Lazy Americans

[Knave Editor]

Life imitating art???

Incredibly the following text was NOT lifted from The Onion website, but from a Chicago newspaper!



A Wisconsin man is blaming a cable TV company for his television addiction, his wife's 50-pound weight gain and his children being "lazy channel surfers."

A police report said Timothy Dumouchel, 48, of West Bend, Wis., came to the Fond du Lac office of Charter Communications the night of Dec. 23 with a small claims complaint, intimidated an employee and made "low-level threats."

Dumouchel told Charter he filed the complaint because his cable connection kept working 3-1/2 years after he asked that it be cut off.

"I believe that the reason I smoke and drink every day and my wife is overweight is because we watched TV every day for the last four years," Dumouchel wrote in the complaint in the police report.

Initially, Dumouchel said he would sue the cable company but later backed off. Still, he claims that the cable company "did not let me make a decision as to what was best for myself and my family and [they have been] keeping cable [coming] into my home for four years after I asked them to turn it off."

The police report said Dumouchel asked Charter to stop his cable service in August 1999 and was taken off the billing but not the service.

He told police he called several times to get the cable disconnected, but the free cable kept coming.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel said he was asked by a group of reporters why he did not just cut the wire into his home. "I would never touch that box, because if I did, I would have to break the seal, and then I would have broken the law," he said.

The cable company seemed to shrug off Dumouchel's complaints. Said Charter spokesman John Miller: "Even though we consider our services to be a very powerful entertainment product, I don't think it's reached a medical level yet where it could be proved to be addictive."

[Bob Singleton]

In another thread in this forum, one American poster implied I was suggesting that people in the US go along with whatever "Dubbya" tells them because Americans are stupid.

The sad fact is that many Americans don't actually use their brains! Why else is there so much litigation of the "your coffee burnt my tongue" variety? One case I remember reading about was the guy who wanted to sue Flymo because he'd injured himself using his hover mower for trimming his hedge!!! Flymo hadn't put a warning NOT to use the mower as hedge-trimmer, so in his mind they were liable for his injuries! I believe the case is due to be heard shortly, and I only hope it comes up in front of a judge that directs the jury that stupidty is no reason to sue!

[Knave Editor]

They may be stupid, but they all know how to scam the system and fleece insane amounts of money out of large corporations!

Incidentally, the infamous 'woman getting scalded by red-hot Mcdonalds coffee' incident - am I right in thinking that the final award was nowhere near as high as reported in the media at the time?

And Bimmercat, rest assured that your compensation culture has firmly transported itself to the UK. "Where's there blame there's a claim" as the adverts say. Sadly there's no such thing as an accident nowadays. Latest UK example being a pair of firefighters who are suing the local council because, wait for it? they got slightly burned fighting a fire. Yes, they're doing a risky job, but come on, you play with fire you're going to get burns once in a while.

[Pervert]

There was one doing the rounds a year or so back (including a picture, which thankfully I didn't open to look at) about some guy suing a power drill company for negligence as it didn't say the drill wasn't to be used for scratching the inside of your nose. It's bad enough being so stupid that you drill off half your nose; how much more stupid are you to try to claim money---and let the rest of the world know what a fwit you are!

[Peter]

I've got a headache from reading all this, I'll be serving the papers on you all tomorrow, unless you ant to settle out of court now.

[Deuce Bigolo]

Trouble is the courts are clogged up enough without these trivial cases

talking of trivial-I guess I could sue the british site sexclub.co.uk for not cancelling my membership....cancelled february 2003...no billing but still have full access...tried numerous times and told categorically its done but still no joy

Must be a sinister sub-plot there somewhere

I might have to sue to get them to cancel it once and for all

cheers
B....OZ

[mart]

Has it resulted in your getting RSI Deuce?
Sue, sue, sue.....lol

Mart