I love to travel and I guess I am a bit of a masochist because I love sharing airplane misery stories. Some of the misery is brought about by the airlines (leg room issues!), some by poor customer service, and many because people are just darn inconsiderate.
An airline passenger is being shamed online after a photo surfaced of them letting their toddler use a portable potty in the aisle of a plane. Apparently, the unnamed woman brought her own potty seat on board the plain and set it in the aisle for the child to use mid-flight in front of the other passengers. Why? She says the bathroom was full, but remember SHE BROUGHT THE POTTY ON BOARD FOR A REASON.
An Instagram account known as PassengerShaming posted the photo of the incident over the weekend. They claim that the woman was defiant when the flight crew of the unnamed airline told her to use the unoccupied bathroom instead, replying, “I don’t give a sh**.”
Needless to say, Instagram users in the comments had a field day with the pic, which has racked up nearly 10,000 likes and thousands of comments already. Most criticized the woman for the act, some calling it “vile,” while others didn’t seem so surprised by it. Here’s what they had to say:
One user suggests thinks the incident is totally ban-worthy. “That’s just gross and disgusting,” they wrote. “Too bad they couldn’t kick the mom off. I hope she’s banned from all modes of public transportation forever.”
Another user questioned the “cleanliness” of the clean-up job. “Here’s a lovely thought,” they wrote. “She would have to rinse the potty in the lavatory sink. Where other passengers wash their hands.”
This user thinks that people need to remember that being a mom is a hard job. “Are you all out of [your] mind? This is a little kid they probably needed to pee… You go mom!!!” they wrote.
Another user didn’t think there was anything that strange going on. “I’ve seen people do this is in the middle of the mall,” they wrote. “It’s quite shocking but perhaps cultural.”
Because I like to consider both sides of an issue, I first tried to tell myself that, yes, being a parent is hard. But given the inconsiderate acts I constantly see in flight (and in the airport - please use your headphones when listening to YouTube videos!) - I chalk this up to poor etiquette.
She may claim that the bathroom was full but SHE BROUGHT THE POTTY ON BOARD. She INTENDED to use it. And I bet, had she asked her fellow passengers to let her jump the line because she had a miserable child, most would have let her. I am a parent - I would have allowed it.