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ForumsDiscussion Forum → Dumbing it up
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Dumbing it up
2004-08-16, 3:45 PM #1
Why is it, that we all seem to continue to put safety restraints on everything to keep people safe? Isn't it simply making our population all the more stupid? We handicap ourselves by dumbing the world around us down, socially and physically. I mean, some things are common sense. You need a protective layer of insulation on a cup of coffee so you don't burn your hand while holding it, I understand that. But what I just don't see doing any good is placing "Caution: Contents may be hot" on the cup. It's animalistic, and human nature to make mistakes and to learn from those mistakes. If one does not know the coffee is hot, he soon will know.

I picture a world in the future where railings are put along sidewalks to keep stupid people from running out into the middle of the road.

JediKirby

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2004-08-16, 3:48 PM #2
They dumbed Deus Ex 2 down...

God I had such high hopes for that game [http://forums.massassi.net/html/frown.gif]

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ZGPC
2004-08-16, 3:54 PM #3
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by jEDIkIRBY:
But what I just don't see doing any good is placing "Caution: Contents may be hot" on the cup.
</font>


It's to keep people from suing restaraunts when they spill coffee all over themselves.

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2004-08-16, 4:00 PM #4
Isn't it "Dumbing it down"?

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2004-08-16, 4:11 PM #5
I think it is...

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ZGPC
2004-08-16, 4:20 PM #6
I was trying to be witty, you dictionary mongering nazi.

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jEDIkIRBY - Putting the Romance back into Necromancer.
Proud Leader of the Minnessassian Council

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2004-08-16, 4:21 PM #7
Maybe because they are people in this world (hell, it may be like 2 % or something) who have little or no common sense. And maybe these people hurt themselves in ridiculous ways and love to play the "blame game" without pointing to themselves first. Lawsuits and crap happens.

:/

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2004-08-16, 4:25 PM #8
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Echoman:
Maybe because they are people in this world (hell, it may be like 2 % or something) who have little or no common sense. And maybe these people hurt themselves in ridiculous ways and love to play the "blame game" without pointing to themselves first. Lawsuits and crap happens.

:/
</font>


That's the exact reason. Companies have been forced to cater to idiots because there are people out there who will take any excuse to say "OMG!! I DIDN"T KNOW COFFIE WAS HOT I SUE!!! GIVE ME MONEYS!!!!!1111!"

and the sad thing is..... they win the suits.

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2004-08-16, 4:26 PM #9
Well, jEDIkIRBY, there are people with mental dissabilities(sp?) who might require a reminder note here or there to keep them on track. But I do agree with you on the fact that there are those little reminder notes everywhere. For instance, one time when I went to a restaraunt, I went to use the restroom, and next to the toilets there was a small white sticker on the wall with red letters saying, "Germs on seat." No kidding, man. It's way out of hand.

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2004-08-16, 4:27 PM #10
How about we leave the wit to the British?
Detty. Professional Expert.
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2004-08-16, 4:31 PM #11
Natural selection needs to take severe action on the people that sue restaurants for hot food.

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2004-08-16, 4:41 PM #12
You know, I forgot to mention that:

If we didn't have so many signs and warnings, maybe natural selection would solve the world's many crisis'?

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jEDIkIRBY - Putting the Romance back into Necromancer.
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Live on, Adam.
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2004-08-16, 4:43 PM #13
People keep using the coffee warning label as an example, but does anyone here actually know why that happened? I do. I'm just curious if people even know what they are referring to.

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Debating politics on the internet is about as useful and productive as shoving a broomstick up your *** .
Democracy: rule by the stupid
2004-08-16, 4:45 PM #14
OK, can we get away from signs and such? I'm just talking about how we protect people so much, and don't let them experience life, anymore.

JediKirby

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jEDIkIRBY - Putting the Romance back into Necromancer.
Proud Leader of the Minnessassian Council

Live on, Adam.
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2004-08-16, 4:51 PM #15
I don't think making the same mistakes over again is "living"... a few make a mistake, learn from it, and then try to prevent it from happening again. Sounds like a good plan to me anyway.

