Posted on 07/13/2011 7:26:05 AM PDT by 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.
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
>We asked the waitress if they could try to do something...
It was your offense [of them], why not bring it up to them yourself?
the waiter or waitreess then pays for your meal
feel better about being treated to dinner by minimum wage workers because you didnt like the management’s policy?
“I believe the point of this article is not to inflict the bad seed upon the public.”
Agree. If one of my kids acts out they are removed and disciplined immediately. Where I see parental neglect is when they threaten but don’t get their arses up from the table with the kid in tow, and take care of business.
>>An appalling number of them are quite affluent too<<
My BIL and SIL come to mind. They have a 10-year-old who is NEVER disciplined.
We were having dinner at the retirement community my hubby’s parents are in. About halfway into the dinner, the mother looks around and says, “Where’s Ethan?”
The kid had been gone for a while. They found him picking the ornaments off the Christmas tree in the hallway. Although that was better than when he pulled the vertical binds off the window at an Outback Steak House. (last time we went out to dinner with them ever again). These people make around 200,000 a year and their kids are trophies/pets.
I usually give kids a break...they are young and have room to learn. Loud adults...now that's a problem.
The problem is the parents. I have had many dinners completely ruined by screaming kids...and I mean screaming that lasted 40 minutes. People bring their children out when they are tired and don’t care about other patrons. THAT’S the real problem.
Amen.
Don't get me started...
When I was a child, dining out was a rare treat. And you are exactly right. Had I been a brat, that would have been the end of that.
LOL...THAT is one of my pet peeves....NO OLD people in grocery stores between 5-7pm, especially on Monday’s and Friday’s.... and Saturday’s...(And, I are gettin’ old!) It always use to fry me when after work I’d rush to get in and out of the grocery store and these little old ladies, and sometimes gents, who have all the time in the world...pick the busiest time to do THEIR shopping!
I would have had a talk with the manager first.
>>It all goes back to the parents. My DD/DSIL have been taking their 2 girls to fine restaurants since they were 3 and 4.<<
We believed in training children to eat out as well. We couldn’t afford fine restaurants but eating at Big Boy deserves the same decorum and manners no matter the price of the meal.
It was nice to hear from others how well behaved my children are.
Don’t get me started about talking on cell phones, especially if you’re on the check out line checking out.
IT IS RUDE!!! Get off the damn phone!
That is SO true! I have friends like that and have told them I refuse to go out with them and their kids.
Well, used to have those friends, lol.
Thanks! It’s mighty rare these daze.
I can see him baning some but I can’t see him banning all.It doesn’t make good business sense to me. I would ban those causing the complaints only. But it is his restaruant and his money, he can do as he pleases with it.
I agree that parents should always remove a disruptive child, if it’s humanly possible. (You can’t get off an airplane in midflight, and there is no way to “discipline” an airsick infant.)
And it’s not just restaurants and airplanes. People take little children to see movies aimed at teens or adults, and ignore the natural behavior of a little kid trapped in the dark bored out of his mind.
I’m constantly telling my children, “Think about how this affects others. How can you avoid being unnecessarily annoying? Yes, it’s fun to make your brother scream in church. You’ll also enjoy washing all the dishes for the next week, I’m sure.” I’m hoping that someday consideration for others will be instinctive.
All children are born self-centered animals. Making a functioning adult out them takes years of absolute dedication and love. Alas, far too many of the “Me Generation” have little interest in performing that task. I suspect their children are “status symbols” much like the “right” car, pets, house, vacation, wine, etc.
BTW, anytime you want to know what sort of parent a prospect will make, look at their dog. If they can’t rear a dog to be civil and obedient, they’re going to be hopeless with a child. >PS
It makes you wonder how much time the parent has actually spent with the child, or if the child has been shuffled between nanny, daycare, school, and activities to the point where the parent is a stranger. No wonder the child acts out, and the parent has no clue how to stop the behavior. They don't spend any time together. Still no reason to inflict that on the general public, though, such parents should keep their trophy child at home.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.