Should Fat Flyers Pay More?

While average Americans are heavier, as Susan Koeppen reports, some say airlines should provide larger seats. Maggie Rodriguez talks to activist Marilyn Wann about weight discrimination.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• marilyn
• wann
• weight
• discrimination
• fat
• flyers
• fees

[tulipwalk23]

if you take up 2 seats you should pay 2 fares. Its not rocket science.

[MrRT1966]

Discrimination? It is discrimination to expect people who take up 2 seats to pay for 2 seats? Extra tall people have to pay extra for bigger sizes..(although it's not there fault that they are taller.)...and no discrimination issue occurs there. So why the discimination issue with overweight people? Obese people(most times) can lose weight..tall people cannot become shorter.

[Pluscount]

These people know when they set out for the airport that they need two seats. It's not a surprise to most of them. They need to buy what they need. Forcing everyone to have wider seats just raises everyone's fares. The super-obese can pay for two seats and everyone else can fit in one. These people annoy me when I see them on TV, even more on an airplane!

[SlumberCloud]

They pay more for clothes, because they use more fabric. They pay for for shows for larger si and wide sizes. They should pay for two seats until they make seats larger.

[scorchedcandy]

While I think that it does suck that the obese are being singled out it also sucks for the people stuck next to them. I was once on a transatlantic flight with a friend and there was an obese woman seated in the same aisle. Aside from spilling over into my pal's seat this lady pretty much stomped over everyone to get out of the aisle and head to the restroom. Not fun when the flight takes 14 hours.

[tiaashley2009]

If they got rid of some seats on planes to accommodate overweight people, wouldn't that bring the costs of flights up? I say make them pay for two. I had the same issue on my last flight. The man took up all of his seat, half of mine, and half of the man's sitting next to him. And he was definitely less than apologetic about it...

[SunnySide2000]

I am sorry but when does the size of a seat become politically correct? If your fat I am sorry maybe thin people should pay half for the ticket. I don't feel sorry for you if your fat it's your choice why should someone be touching your arm and body in my space with the air rest up and skin hanging over! Fuel prices have increased if your weigh to much don't blame the airline on it! Take responsibility and call the airline about it then you wouldn't be embarrassed. Why can't people take account

[midnightfapper]

@BashfulTrash judging from her behavior (stuffing junk food down her gullet), i can tell that beast has zero resepect for herself.

fat fuckery is a lifestyle choice, plain and simple. if i chose to smoke crack cocaine, should i sue corporate america for not employing me?

get real fatty fatty two by four. you realize rejecting fat people is a survival instinct? fatasses communicate ,,diseased or infested with parasites" to the primal brain.

[BashfulTrash]

@ohyeahusername For most people, fat is not a choice. It's a genetic predisposition. Most fat people exercise and eat moderate amounts of healthy and unhealthy food, just like "normal" people. That's exactly why the fact that they need to pay more for health insurance just because of their weight is discriminatory and unfair. Fat does not mean unhealthy. It is a myth propagated by the media, and causes unnecessary and destructive hatred in our society.

[BashfulTrash]

@ghostsheet It's not that simple. 95% of all weight-loss diets fail. NINETY-FIVE PERCENT. Some people may become fat because they don't have a balanced diet and eat more than they need to, but MOST fat people are fat because of genetics. Just as there are genes dictating height, there are also genes dictating one's set weight. Human beings come in all different shapes and sizes, and no one deserves to be called a "fuck" based on the body into which they were born.

[BashfulTrash]

@midnightfapper I have never seen you, but I already don't respect your point of view because you are actually calling another human being a "beast" based on how she looks. All human beings should be judged by their behavior, not their external appearance. That is exactly what anti-discrimination activism is about. The airlines issue aside, moral people don't call other people "beast" based on their appearance.

[midnightfapper]

this beast is disgusting, she can barely breathe, look at her huffin' and puffin'

airlines are a business. if it was profitable to cater to fatties, they would. it's not, so get over it.

fat people should be charged extra, no doubt.