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MB IS FAT
2004-08-16, 4:54 PM #16
I'm suggesting that we LEARN from those mistakes. You can't learn from a mistake by never actually making it.

JediKirby

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jEDIkIRBY - Putting the Romance back into Necromancer.
Proud Leader of the Minnessassian Council

Live on, Adam.
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2004-08-16, 4:57 PM #17
I recall the first time I learned a lightbulb stayed hot after you turned it off.

That set me straight.

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2004-08-16, 5:18 PM #18
I remember the first time I side swiped a guard rail because I wasn't paying attention. That set me straight as well.

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2004-08-16, 5:20 PM #19
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Kieran Horn:
People keep using the coffee warning label as an example, but does anyone here actually know why that happened? I do. I'm just curious if people even know what they are referring to.

</font>


Duh, it was because of Kramer.

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2004-08-16, 5:20 PM #20
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Echoman:
Maybe because they are people in this world (hell, it may be like 2 % or something) who have little or no common sense. And maybe these people hurt themselves in ridiculous ways and love to play the "blame game" without pointing to themselves first. Lawsuits and crap happens.

:/

</font>



People like that are the floating pieces of s*** in the gene pool. If their stupidity causes them to kill themselves off, it's merely a classic example of survival of the fittest. [http://forums.massassi.net/html/smile.gif]



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I have found that you can transform your character solely by the power of belief: as you believe yourself to be, so you shall become over time.
2004-08-16, 5:24 PM #21
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Kieran Horn:
People keep using the coffee warning label as an example, but does anyone here actually know why that happened? I do. I'm just curious if people even know what they are referring to.

</font>


Years ago (mid/late nineties) there was this woman who went to the drive through at McDonalds (I think) and ordered a coffee. She proceeded to recieve the coffee, put it between her legs, and drive out.
Now, I think she might have been in a minor fender bender, in which she spilled coffee all over herself, or it's possible she just burned herself from it being between her legs, but either way, she sued and won because she "didn't know it was hot."

spawning shotgun, and shotgun ammo now.

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2004-08-16, 5:29 PM #22
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Pagewizard_YKS:
People like that are the floating pieces of s*** in the gene pool. If their stupidity causes them to kill themselves off, it's merely a classic example of survival of the fittest. [http://forums.massassi.net/html/smile.gif]</font>

Eugenics I say, EUGENICS!!! [http://forums.massassi.net/html/mad.gif]



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ZGPC
2004-08-16, 5:37 PM #23
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by jEDIkIRBY:
We handicap ourselves by dumbing the world around us down, socially and physically. I mean, some things are common sense. It's animalistic, and human nature to make mistakes and to learn from those mistakes. If one does not know the coffee is hot, he soon will know.
</font>


I am that person who will soon know.. I can see what your getting at, our minds are programmed to think we are safe.. Or need comfort of safety.. How true you are, I mean you hit it on how people are too soft on thinking they need the extra cup.. You dont need a extra cup, if you always get a extra cup.. you will be expecting a extra cup when you cant be given one later in life.. Only way you can get one is understand how you work for the extra cup.. you dont get handed **** and expect to get it after just a few times.. you have to understand why you need it.. in order to work for it..

its called trusting yourself and making your life a safe and enjoyable one.. not being programmed to think you need comfort of being safe by people who (show) you are going to be.. Fact is governments do this to control your life.. to control your fear and to make you to invest into being safe.. So I hope this helps on my opinion.. If it makes sense that is!

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2004-08-16, 5:55 PM #24
This is what happened in the McDonald's case. A woman went to a McDonald's before going to work to get a cup of coffee. She bought the coffee and was holding it in between her legs as she added her cream and sugar. Now, I don't know if it was a fender bender or she had to stop at a red light quickly. I've can't remember. Anyway, the coffee spilled on her and caused severe burns. Now, normally, coffee would burn you, but not to the extent she got it. Why? Well, the max temperature a human can consume liquid(and probably food) without causing bodily harm is 140 degrees Fahrenheit. But at McDonalds, they brew their coffee to 180 degrees fahrenheit. Liquid at that temperature can easily cause burns that need medical attention. In their defense, McDonald's said that they brew it that hot because they found out(or think) that people don't drink their coffee until they reach the office. So, they brew it super-hot so it is still very hot when they get to the office. Side note: Unless your going significant distances to commute, your coffee should still be hot when you get to your office if it is brewed at 140.

