JACI STEPHEN: Plus-sized plane travelers who spill into my space shouldn’t be given free extra seats

What a big mess!

Jaelynn Chaney – the latest contender for Victim of the Week and self-proclaimed creator of “plus size travel, fashion and lifestyle” – is demanding that the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) do more to “protect” morbidly obese passengers, even giving them free extra seats.

“Air travel should be comfortable and accessible to everyone,” she wrote in an online petition.

But what Jaelynn doesn’t realize is that it’s not all about her.

Indeed, true Mine protection against suffocation next to someone spilling from the confines of their own chair?

Take this ordeal from a few years ago. It’s a scene that may be familiar to many readers.

There I was, five feet tall and 112 pounds, quietly reading a book in an empty line, waiting for takeoff.

Now I’ve written before about how I always refuse to give up my seat to someone asking to swap. And by that same standard, I would never dare force others to change theirs. So as the end of boarding approached, I prayed that the seats next to me would remain empty.

But then, at the eleventh hour, my heart sank. A life-size lady began to maneuver next to me. (Her equally life-sized container of Coke threatens to drown me in the process.)

Almost pressed against the window, I tried to ignore it.

I suffer from claustrophobia, so traveling by plane is challenging enough. And we had a good four-hour flight ahead of us. I had to stay calm.

But then she picked up her knitting. And as her elbow threatened to poke my eye out with every stab, my breathing quickened.

I felt like I was being devoured. One skein of wool at a time. I could hardly move.

But guess what? According to Jaelynn, pointing out all this amounts to “discrimination.”

In fact, she says, the FAA should give taller passengers “an extra free seat, or even two or three … depending on their size.”

And who is going to pay for those ‘free’ extra seats? Of course you are. And that’s me, due to higher rates.

Never mind that America has the worst obesity problem in the world. Nor that being overweight poses serious risks to your health and puts a terrible burden on national medical resources. As long as Jaelynn is happy, that’s all that matters. Right?

Now, of course, this is a free country. A free and very thick country. And Jaelynn can demand whatever she wants, no matter how unreasonable.

But let me be free to serve up a good helping of reality in return: Overweight does not qualify for special treatment over others. Just like a healthy weight doesn’t. Isn’t that what equality means?

Yes, a small minority of people suffer from weight issues that are completely beyond their control due to medical conditions – and they should be getting the support they need.

But the hard truth is that the vast majority of obese people in America — of which there are a whopping 70 million — got there because of poor eating habits, lack of exercise, and lack of self-control.

And if you don’t meet the preconditions of a society that is geared towards the ‘normal’ majority – can we still use that word? – then you might be the one who needs to be more accommodating.

In fact, it would hardly be unreasonable to argue that if someone is so large as to encroach on someone else’s paid seat, they should be required to purchase additional seats.

Otherwise, your unassuming neighbor whose flight just ran into trouble should be the one asking for a refund.

This is all part of a wider cultural shift. Victimization is now the new royalty. Where everyone competes for the crown.

Plus-sized celebrities like model Ashley Graham or singer Lizzo who shout that their unhealthy bodies should be celebrated are partly to blame. Since when has it become a criminal offense to say that a healthy lifestyle is ambitious?

This blatant attempt by so-called “influencer” Jaelynn to change a world that doesn’t run by her own selfish standards came just hours before country singer Jessie James Decker took to Instagram to abuse her sizable celebrity reign and to call United Airlines to complain. .

Jessie echoed her brother-in-law’s claims that her pregnant and therefore “high-risk” sister, Sydney Rae Bass, was forced to get on her “hands and knees” during a United flight to clean up the popcorn thrown by her snooty children . in the corridor. Imagine that! You and your children need to clean up.

This escalates.

No one honestly thinks that overweight passengers should be given special privileges that extend to extra freebees. And the same goes for not expecting flight attendants to put up with the mess that a z-lister’s pregnant sister throws their way.

The problem is that most people are afraid to say that. But I’m leading the backlash.

You can buy your own extra seats – and get your popcorn off the floor while you’re at it.