already, thanks.
@clickable: Oh, and for the record, that mom had it coming from the irate passenger. No excuse to let a child run wild through the cabin, sorry.
From what I saw, it seemed the mom initially had the kid in the middle seat while she was at the window. That's the kind of false sense of entitlement that sends others, rightfully, through the roof. You travel with a small child, you don't get to let him sit in the seat with free access to the cabin while you get comfy by the window seat. Even if it's uncomfortable, you put the kid in the window seat where you can properly control his comings and goings.
@brudosm: That opinion is just stupid. Just because a small child wants something does not mean you as a parent are obliged to let them pursue it. You control your child physically. A parent shouldn't let their child climb on someone else who does not want to have a baby climbing on them.
@LiquidGravity: Those people were probably single parents who had no resources for child care at that time of night. Would you leave your child home, alone, at 11:30 at night?
Hopefully this will not just become a bitch session about folks with kids and how they should be seen and not heard... and rarely seen at that.
However, it should be about parents taking responsibility for the children in their care. Further their responsibility to ensure the behaviour of the children does not interfere with the people around them. There are of course special events, like a child crying on a plane during take off or landing when pressure equalization can be painful as there. Yes, there are things to try to ease the pain, but they don't universally work. Children will be in pain, crying may ensue, screaming rarely may happen.
Keeping this in mind there should be a special section in Hell for those caregivers who simply ignore the behaviour of their charges and inflict them on the rest of us. These parents, once a rarity now far too common, seem to feel they have rights. Well they do, but also responsibilities. When they neglect their responsibilities they lose their rights. Just like when you voted George W you lose your economy, freedoms, education, balance media... etc.
As for the capturing of video and photos on a plane... in my book it should be mandatory. The plane itself should have cameras running 100% of the time with certified timestamps and stored in a tamper proof way. Then when a claim is made of a problem either with the staff or passengers their is a record. And it may deter some of this crap at 30 thousand feet.
I can't stand JetBlue. They constantly bombard me with email advertisements, even after I've unsubscribed multiple times. I finally sent them and email and they apologized, saying that I've been removed from the list. 2 Days later I got another damn spam email from them.
They say they're going to "investigate into it further".
This video thing is completely ridiculous.
@brudsom: As a parent you are there to help them to learn to make the correct choices. My wife and I have taken several flights with our kids two flights over seas and we expected our kids to behave themselves and they are all 7 and under. There are other people in the world besides your self and kids need to learn that. They can choose to misbehave and they know that will result in a spanking and they are old enough now where they don't get many spankings anymore because they have learned how to behave.
I love it when we are on a plane and a passenger gives my kids one of those dirty looks and then it is some other kid on the plane who is making all the noise. Even better when the person is sitting closer to the noisy kids than my kids.
Suggestion for all of you air travelers out there who hate kids on planes: sit in an exit row (no one under 15 allowed), and wear noise-canceling headphones (they do a great job of drowning out that kid three rows back).
They should put all the people with kids towards the back of the plane. They are noisier, they take up more room due to all the extras they have to bring, and take longer getting off the plane due to the fact they have to do everything for the child. Stick them back there and put up a little soundproof wall that the kids can kick until their heart is content.
Either that or learn to parent, and that doesn't seem to be happening.
@Valhawk:
I agree 100% in this case with the kids climbing on the other person - I hadn't watched the video. But no one should expect a kid to sit completely quietly through an entire flight.
@proskills:
They don't do a good job absorbing the vibrations of the brat beating on the tray table on the back of your seat.
@LiquidGravity: I'm glad that you have perfect telepathy so as to read every child's mind and know exactly what their bedtime is and why they are awake at a time you deem improper.
Christ, it's pitiful that some people can't actually manage to discuss the issue her (JetBlue's treatment of the grandmother) and instead need to harp on their pet issues.
@Saboth: When flying with my kids we wait until most people are off the plane before we try to get the kids and all the stuff off of the plane. We have kids and there is no way that we can move as fast as grown ups with one bag so there is no point in getting in their way.
Just watched it - That's it? That's why JetBlue has their panties in a bunch?
@sir_pantsalot: Personally I found that if one of my kids is crying, hitting them is probably not the best way to get them to shut up. That said, my kids behave a lot better on flights than many adult passengers I've had the misfortune to sit next to.
@mythago: No one has ever hit my kids. They do get spanked occasionally. When you spank your kids they know you will do it again. If they are crying over something little you can tell them to stop or they will get a spanking. If you don't spank them then why would the kid care what you have to say.
Not a lot of folks blaming the man for freaking out when kids climb on him. What's the big deal? Was the kid puking on him? Pulling his hair, screaming in his face? Live and let live. Sure the mom should have done a better job, but he should have done a better job too. There was not good reason for him to be screaming like that.
Love, love, love lo lo love, makes the world go 'round.
@sir_pantsalot: That's what I'm trying to say. I am responsible to "...help them to learn to make the correct choices". But they are individuals and I cannot force them to make one choice or another. My kids learn that there are other people in the world when they 1) approach/bother another passenter and 2) that person explains why they don't want to be bothered. If my kid doesn't respect that person, then I will intervene. I also work very, very hard to make sure that my kids are quiet on the plane, but there will be occasional outbursts - they are toddlers and don't have 100% impulse control.
@mythago:
Who the hell spanks their children for crying (Unless of course said crying is entirely unwarranted, such as the infamous Mom-Didn't-Buy-Me-That-Toy-I-Don't-Deserve cry.)?
I don't understand what lady being a grandparent has to do with anything. Does the fact that her children have procreated make this somehow more ridiculous?
"Did you hear what happend?"
"No, what?"
[tells what happened]
"Oh, that's awful."
"And the lady is a GRANDMOTHER!!!"
"Get the torches and pitchforks!"
I'd love to see a 50% surcharge for bringing children on a plane.
@Gokuhouse:
Surely you aren't trying to say that the kid and mother were perfectly fine, and the kid should be allowed to climb all over whoever the hell he wants to?
Can I hope that you are kidding? I am pretty tolerant of kids and one climbing on me. ONCE would not bother me, but I don't expect that anyone else should share that view. There's no reason for a kid to be walking over people, there is in fact no reason for a kid to be moving about a plane without their parents' explicit permission. I know that people say you can't watch your kids all the time, but if you can't be bothered to do in when you're in a confined space surrounded by 150 perfect strangers then you likely shouldn't have kids.
I love how people without kids try and tell the ones with kids how to parent. Be realistic and get a life! Parenting is one of the hardest jobs and people with kids know this. To all you kid haters out there, it's a shame that your mom didn't have the same mindset as you because you never have been here ;-)
@juggler314: Amen! What happened to hiring a babysitter? We didn't go out to eat with mom and dad, save birthdays, until we were about 10 years old.
I will never understand why people that have children think that everyone else should put up with them...like when I see an adult movie and someone shows up with a 4 or 5 year old in tow (and this happens at times when the kids should already be asleep too). Then they get pissed if someone says something about their annoying and loud child...