A Restaurant to Ban Kids Under 6 -- Older Customers Complained About Rowdiness

ABC ^ | 7/13/11

[markomalley]

It hasn't been a banner year for the under-6 set.

Starting July 16, McDain's, a Pittsburgh-area restaurant, will ban children under the age of 6 from its dining area. Restaurant owner Mike Vuick said the policy came in response to complaints he'd received from older customers about kids causing a ruckus. In an email to his clientele, Vuick wrote, "We feel that McDain's is a not a place for young children … and many, many times they have disturbed other customers."

A few weeks ago, Malaysia Airlines announced that it would ban infants from flying in the first-class cabin because other passengers had complained about squalling babies. And last February it was rumored that Virgin Atlantic and British Airways had been pressured to consider child-free zones and even child-free planes to appease business travelers who, according to a travel survey, listed unruly children as their No. 1 travel-related complaint.

So, just when did our precious "pets" become everyone else's pet peeves? Are these bans even legal? Apparently yes. Federal law forbids discrimination on racial or religious grounds, but there is no blanket protection for children. For business owners like Vuick that means they can set the rules.

[from occupied ga]

Incivility rules these days

Quite true, but this was in 1968 on the Cornell campus. Arrogant a..holes have always been with us.

The only thing they could have done would have been to call the campus police, and the cafeteria workers would have caused a lot of trouble for themselves turning in a faculty wife who probably would have gotten a stern talking to - if that. Since they knew who she was I suspect that they had trouble with her before. The cafeteria workers were all students, and having a faculty member out to screw you over is not a good thing. Look at what happened to the faculty trash who signed the condemnation letter of the Duke Lacrosse players (nothing).

[from occupied ga]

I’d have said something to that stupid b.

Would have made her day. I suspect that her intent was to be publicly obnoxious. There were plenty of other places she could have changed her nasty brat's load including the bathroom which as I remember from 40+ years ago wasn't all that far from the cafeteria.

[denfurb]

Isn’t it funny how people like us, with large families, don’t get distressed about this, but the ones with ONE precious little one gets all in a knot about it?

[Tax-chick]

We’ve learned to be reasonable. Sometimes children are irritating to others. It doesn’t necessarily mean they’re being “rowdy,” or that they’re brats, whelps, litters, spawn, or the rest of the Death Eaters’ invective. Some situations just aren’t conducive to any reasonable activity of normal children.

Yes, you can, with diligent effort and no Social Services witnesses, train a young child to sit, silent and immobile, while adults enjoy a leisurely meal. But why bother? Save your effort for something useful, like Greek, and leave the child with a babysitter, or choose another activity yourself.