The seats are assigned. People have been standing in line for 15 minutes now. Why on earth would anyone want to stand there, when they could just sit and wait until the line clears?
I understand wanting to get off a plane ASAP, but boarding? You just end up sitting on the plane, waiting for everyone else to get on.
I live in the US and I consider it unusual to fly more than once every two years.
It really depend on your job.
I know contractors that fly all over the place to get to different jobs and such.