Newps wrote in
:

Do you really think
it is a critical safety hazard that if the crew needs to evacuate the
passengers, the average person won't be able to navigate their way
past the 2" tilt of the seat in front of them. It rights itself when
you push it up...

It's not navigating after the plane is stopped that they are worrying
about, it's the crash.

So in other words, if the plane goes slamming into the ground at 150 Knots
(at least), the 2 extra inches of foam seat in my face is going to make
the difference between life or death?

From

http://www.airsafe.com/events/models/b737.htm

"29 October 2006; ADC 737-200; Abuja, Nigeria: The aircraft crashed
shortly after takeoff on a scheduled domestic flight from Abuja to Sokoto.
There was a storm in the area at the time of the crash. Initial reports
indicate that there were four survivors among the 110 passengers and
crew."

I guess the 106 people who died must have been sitting behind people who
didn't put their seat backs up...