If You Hear the Word "Reform" RUN!
It's becoming clear to me that if anything calls itself a reform movement, we should be suspicious. I don't think I need to explain that further as far as education reform goes but after watching the first half of Hot Coffee, a documentary that looks at the case of the elderly woman who sued McDonald's for serving too hot coffee, I feel the need to talk about a few things.
WARNING: there will be a lot of bolding, italisizing, and all capping as I need as many ways as possible to emphasize some points.
The frivolous lawsuit
The coffee case became the epitome of the "frivolous lawsuit", and the poor woman in the case became the target of jokes across the nation. Now that I know more, I feel really bad because I, too, fell for it to a certain extent. I remember thinking, though, that there had to be more to it, that if a jury found the restaurant guilty, there was a reason.
Turns out there were many reasons, starting with the fact that there had been at least 700 complaints about the hot coffee before this woman sued. The woman was not driving at all when she burned herself; the car was parked in the parking lot and her nephew was at the wheel. When I saw the photos of the damage and saw the restaurant policies about how hot the coffee should be, I was enraged.
The media picked up the story and spun it in a way that made the woman look like she was just out to make easy money (journalists can be fooled). The "frivolous lawsuit" came into being. The woman was taking advantage of the situation to make big money. The victim was McDonald's. I can't believe I bought that but at one point I did.
The damage was done. Now many Americans really believed that other Americans were out to make easy money and sue big business/healthcare. It isn't until someone finds themselves in the middle of a tort reform case that they realize they've been screwed and that tort reform only protects big business. Don't even get me started on mandatory arbitration, where the business basically picks out its own arbitrators and everything is done in secret.
Tort Reform
Big business certainly can't allow these cases to happen willy nilly so laws were passed, and some thankfully not, to put caps in place so that sneaky Americans can't take advantage of all those poor mega corporations who are just trying to make an honest dollar.
They called this "tort reform". Someone discovered that if you call something reform, people think it's a good thing. However, tort reform simply means that the average Joe's right to go to court will be restricted in efforts to eliminate "frivolous lawsuits," like the coffee case, that work against big business.
Worse still, it is those very businesses that are making the rules in tort reform, not us. It's like the credit card companies defining what a good credit score is.
Juries are not aware of these caps when they decide how much someone should be awarded for their damages. If they decide to award someone more than the cap, the judge simply changes it after the trial. SEEMS LIKE THIS IS UNDERMINING OUR JUDICIAL SYSTEM SOMEWHAT, DON'T YOU THINK?
The worst thing of all is that we often blame ourselves for these problems. I thought the coffee lady was being frivolous because I believed the media...and because I had this warped idea of what being a responsible American is all about.
It's like another woman in the movie, whose twin sons were seriously affected by a doctor's decision to not act when she should have. At one point, the mother actually blamed herself for not asking the doctor for an ultrasound.
A few days later, the woman sees the doctor's partner, who decides to induce labor immediately. Turns out there was only one placenta for the twins and at some point, all the nutrients started going only to one twin.The other was born disabled and will require lifelong care, a huge expense for the family.
The family decided to sue the first doctor, mainly because they knew it was the only way they would be able to afford their child's lifelong healthcare.
The jury agreed that they deserved something and decided that $6.5 million (not sure of the exact amount) was fair. The judge, afterward, put the state mandated cap in place and the family was awarded something like $1.6 million instead. Why bother with a jury?
Capitalism corrupts
Again, it all comes down the almighty dollar. We have the resources for every person in the world to eat a healthy diet. Millions of people do not have to die because of poverty, a condition that is caused by our CRAZY notion that there is value behind money. And why do research institutions constantly have to raise money for research when the resources are there?
Let's Flip It!
This is where I say, let's flip this thing! I'm just not quite sure how to do that. I'm concentrating on the "frivolous lawsuit" part -- what if we all sued the hell out of big business for every damn illegal, immoral, corrupt thing they do? What if we look at their policies, find the loopholes and then sue them?
What if we demand the power to pick our own arbitrators if we have to endure mandatory arbitration? What if we sue any business that does not provide transparent arbitration processes?
I do believe that we can do something to keep big business from corrupting the only branch of government where the average Joe still has a chance -- the judicial branch.
So let's give big business all the frivolous lawsuits they CAN'T handle and see what they do.
