Back in Victorian times, the Brits had a saying, "Children should be seen and not heard". In other words, although children are the only way of perpetuating the species and so we have to put up with them, it's much better if we never have to tolerate their bad behavior. How many of us have stood or sat transfixed by a child demonstrating the art of the tantrum. It usually starts with a yell of outrage over some imagined disruption to quality of life. If we're lucky, the resulting reaction is purely verbal and, yes, we're frequently amazed at how colorful even the youngest children can get when they have the bit between their teeth. They can hold their own with dock workers and others famous for their ability to swear nonstop for ten minutes without drawing breath. If we're unlucky, there's physical involvement. This can be passive resistance but, more often than not, the first step is to look for things to throw. When the available ammunition has been used up, it's into violence against anyone within range of flying fists and feet.
Allowing for the fact children are more likely to lose their self control when they are tired and traveling can be a very tiring experience, and boredom on a long flight adding fuel to the fires, we see rather more bad behavior than we would like in airports and on long haul flights. In a recent survey, more than a third of those patient and long-suffering Brits said they would willingly abandon cheap air tickets and pay more for the privilege of traveling without any young children on board.
So ask yourselves how many times you have had the pleasure of a child sitting behind you and kicking the seat, or with children throwing food or spitting at you. Would you be prepared to pay a few more dollars to avoid the frustration of parents who seem incapable of controlling their children? Do you think airlines should offer this service? Just think. They could batch all the families with younger children together, and leave the rest of the skies free of noise for the rest of us. Would you surrender cheap airline tickets for peace and quiet?