Does Ryanair Airlines Illustrate Corporate Selfishness By Forcing Men to Hold It On Airplanes? ~by Tom .J.

Make no mistake about it. We are officially deep into an era dominated by narcissistic personalities and self centered individualism. Blame it on men. It started when fathers allowed spoiled little princesses to grow up to be spoiled self centered women. While mankind turned a blind eye to this transformation, the concept of manhood became severely diluted. Recognizing the weakness fostered by passive tolerance, corporations pursued a similar path to capitalize on the trend of passive acceptance. As selfishness spilled over into the corporate world, corporations garnered more and more wealth. With the wealth came an attitude of invincibility and self importance. From chairman Akio Toyoda of Toyota Motors (Did he really say in the wake of accusations of faulty brakes and sticking accelerators that "nothing can stop Toyota?") to the private contractors employed by the government in the middle east, arrogance, brashness and selfishness have become the order of the day. While numerous examples of self centered women such as Casey Anthony and corporate deities such as Kenneth Lay of Enron, could be written about in detail, the latest move by Ryanair Arilines is illustrative food for fodder.

In a move to maximize its profits, Ryanair Airlines said that passengers will now have to pay to use the airline's in-flight bathroom. (Now, unless the female stewardesses are throwing in free admission to the mile high club, I really doubt male passengers will take this move squatting down. It is one thing to be forced to wait on one's spousal queen or princess daughter to use the bathroom and it is an entirely another thing to "hold it" for a complete flight.) Can this company really be that arrogant and greedy? Two moves by the airline would indicate that the answer is yes. One, Ryanair has partnered with Boeing to reduce the number of bathrooms from three to one. Two, Ryanair is looking at the feasibility of installing coin-operated locks in their planes' bathroom doors.

Besides their selfish goal of maximizing their wealth, what else could Ryanair be after? Perhaps they feel sorry for the legal profession and want to create work. After all, consumers might be able to challenge the implementation of these changes under the 2009 amendments to the American with Disabilities Act. How so? Tens of millions of people in the U.S. suffer from bowl or bladder disorders. For purposes of an extended trip, this can in fact be a disability. International laws may also provide some protection to passengers. One may certainly argue that it is a human right to freely eliminate oneself... that is as long as you do it in a designated private place.

On a long flight, would one bathroom adequately serve the needs of the passengers? One would think not. But does it matter? In these days of self centered women and corporations all demanding that the world revolve around them, you can bet men are going to be standing around even longer waiting for the opportunity to use the bathroom. And guys, there is no one for us to blame but ourselves.