Too fat to fly?

A photo of an obese American Airlines flyer blocking the aisle fuels debate over the safety risks of letting the fat on board

A photograph posted on a travel blog showing an obese man spilling out of his airplane seat and blocking the aisle has reignited the debate over whether extremely overweight passengers should be allowed to fly if they don't pay for a second seat. Federal aviation authorities investigated and said the man in the photo was allowed to fly after American Airlines gave him an entire row, with three seats. Should morbidly obese travelers be treated differently by airlines? (Watch a report about the picture of an obese man aboard a flight)

Fat people should buy two seats: "THIS is why people are anti-fat people," says conservative commentator Debbie Schlussel in her blog. "It’s also why humane airlines force fat people to buy two tickets." When obese passengers can't fit in a single seat, they ruin the flight for the poor, squeezed passengers around them -- and keep people from safely getting off the plane in an emergency.

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