US Lawmakers are sick of people sitting on airplanes, talking about all sorts of private matters while waiting for the plane to taxi. After a round of story-telling on conversations they’ve overheard in the past, the House of Representatives has voted to upgrade the FAA’s ban on in-flight cell phone usage to “Permanent” status.
On one hand, I’ve felt their pain: a few plane trips ago, a girl three seats from me was proudly divulging how sick she’d been a week prior. I’ll spare you the nitty-gritty, but it involved poop and pants. On the other, it’s not everyone’s fault that a few people can’t remember to not talk about poop in public. Taking their cell phones away isn’t going to make them any more courteous.
Not that this decision solves the issue, regardless. It only affects the in-flight period; that is, during and between take off and landing. People are still free to embarrass themselves during loading, taxiing, and unloading.
I don’t get why there is so much anti-phone sentiment when it comes to flights, and there’s no logic to it. Planes are not libraries, and people are free to have obnixious conversations with their neighbours so why not let them do it on an expensive phone call? There’ll be less poop talk after the account holder gets their next phone bill.
Don’t we need LESS government intervention, not more? I read a few days ago about a potential law that would see people fined for texting as they cross the street too – unbelievable.
#2: satire…? people should most certainly NOT be typing while anywhere near the vicinity of a few tons of fast-moving steel piloted by god knows who.
@ #2 – should we also outlaw reading while walking across the street? What about while walking down the sidewalk, after all, you might get distracted by your magazine and veer off into traffic. In fact, you probably shouldn’t be allowed to have a conversation with the person next to you while walking as well – wouldn’t want you getting hurt.
Or we could encourage personal responsibility instead. Just a thought.
That was for #3, not #2…
#5: encourage away…
hope that works out for you.
This is another rotten move… It impacts far more than just ‘talking on the phone’ – it impacts use of phone based data services in the air, and prevents ever using cell phones in privately owned aircraft.
At least anywhere except on an airplane, you can walk away from these kinds of assholes. On an airplane, your the closest thing to a prisoner on San Quentin. It’s practically legalized kidnapping. Anyway, these fools who talk incessantly on their phones should be shut down. After all, idiocy is clearly now a global epidemic and needs quarantine. Not only should their phone talking not be permitted, but their phones should be immediately crushed in an onboard garbage disposal, while all the passengers get to watch on the overhead monitors. NOW THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT.
PS: We should also prohibit general on airplanes conversations which might include inebriated males or nasal pitched feminists. The pilots should also SHUT UP, because I’m just trying to sleep and don’t give a shit about the weather in Seattle.
So, those of us who need to call to inform a relative/friend that we are late on a plane that has been sitting on the runway for 2.5 hours now cannot do it.
We’re not talking poop and pants here, just “Hi, my plane is late 2.5 hours. I’ll call you when I get there. Bye”.
In the case of your airplane being on the runway for 2.5 hours there is only one solution. You must fake a heart attack in order to get the attention of the flight attendants. This however, is much better than dying a slow painful death listening to the incessant chatter of the cellphone idiots.
You could however, take a Tylenol and put on some earplugs. It’s not 100 percent effective, but it takes the edge off the stupidity.
Also, be sure to cover your head with a blanket, because watching the on-flight movies can also cause terminal stupidity.
PS: Avoid airlines who do not have enough brains to schedule their terminal arrival and departures. The gate attendants have been watching too many in-flight movies, and now have permanent brain damage.
Yeah! Woo-hoo!!
As an air-warrior ( I travel back and forth Silicon Valley and the East Coast on a weekly basis) I can’t be more happy about this decision.
Between the bimbo detailing how “groovy” her weekend was, the brown-nose sales rep parading how much money he’s making on his next deal, the filipino lady talking tagalog for 3 hours with who knows who and the idiot next to me that lets his iPhone ring 7 times before answering, so everyone knows he’s a Star Trek fan, phones do NOT belong in an airplane.
Some peace and quiet while you’re taking the red eye from MCO to SJC via Vegas is greatly appreciated.
And do NOT wake me up to offer me any drinks. Do NOT offer me peanuts, micro-pretzels nor anything you might think can be ingested.
And PLEASE, US Airways: That movie you show when boarding, the shifting blue blob and the nauseating computer flying lines…. They make me sick.
Can you just have a movie of a hot stewardess using her index finger in a very VICTORIA SECRETS kind of way….like Delta!!!!!
And while you’re at it TURN OFF THE DAMN LIGHTS, I’M TRYING TO SLEEP HERE.
They should also not allow people to enter planes with carry-on who are so weak they cannot lift or remove their own carry-on into or from the over compartment. Instead, those particular kind of rude idiots should disembark at 50000 feet in a D.B. Cooper style fashion, with $50 bucks and a broken parachute, anchored with their carry-on of course.
PS: Why is it that the weight of the carry-on luggage is inversely proportional to the IQ of the passenger?
Yeah, good, Gregory. Now because you sat next to some woman with shitty pants and felt yucky I can’t call to coordinate my ride home from the airport. Brilliant.
I’m sorry, but you people who think you “need” or “deserve” or “have the right to” have a phone on a plane need to re-evaluate your life. You can live a few hours without shooting your mouth off. You don’t have the God-given right to have or use a phone, and you certainly don’t have the right to force everyone else to listen to you. If the plane is 2.5 hours late, your pals picking you up at the airport know it (unless they’re stupid). You can wait another 5 minutes to call mom and say “I just landed.”
Sheesh, get over yourselves. So what if someone is talking on a cell phone? Does that have to be criminalized, too? Learn to shut it out.
See the third paragraph, above:
“Not that this decision solves the issue, regardless. It only affects the in-flight period; that is, during and between take off and landing. People are still free to embarrass themselves during loading, taxiing, and unloading.”
I think we can still call and say we just landed.
But I don’t really think phones on planes is a Congress-worthy issue; right or left, I’ve gotta think we all have things we’d rather see them spend their time on.
@ #4
Encouraging people to take ‘personal responsibility’ hasn’t really worked in theatres has it? You’re trying to watch a movie and some knucklehead is calling his friend to tell him how awesome it is.
With airlines moving to allow cell phone calls ,id flight I’m glad that Congress are banning it before it starts.