Tuesday's Most Active Threads

The two most active threads yesterday were both threads that I discussed in yesterday's blog post. So, I'll start with the third most active thread yesterday which was titled, "United just randomly reassigned my seats" and posted in the "Travel Discussion" forum. The original poster explains that she paid extra for tickets on a United Airlines flight in order to be seated together with her three children. However, just as they were boarding the aircraft, she found out that United had changed their seats without notice. As a result, all three kids were seated away from her. The original poster admits to being the type of person who is annoyed when others try to change seats after boarding, but in this case was happy that the flight attendant managed to get her two youngest children moved to seats next to her. The topic of seating for families on airlines has been recurrent in our forum and I have written about several such threads which were among the most active topics on various days. President Biden has even weighed in on the topic and airlines have been promising to do better. Nevertheless, several posters in this thread recount experiences similar to that of the original poster, several of them also on United. Another poster told of her husband's ticket being changed to an entirely different flight after he had already obtained a boarding pass. They were not aware of this until the poster boarded the plane and her husband was prevented from joining her. She had to leave the plane to even find out what was going on. Our travel forum is frequented by a number of posters who delight in telling others what they have done wrong. In this case, the original poster was criticized for not checking the family's seat assignments earlier. Other posters made excuses for the airline, for instance suggesting that the aircraft type had changed. Some posters argued that precisely because airlines act so cavalierly so often, the original poster was wrong not to be keeping tabs on things. Several posters suggested that at a minimum, the original poster should have the fees she paid to be seated together refunded. At least one poster expressed hope that the original poster might have gained a new-found sympathy for those who try to change seats in order to be together with family members.

Next was a thread posted in the "Off-Topic" forum titled, "Do you assume homes with American Flags are republicans?" in which the original poster asks the question posed in the thread's title. When I saw this thread I thought it was an older thread that must have been revived because I am almost certain there was a similar thread recently. Either way, there isn't much to say about this thread. Many posters agree with the original poster in assuming that homes that prominently display American flags belong to Republicans. Others disagree, often saying that they themselves are Democrats who have American flags on display. Some argue that having more than one flag or an especially large flag would imply being a Republican, but not necessarily a single normal-sized flag. There are several political posts in this thread and the thread itself might have been better in the political forum, but I'll leave it alone for now. Like all threads that are even slightly political these days, posters find reasons to talk about Donald Trump. Also, some discussion goes off-topic to focus on other flags such as the "Blues Lives Matter" or "Thin Blue Line" flag which some posters argue is racist.

The third thread at which I'll look was titled "Working parents — driving is driving me mad…" and posted in the "Tweens and Teens" forum. The original poster describes her schedule which is full of requirements to drive her children to school, sports, music lessons, and other activities. She has had no luck in arranging carpools and vents that the driving is making her crazy. She can't wait until her kids can drive themselves. The responses were surprisingly supportive, offering suggestions for finding carpools, alternative ideas for school drop-off and pick-up, and simply commiserating. One poster named what the original poster is going through the "Muber" stage, or "Mom-Uber". Quite a few posters recommended using time in the car for communication, suggesting that teens found it easier to talk in the car. While the original poster seemed to indicate that walking to school was not an option, several posters suggested that she reconsider that or biking. The original poster found the biking suggestion appealing and is going to investigate that further. Another popular suggestion was making use of public transportation, especially busses. Eventually the thread did turn a bit negative, though not necessarily towards the original poster. Rather some posters took issue with others who described their own situations. As threads such as this tend to do, the the thread eventually attracted those who are convinced that we are raising a generation of snowflakes unable to cross the street on their own. These posters, of course, all walked four miles in six feet of snow to school, up hill both ways, and don't understand why moms are driving high schoolers to school.

The final thread for today was posted in the "Real Estate" forum and titled, "‘Where do you live?’ ‘Oh we're in North Arlington’". The original poster asks whether specifically saying that you live in "North Arlington" to a person familiar with the area is being boastful or merely descriptive. Some background on this may be helpful for those not familiar with the geography. Speaking very roughly, Arlington County can be divided by Route 50 with the northern part being more affluent, having a higher percentage of white residents, perceived better schools, and higher real estate values. The southern part, in turn, has traditionally been home to more minorities and not as socio-economically well-off. As a result, the original poster's question is not completely off the wall. Emphasizing "North" Arlington could well be a nod to the area's higher prestige. But, the insane transportation network in Arlington which makes driving a nightmare for all but the most familiar (there are North, South, East, and West Glebe Roads!) can make such specification helpful. There are posters on both sides of this question among the responses, but a far larger number say that the distinction is meaningless to them. I didn't read this entire thread but I read enough to understand that those truly seeking to boast would not be satisfied with simply specifying "North Arlington". They would want to emphasize the prestige of their particular neighborhood. On the other hand, there are posters who chuckle at the suggestion that any part of Arlington would be worthy of bragging rights. I have read enough posts on DCUM that involved stereotypes of North and South Arlington to know that such stereotypes can be deeply held and that lots of arguments occur as a result. This thread is no different and much of its length can be attributed to disputes about such stereotypes. The bottom line, however, appears to be that most of those who might specify "North Arlington" are simply being descriptive though, in most cases, their efforts are likely for naught as the distinction will be meaningless to most others.