I've been reading this thread with interest - absolutely see where the crew are coming from when they're dealing with parents who just don't care. Also glad that it's been recognised that there are times when, try as you might, the tantrum is going to happen and there's nothing you can do.
I was thinking of this thread yesterday, on a packed train from Newcastle to London with a 4 year old and an 8 month old (and my husband, thank goodness). Train was completely full, even in first - really felt for the poor bloke sitting by us trying to do some work as we did everything we could to keep both the children happy and quiet for the 3 hour journey! (he was charming and good-humoured, even when the orange juice spilt by my daughter was heading for his laptop...) We worked our socks off to keep them happy/distracted etc - with the result that, when we got off, two people complimented my husband on their behaviour. Meanwhile, Mummy and Daddy were completely knackered and had to open a bottle of wine at home to recover!
I would really hope that the majority of parents are still like us, but it seems that some cabin crews' experiences are very different - tell me, are we actually in the minority now?? I'd find that very depressing.