McDonald's was not sued because someone was too stupid to watch the road while driving and got burned because of it(which is still true though). McDonald's was sued because their coffee was ridiculously hot and it is within their legal duty to either A) keep the coffee at a non-harmful(I use the term loosely) temperature or B) notify the consumer that the product was abnormally dangerous because of certain conditions(in this case, the brewing temperature). They failed to do either one so they lost the law suit and the lady won something around 2.2 million dollars. That was estimated to be the total revenue McDonald's gets from coffee in 2 days.

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Debating politics on the internet is about as useful and productive as shoving a broomstick up your *** .

[This message has been edited by Kieran Horn (edited August 16, 2004).]
Democracy: rule by the stupid
2004-08-16, 6:23 PM #25
Driving home with a large McDonalds Coke (or coffee, either way) balanced betweeen your legs, without spilling a drop, should be an essential skill for getting your licence, dammit! Not like it doesnt just take a little practice to perfect...

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2004-08-16, 6:36 PM #26
People should be smart enough to realize that their crotch is not a cup holder. That's what the cup-holders in cars are for.



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I have found that you can transform your character solely by the power of belief: as you believe yourself to be, so you shall become over time.
2004-08-16, 6:52 PM #27
Excellent post Kieran Horn...the first person I've actually heard say the story right.

That McDonald's coffee story is the most overused, overjoked about lawsuit, where people don't even realize what its about.

My Business Law teacher started off the semester (this was when I was younger), and the got the class discussing that case. We all were bashing her with the same "Didn't she know coffee's hot? Why put it in between your legs?! Moron!"

Then he almost scolds the class, listing fact after fact about the case and why McDonald's had gotten sued.

And is this the first time McDonald's has gotten sued for the coffee being too hot? NO! Goodness no, they have many lawsuits with the exact same thing.

All the lady wanted McDonalds to do was pay her medical bills, but did McDonalds? NO! And you guys yell at the lady like she is the bad guy?

The argument that she put the coffee cup between her legs. 1) Let's be realistic: the court was too... Most people, when driving, will put the bottle/cup between the leg to open it. It's just what people normally do.

2) The cup is styrofoam. When styrofoam gets hot, it expands thus causing the lid to become sealed very tightly. (I can't tell you how many people I've seen spill coffee trying to take off the lid) The court once again looked in her favor.

So the point of this is that the lady wasn't trying to get money. All she wanted was her medical bills paid, and McDonald's said no. So she sued. But all the media played it as the lady going for money because coffee was 'hot!'.

Yet no one ever says how the were violating the temperature agreement, that way the aromoa of coffee would fill place in the morning (This is another reason they keep it so hot.)

So think before everyone bashes the coffee lady...because this wasn't the first lawsuit against McDonald's for this reason - but the media latched onto it.

[This message has been edited by Demon_Nightmare (edited August 16, 2004).]
2004-08-16, 8:30 PM #28
Do you think Jesus even drank coffee?

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"If electricity comes from electrons, does morality come from morons?"
"If electricity comes from electrons, does morality come from morons?"
2004-08-16, 8:49 PM #29
How the hell is McDonald's responsible for her medical bill? I sure as hell wouldn't pay her bill. It's her fault she got burned. McDonald's didn't throw hot coffee on her. She willingly bought the product and spilled it all over herself. Anyone that would sue in that situation is a ****ing brain-dead half-retarded monkey butt. *** **** **** hell *****.

