Passengers Using Feet To Pick Movies On Planes: Disgusting, Lazy, Or Both?

Intro

I’ve seen my fair share of interesting barefoot experiences on planes. Whether that be on Sri Lankan Airlines when somebody decided to put their bare feet on my seat, or flying out of Bamako, Mali, then the person next to me put their bare feet up on my seat. I don’t mind if it’s cultural, but laziness? That’s a different story.

Well, a couple of reports have come out recently surrounding passengers deciding that changing channels with their feet is a good idea. Spoiler: it isn’t. 

Why, Just Why???

As I was sitting down this morning, enjoying my morning cup of coffee, a friend of mine sent over a video of someone in Polaris picking a movie with their feet. No, not the remote which is right next to your seat, and not leaning forwards slightly to use their fingers, we are talking their raw toes. It’s one thing if you are physically unable (still unexcusable), but this person looked young based on the video. 

Certainly an interesting decsion here...

Flash forward to an even more recent report, there is an image going viral of someone doing the exact same thing on Delta in First Class (Domestic). Once again, the question remains: why? 

My Opinion

Yes, this might be a page about travel blogging, but I am also someone who likes to document people, both the positive and negative sides. With my unscientific opinion, here is my take on this: 

• In certain places in the world, we hold this idea that we are entitled to certain behaviours and often get away consequence-free, or with little consequence. 

• It’s a sad reality, but we often focus on ourselves (I am generalizing here, of course) more than others. Whether that be taking a call out loud in an airport lounge, wanting to board before your assigned group, or placing bare feet on an IFE screen, we don’t think about surroundings; we think about ourselves. I’m guilty of this myself at certain times as well, don’t get me wrong, but it’s something that does have to be acknowledged.

• Now, I also want to add that while many people find bare feet gross on planes, it is extremely normal in Africa and Asia. Originally, before I went to these remote places, I actually asked to be moved from a seat on ANA business class because someone had their bare feet up, and the flight attendants didn’t seem fazed. So cultural is different. The same thing applies to playing music off your phone. If you are not taught that growing up, then how would you know?

I understand if this is someone's culture, but contrast this picture to the above in Delta First Class

So yeah, when I first read this, it reminded me a lot about the systemic issue of living in the United States. It’s a consumer-driven society that revolves around competition. A good Iranian friend of mine who works in finance always told me that he can’t trust anyone else, since they have a track record of using and abusing their “friends” in said company. 

Honestly, it might just be someone putting their feet up on the IFE screen, but it reflects a deeper message. We need to lay down a rulebook, especially on planes, and stick to it. 

What do you think about all of this? If you feel I am in the wrong, I would love to hear your thoughts as to why, as I am more than open to feedback. 

Final Thoughts 

There are a couple of videos/images going viral recently surrounding passengers putting their feet up and using their toes to pick movies on the IFE screens. While this is certainly disgusting, I believe it reflects a deeper systemic issue: we are a consumer-driven society, and this is why circumstances arise this happening.