If I'm spending more than six hours on a flight, I expect the person in front of me to want to recline. Seats are so constrained these days that I expect that p

If I'm spending more than six hours on a flight, I expect the person in front of me to want to recline. Seats are so constrained these days that I expect that people will stretch out at their convenience. The issue isn't concern for others, it's whether that concern extends forward to the seat ahead, or whether it extends backwards to the seat behind. One might be tempted to say, "every situation is different. Just ask the people behind you before you lean back, and comment to the people in front of you when you want them to lean less." But the problem with that is that most people want to sidestep the close-packing of the cabin by interacting with others as little as possible. Maybe a little polite conversation within the row, but that's it. BTW, my flight attendant didn't point much of anything out. She angrily yipped at me in German, no smile, no sense of friendliness. It struck me as bizarre, totally counter to the interpersonal skill that usually characterizes flight attendants. I chalked it up to a combination of a difference in culture and a lack of corporate attention on politeness. I have no problem with accommodating a polite request, although I lean back frequently and, other than that one instance, have never been asked to refrain from doing so by a passenger or flight attendant despite flying very often and almost always leaning back for some or all of the flight.