I am right there with you. Yes, the airline might have handled it a bit more tactfully, but they were definitely in the right when asking this family to get off the plane. And I'll tell you, I have a crew of my own children, and if one threw a tantrum like that, you can sure as heck bet I wouldn't be calling the media to have my parenting skills (or lack thereof) broadcast internationally.

It's quite simple - it is our job as parents to be parents. I can understand that some children will cry when seated, but it is unacceptable that a parent cannot make a child sit when told. What would you do if it were an emergency? Your children need to understand that you are the boss, and three years old is plenty old enough to obey. It's also possible to do so beating or screaming at them. It's called parenting. As a frequent flier, I can tell you that the vast majority of children behave acceptably on planes. If your children cannot, then you have no right to subject them to others. Drive instead. End of story. I wish Airtran had given them nothing more than a refund.

I had a parent ask me recently if there was a way to disable the front buttons on his TV. He has the same Mitsubishi 55″ I have, and said his kids always push the buttons. He referred to the buttons on the front as “a design problem” with the TV and mentioned something to the effect that he likely wouldn’t buy another Mitsubishi TV that had buttons on the front.

Being in the same situation as him, (2 young kids and the same TV,) I guess he thought I’d be at least a little sympathetic to his problem. I wasn’t, and I proceeded to explain to him that the problem with the buttons the front of his TV was not a design problem, it was a parenting problem. Then I let him know that he should take more time to teach his kids right from wrong, and I tried to explain the importance of having your kids listen to you.

I don’t want to be that parent with the leash on my kid when we’re out in public. I want them to do what they’re supposed to do. That’s a full time job which must be done at every level, in every venue, on every occasion.

Kudos to the Airline on a job well done.

Here is my two cents worth on this whole AirTran/toddler issue. This will be a long one, so please bear with me :-).
First, this was a toddler we're talking about. How is it that two grown people can't subdue a toddler? Fifteen minutes is more than enough time to subdue a child through consoling or gentle persuasion. If that doesn't do it, it's time to take proactive measures. I'm sorry, but when a child is screaming and carrying on to that level, sometimes you need to just pick that kid up, put him or her in the seat and fasten the seatbelt around him. Is that child brutality? No. I'm not suggesting the child be slapped around, but that a little backbone be shown if a child is acting out like that.
Second, this goes into my own pet peeve, that of parents who insist on putting kids on their laps during flights. I know it costs extra money to buy a ticket. But most airlines will sell a kid's seat at a discount (especially with a carrier in it). But keeping a child in a lap throughout a flight? Hello . . . anyone ever heard of turbulence? I don't care how tightly a parent holds a child during a flight, if sudden turbulence erupts, everything goes flying. I'll quote a reader in our local paper -- it amazes me that parents have no trouble shelling out $400 bucks for a designer stroller or $75 bucks for designer clothes for their kids, but won't pay money to buy an extra airline seat for the protection of their children.
As for those who are blaming the flight attendants for their "insensitivity" on this issue, let's look at it from their point of view. They have a schedule to stick to. They're responsible for 112 other passengers who are holding their own impatience to be away. No doubt they're hearing an earful from the pilots, who, in turn, are probably being yelled at by the traffic controllers because the take-off schedule is in tatters. And the parents aren't holding up their end of the bargain by taking care of the issue that's causing the delay. Who among us wouldn't get snooty or annoyed under those circumstances?
Thanks for letting me vent.

Texas Mom, great points for sure. I'd like to add one thing... public humiliation.

On two (three?) seperate occasions, I've put my oldest (now 4) son on a public time-out when he acts like that. I did it basically for three reasons: 1) to get him to behave, 2) to give me piece of mind and 3) to let the adults around me know I was not going to let my child act like that and disrupt what the adults were doing. Yes, I got a strange look from a couple of adults, but most of them seem genuinly impressed by my actions.

Now it's very seldom that I have issues with him (at least to that extent) in public. I can threaten him with "a timeout right here in front of everyone" and he almost always settles down.

A timeout might be the right thing to do now as he is quite young, but think about the consequences this might have when he grows up. Maybe the other adults around, who might also be parents should be a little more understanding. And anyway, as long as you bought tickets you have the same rights as every other passenger.