A Litigious Society?

From Brad.

I was always annoyed by the number of lawsuits that are filed in the US each year. It has led to a irresponsible attitude on the part of many Americans. Suing tobacco or fast food companies because the products I chose to put in my body are harmful to me. However, for the first time I realized that despite the excesses, a litigious society is probably better than the alternative. In our society, lawsuits are not too common. People are generally not held responsible for their foolish decisions, and things as a result are not always designed well. For example...

During a recent earthquake, many, many buildings crumbled in an instant because there was no re-bar (steel) strengthening the concrete structure. This actually might have consequences because it is such a 'high-profile' mistake.

Closer to home (our home)...

You might remember when the kitchen guy ran our plastic gas tube right over the top of our oven which caused a malfunction. After my friend helped me to get him to fix it, I asked my friend what recourse would I have if it exploded and hurt someone. My friend basically said absolutely no recourse. If there is no recourse, they why would the 'kitchen guy' spend extra time ensuring safety or a job well done? Bottom line, he has no reason so he doesn't.

Last week on vacation, while Amy was walking down some outside stairs to get to the subway (it was raining), she slipped and had a nice fall (she's okay, just a little bruised). However, once again the designer really doesn't care that much about putting down those little 'friction-producing strips' because he would prefer saving money and time over ensuring the safety of those who use his stairs. This would never happen in America where the designer is more worried about someone slipping and suing for big bucks.

Many, many other examples could be cited, but the bottom line is the next time you hear about a ridiculous lawsuit in America, although you should be upset at the excess, you should be thankful for a society that holds its workers responsible for their decisions and thus protects its people.