Politely deter them and explain I have been there but I am not anymore
Parachute out of the plane. Or as Jack Nicholson once said, I'd rather stick needles in my eyes.
Intersting reading....many responders assume there are parachutes on-board. There are No parachutes on any commercial flights!
Really depends on the individual. Is any real conversation possible? Are they so far gone only satire & depravity will shut them up? Are they just so boring &redundant that a coma is preferable? Decisions, decisions!!!
Tell him/her the plane is going to crash and we will need parashoot out, then hand them my backpack and open the door.
Ask the question "What could a '' and religion possibly have in common?"
I was stuck, in March on an 11 hour flight from China to Seattle next to a guy who looked like the Dalai Lama. That was the best part.
As the plane began backing away to taxi for take-off, he removed his leather, closed toed sandals. The stench was something from another dimension. My two adult kids were together in the next seats up. Daughter -in -law said later that she went to the restroom after we were aloft to check her armpits and crotch (I swear) just to 'make sure' it wasn't her!
Not the worst of it! For the following hour - two hours - as we're over Russia, he's 'breaking wind' about every fifteen to twenty minutes. It was an overnight flight, serving dinner and breakfast between points. Imagine now, will you, perusing a dinner menu with nostrils filled with aromas that would have made Limburger Cheese seem like a waft of fresh mountain air!
I'd have gleefully paid a hundred bucks for a seat next to a Jehovah's Witness!
Tales from the Dark Side, indeed!
Earbuds, or I tell them to shove it. If that doesn't work, I give them the devil horns, and tell them that my toaster tells me to eat homeless people.
Do not make eye contact or allow anyone to engage you in conversation on a long flight. I boarded in Atlanta for a flight to LAX late afternoon, not packed. The other young woman spoke as we deplaned, stating that she was a speaker for " The Forum ". It's kinda like EST, but faster. I patted myself on the back for being silent and self absorbed. A good friend recommended that I try The Forum out years earlier. I was bouncing around from ending a 22 year marriage at the time, so I thought " What could it hurt? " It was 3 days in a hotel on the East coast of FL when I live on the W coast, but OK. It turned out to be a belief system without a god. They wrapped their presentation up with a lie, AND took 3 days to say something that could have been said in 15 minutes. I was so pissed at my friends I did not speak to them at all for 2 years.
I remember EST back in the '80's. I still have old contacts, I can't really say friends, that 'practice'. would have thought they'd have grown out of it by now. I guess for some they need some kind of belief, even if not a 'god' to feel superior & in the know.
Ask the fight attendent for a parashoot. Failing that have fun debunking everything they say.
If they would nto be quiet, I'd chang eseats if I could.
If they persisted,and wanted to talk religion, I might go into why7 religion ins't really true. If the flight were long enough I'd realy do my beswt to shake their faith up. I mean if they are not going to be polite and insist on beign rude, i can be rude too.
It would depend on the circumstances. If we accidentally got on the subject and the person began preaching, I'd probably just act bored, nod distractedly, yawn, then say something about I'm going to take a nap now.
Then I'd stop interacting with them, and ignore them if they start up later. If I only react positively when they leave me alone, or stick to normal conversation, and ignore them when they preach, it trains them to do what I want.