BOFH -
The bad news is that a considerable proportion of people will not bother, and in the event of an evacuation, clog the aisles by trying to retrieve their luggage and duty-free from the overhead lockers, pierce the slides with stilettos, forget how to undo their belts, inflate their lifejackets prematurely and so on. There is nothing you can do about this if the crew is incapacitated and cannot maintain discipline.
I'm an anxious flyer, and I also like to think I'm polite. How anyone can be so rude, ignorant and plain stupid enough to ignore the FA's as they give a SAFETY briefing boggles the mind. Frankly, if they all end up toast that's their problem, but as you so rightfully state BOFH, it's the fact that they end up taking people with them that really grinds my gears. It's not lifejackets that should be under the seat, it's stun guns - zap the blighters out of the way as you calmly count the rows to your nearest exit.
Interestingly, one of the news sites reported that a passenger from flight 1549 insisted on taking her luggage. Yeah, that whole landing in the river thing didn't pase you at all, did it lady?
