Reply to Do people really pay $50 each way per person for seat selection??

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]It’s just part of the cost of flying if you don’t want a middle seat. If you are fine with a middle seat feel free not to pay. Don’t expect others to move so you can be with your family/friends. [/quote]

+100
I'm still amazed that there are people who decide not to pay and then expect others to move for their convenience.  Nope.  I'm staying in my great, paid for seat.[/quote]
I am amazed that people forget their manners and are not willing to be considerate or accommodating. The aggressive me first culture is atrocious [/quote]

I have very good manners and I am generally nice and accommodating, but this is why I pay for a seat: I don't expect anyone to switch for me, and would hope anyone polite and considerate also purchased their own seat. I also would very much mind sitting next to a small child whose parent was too cheap to purchase seating together. I know I'd feel obligated to help out the child as it's not their fault their parent didn't care. It's unfair to hope strangers will babysit for you.[/quote]

I don't get the "too cheap" argument because airline pricing is incredibly variable over time. It's entirely possible that the parent with the basic economy ticket paid more than you paid for the upgraded ticket with seat selection depending on when and how you bought your tickets. As someone who has occasionally bought tickets for my spouse and children to accompany me on business travel I am also very aware of how different prices can be depending on whether you book through corporate travel agencies or with miles or as a regular customer paying directly. The difference is sometimes in the thousands even for domestic travel.

So people who are calling parents "cheap" for not paying to select seats together: it's way more complicated than that. In many instances I would bet you that the families who fly rarely and buy basic economy and hope they will be seated together have paid among the highest per-seat prices for seats in the economy cabin even when you factor in upgrades for seat selection (and most people don't actually pay for that upgrade -- they get it as a result of status or it's paid for by and employer).

Like this is really an argument about classism and access and not about "cheapness".[/quote]

No, you are making it more complicated than it is.  The base price at the time of the ticket purchase doesn't matter at all.  When the parent purchased the ticket, they had the opportunity to pay more to guarantee they would sit next to their kids.  They chose not to, to save some money.  That is the "cheap" part.  [/quote]

Wanting to save money isn't "cheap." Especially if the reason you are trying to save money is that you don't have a lot of money.

Look if you don't think middle or working class families should be allowed to fly just say that. Be direct. Don't huff and puff because some middle class family of 4 who saved for several years to take their kids to Disney booked economy tickets under the expectation that no one in their right mind would try to seat their 5 year old several rows away from them. Don't call someone like that "cheap" just because they aren't as wealthy as you or don't have as much experience flying.

This is an airline screw up. But many of you are a$$holes.[/quote]

Nice straw man.  If that's what you have to resort to to make your point, you have to realize that you don't have any compelling arguments.

Everyone booking a flight pays to select their seats.  That includes parents, married couples, and even working class families traveling to Disney.  When you book a ticket on the airline website, you are either given an opportunity to select your seats, or are informed that if you don't, they will try, but not guarantee, to seat your group together.  Same if you book through priceline, expedia, or some other aggregator.  If you are trying to save money, you are going to give up some amenities - seat selection, carry-on bags, meals, etc.  This is not rocket science.  And if people don't know this, it's because they didn't pay attention, not because anyone concealed it from them.

You can dress it up however you want, but you want families to be relieved of some of the fees that other airline passengers are charged - to get services for free that others have to pay for.   It doesn't make you a bad person, but not everyone is going to agree with you.  (Actually, it does make you a bad person if you try to vilify those who disagree with you as "anti-family" or "you don't think working class people should be allowed to fly."  But that's just you, and not the majority of people, who are rational enough to admit that there are several reasonable positions on this issue.)  [/quote]

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