I've been ranting. Sorry. I will now take a deep breath of clear New Mexico air and think good thoughts. I learn best if I'm happy about it.
WARNING: there will be a lot of bolding, italisizing, and all capping as I need as many ways as possible to emphasize some points.
The frivolous lawsuit
The coffee case became the epitome of the "frivolous lawsuit", and the poor woman in the case became the target of jokes across the nation. Now that I know more, I feel really bad because I, too, fell for it to a certain extent. I remember thinking, though, that there had to be more to it, that if a jury found the restaurant guilty, there was a reason.
Turns out there were many reasons, starting with the fact that there had been at least 700 complaints about the hot coffee before this woman sued. The woman was not driving at all when she burned herself; the car was parked in the parking lot and her nephew was at the wheel. When I saw the photos of the damage and saw the restaurant policies about how hot the coffee should be, I was enraged.
The media picked up the story and spun it in a way that made the woman look like she was just out to make easy money (journalists can be fooled). The "frivolous lawsuit" came into being. The woman was taking advantage of the situation to make big money. The victim was McDonald's. I can't believe I bought that but at one point I did.
The damage was done. Now many Americans really believed that other Americans were out to make easy money and sue big business/healthcare. It isn't until someone finds themselves in the middle of a tort reform case that they realize they've been screwed and that tort reform only protects big business. Don't even get me started on mandatory arbitration, where the business basically picks out its own arbitrators and everything is done in secret.
Tort Reform
Big business certainly can't allow these cases to happen willy nilly so laws were passed, and some thankfully not, to put caps in place so that sneaky Americans can't take advantage of all those poor mega corporations who are just trying to make an honest dollar.
They called this "tort reform". Someone discovered that if you call something reform, people think it's a good thing. However, tort reform simply means that the average Joe's right to go to court will be restricted in efforts to eliminate "frivolous lawsuits," like the coffee case, that work against big business.
Worse still, it is those very businesses that are making the rules in tort reform, not us. It's like the credit card companies defining what a good credit score is.
Juries are not aware of these caps when they decide how much someone should be awarded for their damages. If they decide to award someone more than the cap, the judge simply changes it after the trial. SEEMS LIKE THIS IS UNDERMINING OUR JUDICIAL SYSTEM SOMEWHAT, DON'T YOU THINK?
The worst thing of all is that we often blame ourselves for these problems. I thought the coffee lady was being frivolous because I believed the media...and because I had this warped idea of what being a responsible American is all about.
It's like another woman in the movie, whose twin sons were seriously affected by a doctor's decision to not act when she should have. At one point, the mother actually blamed herself for not asking the doctor for an ultrasound.
A few days later, the woman sees the doctor's partner, who decides to induce labor immediately. Turns out there was only one placenta for the twins and at some point, all the nutrients started going only to one twin.The other was born disabled and will require lifelong care, a huge expense for the family.
The family decided to sue the first doctor, mainly because they knew it was the only way they would be able to afford their child's lifelong healthcare.
The jury agreed that they deserved something and decided that $6.5 million (not sure of the exact amount) was fair. The judge, afterward, put the state mandated cap in place and the family was awarded something like $1.6 million instead. Why bother with a jury?
Capitalism corrupts
Again, it all comes down the almighty dollar. We have the resources for every person in the world to eat a healthy diet. Millions of people do not have to die because of poverty, a condition that is caused by our CRAZY notion that there is value behind money. And why do research institutions constantly have to raise money for research when the resources are there?
Let's Flip It!
This is where I say, let's flip this thing! I'm just not quite sure how to do that. I'm concentrating on the "frivolous lawsuit" part -- what if we all sued the hell out of big business for every damn illegal, immoral, corrupt thing they do? What if we look at their policies, find the loopholes and then sue them?
What if we demand the power to pick our own arbitrators if we have to endure mandatory arbitration? What if we sue any business that does not provide transparent arbitration processes?
I do believe that we can do something to keep big business from corrupting the only branch of government where the average Joe still has a chance -- the judicial branch.
So let's give big business all the frivolous lawsuits they CAN'T handle and see what they do.
I've been ranting. Sorry. I will now take a deep breath of clear New Mexico air and think good thoughts. I learn best if I'm happy about it.
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