Date: Sat, 25 Apr 1998 02:06:53 -0700
Reply-To: "Steven X. Schwenk" <sxs@CONCENTRIC.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <Vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: "Steven X. Schwenk" <sxs@CONCENTRIC.NET>
Subject: Re: VW marketing etc
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Litigation is good. It has saved countless (many thousands of) lives
and prevented many, many injuries and mamings. Look at what
manufacturers do even with the threat of litigation....they build cars
they know will explode on impact...they hide defects that they know
cause injuries and death (door hatch, for example) and they build or
continue to build cars with defective parts they know will fail (head
gaskets, for example). Imagine what it would be like if they could not
be held responsible for forseeable and known dangers/defects that hurt
and kill people.
The myths you hear about extreme cases are insurance company propoganda
and media hype. The McDonalds case, for example, involved an old lady
who got 2nd and 3rd degree burns over her crotch and related areas.
Imagine that coffee winding up on your 2 year-old's face or lap, then
tell me it's fine to sell it that way. The jury of 12 ordinary people
were so outraged they awarded her in punitive damages the amount in
sales of coffee that McDonalds makes in *one day* (several million
dollars worth)...why....because they determined by "clear and convincing
evidence" that McDonalds knew the coffee had the potential to cause such
serios injuries (the lady had to be hospitalized) but did nothing...by
choice. So, under the law, the jury was permitted to award an amount in
damages that would punidh McDonalds...in order to prevent the same in
the future. Even then, the judge ultimately cut the punitive damage
award to $300,000....which is nothing to McDonalds. And if you've been
to McDonalds lately, the coffee is still very hot. (By the way,
remember what McDonalds did to that british couple who dared publically
criticize the poor quality of their food....McDonalds sued them...)
Litigation is often the only tool ordinary people have in modern society
to protect themselves and their families from all sorts of danges,
abuses, wrongs, rip-offs, etc. Your gun is of very little utility by
compairson. Litigation has spawned more positive social change here and
throughout the world than guns ever could or have, whether it is in
civil rights, work place rights, child labor protections, safer and
better products, or a more restrained and less intrusive government.
It's a constitutional right, and for good reason.
Do or did you have a head gasket repair reimbursement program in your
country? Why do you think VW had one here. I have yet to hear anyone
say that it was unfair or wrong that VW was "persuaded" to participate
in the program and help pay to fix their own and obvious, very expensive
design defect.
Prech mode off...flame at will..
steve
J.W.Brier wrote:
> >Another reason VW and other German manufactures don't import all
> their
> >products into the U.S. is because this is the most litigious society
> on
> >earth and it scares them to death. Remember what happened to the Audi
> in
>
> You are right, this is one of the reasons why many European companies
> are very reluctant to export their goods to the US. However, this type
> of litigation is finding its way to my side of the ocean too.
> Manufacturers are more and more being held responsible for
> consequential damages. Soon we will also have luke warm coffee at Mc
> Donalds :-(.
>
> Jan Willem Briër (mr),
> High Rise Professional Services, The Netherlands.
> _________________________________________________
> _____________________
> E-mail: jan@hrps.demon.nl -- Tel. +31 (318) 548857 -- fax +31 (318)
> 548101
> ______
> ___________________________________________________________________
> Personal web : http://www.hrps.demon.nl
> VW-bus page : http://www.hrps.demon.nl/jwbus.htm
> VW-bookstore: http://www.hrps.demon.nl/vw-boeken.htm
>
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