OT: Excuse Me, Is Anyone Listening?

That was excellent, thanks for pointing it out David.
That last paragraph makes one think... and wonder if we can change it.

Thought provoking indeed, and the trouble is, it's spreading it's way around the world. The U.K. has gone/is going litigation mad, but at least there are moves to make driving while using a mobile/cell phone illegal, though you have to be caught doing it by the police, we can't just tell on someone (yet). As for the kid and his ball, some of the recent cases involving burglars, taking homeowners to court because they were injured!? where will it all end?

That was a very thought provoking article. I can speak from personal experiance on the nusance of cell phones. My first story was in Calgary. We had just stopped at a red light. The person behind us was about 200m behind us, with plenty of time to see the light was red, and to stop in time. But he was on a cell phone, and rear-ended us at 100km/h. We probably were saved because we were towing a trailer, which was completely destroyed. My second story was when I was rollerblading with some friends. Someone was backing out of their driveway talking on the cell to someone. As my friends rollerbladed past the driveway, the driver backed out into the middle of us. Fortunately, he was going slow, so me and my friends survived with only minor scrapes and bumps. I just hope people come to their senses before we destroy the world as we know it.

Wow someone's a bit bitter.

I see the point though.
Todays technoligy is corroding the family web.
However it our own resposability to prevent this from happening in our familys.
We also have the responsability to socity not to cause problems such as pointed out in the article.

Yet I wonder if the auther owns a cell phone?

The part about communication between the husband and wife in the home really struck me.
I'll have to send my wife an e-mail and tell her to read this article. LOL

Wow

What can you say to that.

Very thought-provoking article. It saddens me to think that we've regressed socially to such a degree in my lifetime. Personal accountability and responsibility? You must be joking! That's why we have lawyers and our flawless legal system of justice! (Sorry. Just choked on a bit of sarcasm there- cough, cough..........all better now). Preventing the total decay of society , in part, is up the individual. Your children emulate your actions, so you might want to take a look in the mirror every once in a while to see if you've become that person you swore you would never be. That article sure got my attention in that department. - Ed

Amen -
The prevalence in today's society to refuse to accept responsibility for our own actions is appalling - everyday there are countless instances of someone yelling "it's not my fault" and heading straight for the courts to deny any culpability and to seek damages.
I want everyone to have a look for "The Stella Awards" on the net. If this doesn't make your blood boil, you're comatose. They detail instances of completely stupid and inane (but successful) litigation of people seeking damages for screwing up - again a whole pisspot full of folks who refuse to accept responsibility for their own actions.
There's one about a lady who sued a shop owner because she tripped over a toddler while in this guy's shop and broke her ankle. Apparently a crowd control issue - something about keeping the shop floor a safe place for customers to be -but the toddler that she fell over WAS HER OWN KID!!!!!!!
I recently had a next door neighbor (a renter) who loved to do burn-outs and doughnuts at 2-3AM - he loved to wake up the neighborhood 3 or 4 times a week. The cops used to come round and give him a hard time but it used to******him off because it interfered with his "fun" and he used to take it out on the neighborhood. Because it is only a misdemeanor offence, the cops turn a blind eye and don't aggressively pursue him or make him stop.
30 or 40 years ago, if an individual displayed this sort of callous, selfish behavior, the local cops would have arrived en-masse at his place, dragged him out into his driveway and kicked the crap out of him, and would have done it again and again until the thickhead got the message. But no, our scociety is far more "civilised" these days, and lawyers and civil libertarians would scream blue bloody murder if those jerk-offs who deserve a smack in the mouth were actually given one.
We all have a responsibility to care for and care about all of our fellow human beings. Our increasingly selfish natures are beginning to erode our quality of life and the future opportunities of our children.
It's easy to say, but hard to put into practice - Just remember the Golden Rule that we were taught in Sunday School. It's not a bad set of rules to live by.
Cheers'
LeeTree
P.S. Here in Oz it's illegal to talk on a mobile phone while driving.

I know I am preaching to the choir here, but I need to add my two cents worth. As I was driving to work on wednesday last, a woman engrossed in her cell phone conversation actually pulled in front of me from 2 lanes to the right to make her left turn. Fortunately i caught her out of the corner of my eye and was able to stop in time....although I did have half a thought of not stopping as I drive a 1993 Chevy Cavalier and she was driving a 2003 Lexus (brand new with temp tags). She breezed past me, and the driver to my right, with nary a wave. The driver next to me and I gave each other a "whew, that was close look".
The second story I'll relate concerns the responsibility issue...it is taught at home or, these days, not. I am a retail manager and you would not believe some of the excuses we get for associates calling off. And to boot, we have associates' parents, spouses, and significant others making the call. The best one I ve ever had was an associate call-off because she was soooooo sick. I had taped the Boys State Basketball playoff while at work, and wouldn't you know it, there was aforementioned associate cheering her team. Needless to say it made an interesting conversation her next shift. And of course she made clear it was our fault for scheduling her that day (actually the schedule was made two weeks before, and her school's team had not even started the playoffs)-sigh-