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Have a good one,
Freelancer
"it is time to get a credit card to complete my financial independance" — Tibby, Aug. 2009
2004-08-16, 8:51 PM #30
I'd just like to add that all people like her should be rounded up, told they're going to be the first astronauts to mars, then send them in a rocket for a direct course to the sun. You know, the kind that are always ****ing trying to get something for nothing. The kind that are just looking for an excuse to put other people through hell. Stupid IDIOTS! [http://forums.massassi.net/html/mad.gif]

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Have a good one,
Freelancer
"it is time to get a credit card to complete my financial independance" — Tibby, Aug. 2009
2004-08-16, 9:02 PM #31
I'm with you Kirby. Do we really need "Do Not Stop On Tracks" signs? If you are dumb enough to stop your cars on train tracks, you desevre getting hit by the train. It's really a shame that our society is promoting and rewarding stupid behavior.

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Pissed Off?
2004-08-17, 1:39 AM #32
Idiots are people too.
"The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. " - Bertrand Russell
The Triumph of Stupidity in Mortals and Others 1931-1935
2004-08-17, 2:05 AM #33
Kieran, she got $160k in compensatory damages. The other $2.7 million was to punish McDonald's, especially after 700 previous incidents involving their coffee.

[This message has been edited by Morfildor (edited August 17, 2004).]
2004-08-17, 3:33 AM #34
We need to revise the judicial system, not the warning labels. If people find out that they can't sue for every thing they feel stupid about then companies will stop wasting the ink to print the warnings.

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2004-08-17, 6:57 AM #35
Why do ppl need these dumb signs, KP used to have 'warning my contain nuts' on their packets of nuts, and of course walls used to have 'do not turn upside down' on the bottom of the icecream tubs, i dont think ppl are that stupid.

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nope.
2004-08-17, 7:09 AM #36
Some things I really hate that were ruined by stupid people:

Rear seat car windows not going all the way down. Why? Because some kids were dumb enough to fall out of the back because their parents were dumb enough not to buckle them in? Meh. I want to sit in the back and I want my window all the way down!

In this area the "snake" fireworks you can buy (those little black pieces) were banned for awhile. Some kid swallowed them and something didn't agree with them causing the kid to get sick, so the parents sued and won. The ban didn't last for long, but shouldn't the kid and parents have been punished for incompetence?

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2004-08-17, 7:11 AM #37
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Bobbert006:
We need to revise the judicial system, not the warning labels. If people find out that they can't sue for every thing they feel stupid about then companies will stop wasting the ink to print the warnings.

</font>


I say that the people who bring such lawsuits to court and lsoe should be on hte hook for all the courts costs: the judege's time, prosecutor, clerks etc. Everyone who works on the case in anyway shape or form. That would knock out a lot of these BS suits if people risked their own money if they lost.

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I'm not an actor. I just play one on TV.
Pissed Off?
2004-08-17, 7:16 AM #38
Quote:
<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by DeTRiTiC-iQ:
How about we leave the wit to the British?</font>

I'm all for that. Seriously. Americans have to be the most absent-minded and/or dumbest people on the planet.

Freelancer: I would side with the courts in this case for having McDonalds foot the bill. They knownly brewed coffee at a temperature that could cause burns requiring medical attention. Styrofoam is a good heat insulator. You really can't tell how hot the coffee is just by holding it. 140 F coffee can feel like 180 F coffee.
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[This message has been edited by Gandalf1120 (edited August 17, 2004).]
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2004-08-17, 7:20 AM #39
Definately leave wit to the british, american comedy is mind-numbing, saturday night like is the biggest load of carp ever

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And as we wind on down the road
Our shadows taller than our souls
nope.
2004-08-17, 7:25 AM #40
This thread shouldn't at all be about lawsuits. What I'm saying, that is if you buy coffee, you should know it's going to be hot. If you stop on the train-tracks, you should know you could get hit by a train.

We should protect from fatal injuries, like stop bars at train-tracks for when the train is comming, that's a required prosedure. Someone making THAT mistake wouldn't live to tell about it. But making the mistake of burning your crotch because, for some reason, you thought placing quite a hot cup of coffee in your lap would be a smart thing to do.

Honestly, no one in the future is going to be able to fend for themselves.

JediKirby

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Proud Leader of the Minnessassian Council

Live on, Adam.
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