Did anyone read the Jeremy Clarkson column re crying baby on the plane???!!!

[oliveoil]

\link{http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2092-2157701_1,00.html\arse}

bit long

Well I still think that the article was a disgrace, particularly the last line.

I have been on lots of flights with crying babies and THEY DON'T COME WITH A MUTE BUTTON, HELLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!??????

Economy class yes, but I don't see why you should behave any different just because you have paid ££££££££££££££££££, manners and a bit of tolerance cost nothing.

PAH!

No they don't come with a mute button, and that is why on the numerous flights (up to 17 hours) I have taken with DS since he was 9 weeks old, both his Dad and I have worked hard to ensure that he is well looked after, distracted and entertained, because we didn't see why anyone else, whether they had paid £2-79 in Sleazyjet or were in Club 9I have never actually travelled other than economy) should put up with unneccesary disturbance.
If you can see that a parent is doing their utmost to sooth / entertain thier child, of course you sympathise, even if wincing at the ear-piercing shriek, but this couple were NOT doing that - not the baby's fault - but if you want fluffy irony-free writing about babies, don't be reading JC!

ahhh, but were they just letting the baby cry, we only have his word for that and he is an annoying knob who thinks he is still 22 so holds no weight with moi.

LOL Batters!

Were you tempted to cut off the hair that fell in front of your screen?

Yes, he is an annoying knob..in fact if it weren't for MN I would never have read a single word of his!!

the woman was probably at her wit's end

I gave up on ds and handed him to dh and told him to do it because after around 5 hours of screaming with the prospect of another 6 hours to go, I was starting to think of opening the emergency exits and attempting a free fall jump.

I agree with him too. I think it's cruel to take such a oung baby on long haul flight and be unable to calm it down

Actually, I never want to sit near anyone else at all on a plane, JC, my own child, americans with greasy hair, men doing meditative chanting to alleviate fear-of-flying , young women evangelising about the religious sect they are off to join because the leader has been turning people's fillings into gold, anyone who takes up the seats either side so I can't stretch out.

I turn into an instant misanthropist at check-in!

LOL I can't stand JC and I read that and laughed and thought it was a very neat piece of writing. Of course we only have his word for it, but if what he says is true and the mother was ignoring the baby, then she was an arse, and I agree with him. So there.

oh well don't even get me started on other passengers with their BO, fidgeting, sniffing, coughing, yelling, kicking, drinking, constant eating, mess, snoring, demanding etc. etc. I agree, often far more offensive than a baby could ever be.

Air travel is grim. problem is people think that if you pay more you to go in a better class you might get some sort of return to the glory glamour days of air travel - and it ain't so. Also agree that most people understand if parents are trying their best to calm children - it's when they're not people get irritated. anyway lots ofpeople in business/first class aren't paying anyhow - their employers are.

JC is an arse, I agree, but I find him an entertaining arse.

Blu - me too! I hate everyone equally when travelling.

it is precisely this kind of writing that makes me (ahem) "admire" Jezza so much
wish I could write like that, tbh

Yes loath as I am to agree with you on Jezza, you are right HC

I can't stand JC on tv,but always laugh at his column.Pre dd's I used to dread sitting next to a family on long haul flights.We haven't been able to fly anywhere with the children yet,but will do soon.I can understand being annoyed by a baby crying if no effort was made to console it.That is plain wrong,whether on a plane or anywhere.Musy go as dd2 is about to eat compostr

I still don't understand what his parable is - or the ppoint of the first few paras! Laborious writing, imo, low accelaration, 0-60mph in several low-gear paras.

when I hear about him, I can't help but think of him and Piers Morgan and handbags at dawn.

The thing with old Clarky is that you have to take everything he says / writes with a pinch of salt. He's probably not deadly serious about this and a little tongue in cheek....

It was really unfair of the mother to ignore her crying baby so i agree with JC, as i would be one of those mothers that would try to calm my baby for the sake of other passengers.
I don't think it's fair to suggest under two's don't fly tho .. sometimes you just can't stop them crying!
I have flown on long haul flights when my dd1 was 6m, 18m, and 2.6yrs and luckily she has been an angel, apart from the one time where she cried on landing, but that was right at the end of the journey and everybody was awake.
There was even another 7m baby that cried a lot. My mum and i offered to help carry the tot for her at times.

Snort at blu and batters (where's a really sticky sweet to embed when you need it batters).
This is why we risk rain and only go where we can drive for our hols. In your own car no-one can hear you and the children scream, swear, disown each other etc...and you can't hear other travellers...

Have to say, why just blame the mother. Doesn't the father have a responsibility too? When I read the articel, that's how I read the sting in the tail - that he was actually having a go at the father who was never around and was abdicating his reponsibilities.

What a load of bollocks !! -- I have flown quite a lot with DS from 10 weeks old onwards as we had to move to the US for dh's work for a while. He is and always has been a very easily overstimulated baby. He cries very loudly (admitedly not for much longer than about 1/2 an hour but sometimes longer than that) when he gets into a state and jiggling, walking and even breast feeding do absolutely nothing to stop it for more than 10mins at a time. He justs starts again. The best thing to do is to sit still with him - hold him and try and minimise the over-stimulation. Eventually he falls asleep which he never does if you continually try and distract him- but yes when he was younger it could take up to an hour.

I personally don't give a shit what Jeremy clarson thinks. I know what is best for my baby and will do what is required to bring the crying to an end as soon as possible - even if it doesn't match what is expected by others - i.e it would look like I was doing nothing. If he cries then so what I've have to put up with people snoring, talking etc on flights. I also felt like this before I had children. kids cry !! they are part of life - Grow up

I actually like Jezza he can be quite funny - thought this article was faintly amusing too.

I have a certain sympathy - who loves screaming kids - especially in a confined space with no chance of escape? OTOH I don't see how you can ban children from flights, it's just not feasible.

My dh was the one who used to get me sstressed on plain, as he would really pissed off and annoyed every time ds so much as peeped. I was expected to shut him up at all costs (what was I eexpected to do, smother him?!).

My view was that ds was a baby for chrissake - and we were all babies once, so the rest of plane were just going to have to lump the fact that he'd woken up and that getting annoyed was not going to settle him any quicker.

Ds flew to Greece when he was 11 months old and then toSOuth Africa and back when he was 13 months old. FWIW he was actually very oggod- yes, he did cry occasionally, but was quick to settle (expect when dh was getting ultra frustrated with him and the negative emotion of exasperation was being "felt" by ds . I had also made sure to breast feed beyond 12 months, so that I was able to comfort him by giving him a feed.

i'm with mr clarkeson. crying babies should be banned, from everywhere.