Posted on 01/23/2007 10:26:18 AM PST by Fawn
On Jan. 14, 3-year-old Elly Kulesza and her parents, Julie and Gerald, were kicked off an AirTran Airways flight from Florida to their Worcester, Mass., home because Elly would not stop crying.
Elly, who had been a model passenger on the flight to Florida four days earlier, began to cry uncontrollably once she got on the plane, throwing a temper tantrum on the floor.
AirTran employees demanded that the Kuleszas calm down their child. When Elly didn't stop crying, the crew banned the Kuleszas from flying for 24 hours. Later, AirTran offered an apology to the family along with a refund on their tickets.
"As we have an obligation to the 112 other passengers onboard the flight to operate the flight on time," AirTran said in a statement, "we had to make an operational decision to ask the Kulesza party to deplane so the flight could depart."
On "Good Morning America," the Kuleszas insisted that their toddler wasn't doing anything out of the ordinary.
"I don't know what happened. No one can tell when something like this is going to happen. She had a great morning, but then she got on the plane and she started to cry," Julie Kulesza said.
"She's like the typical 3-year-old. She has her moments, but overall she's a very, very good child."
The Kuleszas said that unlike the AirTran crew, the passengers on the flight were sympathetic to their situation.
"I jokingly turned around and asked the three gentlemen behind me, 'Aren't you glad you got these seats?" Julie said. "Another passenger offered up a lollipop to try and calm her down."
Despite AirTran's apology and offer of a complimentary flight, the Kuleszas don't plan to fly with the airline anytime soon.
"We'll pass on that," Gerald Kulesza said. "After that, I told them I'd never fly with them again." PAGE 2 CONTINUED AT SITE
I knew a Monsignor who had a favorite phrase from the pulpit.
"Crying children are like a good plan, they should be carried out"
I don't know if that would be a commercially viable idea, but I'm sure there are many passengers who would be interested in one or the other option.
But good idea or not, the ACLU would probably barge in and prevent the airlines from even trying it.
It was not until I bacame a parent that I fully appreciated a typical comment by my father: "You want to cry? Well then, I'll give you something to cry about..."
The attendants would have probably held them for arrest with the help of the social worker in the seat in front of them.
God Bless Air Tran. Nothing worse than being on a plane from Miami to London with a screaming toddler. For six hours the Mother kept saying " He'll calm right down in a moment". By hour five I was hoping some one would drug the little bastard.
My grandchild and I were at Barnes and Noble the other day.
A boy around the age of six came up to us while under the approving eye of his mother and announced "Hi, I'm Noah!"
Whatever would possess an adult to assume that everyone wants to share space with their child?
There are alot of parents these days who equate self indulgence with self esteem. They do not teach manners and respecting others' boundaries.
When a kid is an out of control brat, blame it on an ear infection.
And yet, I've seen many very nice kids, with very good parents, throw tantrums ... despite their parents, and despite their own generally wonderful dispositions.
Your attempt to blame it all on the parents is bogus. There are too many other factors that can play a role.
So no, I still don't believe you. Too broad-brush.
I hope you cussed the little SOB from here to next Monday! /sarc
Perhaps the kid simply mistook you for a nice person.
Thank goodness. It's time for businesses, airlines, restaurants, etc., to boot unruly children and their oblivious parents from their establishments if parents refuse to comply with basic standards of behavior. There are several places I refuse to go to because they are run by out-of-control kids - and no one will stop them. So many parents refuse to discipline their "little angels" - it makes me crazy. Anyone seen kids wearing those skate shoes? One knocked into my husband at a department store the other day and the mom didn't even care.
We were on a flight from Dallas to Honolulu a few years ago and were subjected to a screaming child the entire trip. It was miserable.
Throw the kid in the bagage compartment above the seat and order a round for the entire plan.... !! :-)
Have at it.... i got my flame proof suit on!
(/sarc)
Your kid has a temper tantrum in a public place and they ask you to leave, so you get to go on TV and whine about it?
It could, in some markets ... Florida vacation spots being an obvious example.
LOL
And they're here to tell us about it! lol
I would have taught Noah some new four-letter words.
LOL. I expected that reply. I don't blame the little boy, however, if I'm at a bookstore, I certainly wouldn't encourage my children to go up and introduce themselves to people.
And I am a nice person! (raspberries)
It is not remotely bogus.. when those children threw their little tantrums, what did mommy and daddy do? Did they walk away or tan their "oh so precious" little behinds?
My bet is that they did neither, which is why they will continue to do it.
Only kids I've seen that resort to public tantrums are the ones who's parents refuse to discipline them... Its a learned response and behavior. Not broad brush at all, if the child is old enough to communicate its needs, and does not have any mental issues, and engages in a tantrum more than 1 or 2 times if they are a slow learner, its the parenting skills that are to blame.
It happens, your little theories notwithstanding.
Lose the bet? And you say so because?
What did mommy and daddy do to little tantrum child?
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