I was flying with my 5-year-old, Ella, and she was happily watching something on her iPad with headphones on. Across the aisle was this boy about the same age, but he kept eyeing Ella’s screen. His whining got louder, and his mom, who I’ll call Entitled Mom (EM), finally tapped me on the shoulder. “We’re being responsible and not giving our son any screen time this trip.
Can you put the iPad away? It’s upsetting him.”
I was stunned. “No, sorry. My daughter’s calm and enjoying her show.”
EM’s smile dropped fast. “Wow, so you’d rather ruin our family trip than take a break from your kid’s precious screen?” She muttered, just loud enough for everyone to hear, “Some parents can’t say no these days. It’s no wonder kids are spoiled.”