Thanks Dave, I completely agree with that guy and the others that have responded here. They are all correct in that our society has regressed to the point that no oneis resonsible for their own decisions, actions or consequences of them. It has come about from the lawyers who will represent anyone for anything in order to get that fee from the settlement. The fault actually lies more at the judges feet than anyone though. I can't belive the judges aren't throwing these rediculous litigation suites and telling these folks to get a life.

To add to the stories, A man was working on his barn and was up on a ladder against the side of the barn. It was cold and the ladder was resting on frozen manure when he started working that morning. As the day warmed, the manure thawed and, yes, you guessed it, the ladder slipped and the man was injured. He sued the ladder company and won because they did not have warning stickers on the ladder concerning his circumstances.

I'm afraid our government and legal system are propagating a race of idiots and morons because lack of common sense can no longer weed the bad genes from the species. We all pay the price for these people who can not think for themselves or take responsibility for their actions. The courts are paying people to be stupid and rewarding their family if the person doesn't survive. It is sad, to see a nation as great as ours turn from rewarding the hard working people who actually made our nation what it is to supporting the ones who can't cross the street without looking and end up getting hurt for their stupidity.

I'll get off my soapbox now, I just had to vent a little too.

So, I finished assembling my modelkasten tracks for my Jadgpanther last night They sure do look incredible and the actual build is easy but wow, what a chore it is to assemble them!!

Eric

Here's a thought close to home. You sell or give a model to someone, a small part falls off of it and a child chokes on it. You get taken to court. Could it happen?
within the next ,say, five years? what are the odds? I wouldn't like to put money on it not happening. So don't forget the disclaimer stickers next time you gave away or sell a model. And in a similar vein, model exhibitions, I wonder how much insurance cost's have gone up in the last few years, how much is too much?, will we see virtual exhibitions because it's too expensive/risky to do it live?

I don't want to comment. I just want to curl up in a fetal ball. Was Shakespeare ahead of his time?

QUOTE: lack of common sense can no longer weed the bad genes from the species. Eric

Oh yes it can. HeHeHe

Check out www.darwinawards.com

DISCLAIMER I can in no way be held responsable for anything whatsoever no matter what ...LoL Greg

Gregers, you're absolutly right. I should have qualified that statement to say " lack of common sense can no longer weed as many of the bad genes from the species.

My favorite darwin award is the guy that found a JATO bottle and decided to strap it to the roof of his car out in the desert. Talk about 15 seconds of flame!!

Eric

HEY,
That was a great article, and now that i have read it, i couldnt agree more. I hope everyone who reads that gets the same message i did.

Randy

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but, while I despise lawyers as much as anyone who has ever dealt with one
and, I do believe that people should be held responsible for their actions however stupid or ill-advised, there is one
small, tiny point nobody has mentioned. Folks, lawyers wouldn't be a problem for anyone if people didn't go running to them for every little thing. So, don't blame the lawyers! They wouldn't make a cent without whining, snively crybabies who look to have their feelings hurt so they can sue someone or get their bodies hurt because they were too stupid to read the directions.
BTW---It was so cold the other day that I saw a lawyer with his hands in his own pockets.
Ray

QUOTE: Originally posted by Ray Marotta Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but, while I despise lawyers as much as anyone who has ever dealt with one and, I do believe that people should be held responsible for their actions however stupid or ill-advised, there is one small, tiny point nobody has mentioned. Folks, lawyers wouldn't be a problem for anyone if people didn't go running to them for every little thing. So, don't blame the lawyers! They wouldn't make a cent without whining, snively crybabies who look to have their feelings hurt so they can sue someone or get their bodies hurt because they were too stupid to read the directions. BTW---It was so cold the other day that I saw a lawyer with his hands in his own pockets. Ray

Granted, but that is why they make it their business to propagate the "nothing is your fault" myth in order to drum up business. If they didn't make it so easy and profitable for people, these situations would decrease instead of increase. Both sides are at fault here.

Ray

I agree Longhair...There used to be a commercial on TV here in San Jose California for a personal injury law firm. That commercial stated "Even if you
don't have a licence or insurance and the police report says it's your fault, I can get you money".
Makes me sick to my stomach.
Ray

bin Laden, Saddam and their lawyer crossed a field in front of a Marine sniper. Unfortuanately he only had two rounds. The bad news is Saddam and bin Laden got away. The good news is he hit the lawyer twice.