Blame faces off against Accountability
Tara Paterson
June 20, 2007
“Every person, all the events of your life are there because you have drawn them there. What you choose to do with them is up to you.” – Richard Bach
There was a headline in our local news last week about a group of parents who are going to sue the fast food industry for their overweight children. I took pause to this highlight and found that it angered me a bit. When did we as a society decide that we could make our own choices, but as soon as we are unhappy with the outcome, we could blame or in some cases, sue someone for them?
My imagination won’t even allow me to consider going after a company who never claimed to be healthful in the first place! Isn’t it common knowledge that McDonalds, Burger King and Wendy’s serve food deep fried in oil; covered with grease and mayonnaise; and loaded with fat? I have never shared such a vocal opinion about something like this, but we need to curtail this dangerous movement of suing everyone the moment things don’t turn out the way we want them to.
How does this affect us?
We the taxpayers pay for these people to go into our court systems and attempt to take money from big business. We will inevitably pay more when we go to a fast food restaurant, because the cost will be deferred on to the consumer.
It’s frustrating to see people in the comfort zone of blaming someone for their choices rather than taking accountability for them. When Philip Morris was sued for filling their cigarettes with additives that kept people addicted to them, it made sense for people to go after the company and Philip Morris has since taken accountability for their actions. Does it make it better for the people who died from cancer or their families? No, but they have at least made the effort to change the way they conduct their business.
I don’t feel sympathy for parents who willingly took their kids to fast food restaurants and allowed them to fill up on junk food. They made choices that had an adverse affect on their child and now want to hold the merchant responsible for their actions. I do however; feel empathy for the children who are now dealing with the results.
My mom has always said that the day will come when- if you are stricken with a disease such as diabetes- someone from a health insurance company will follow you around a grocery store to make sure you don’t put something in your shopping cart that could impact your disease in a negative way, like sugar.
If we aren’t careful, that could be next!
Companies need to protect themselves from people who want to accuse them for- our individual right- to make choices. What would we think if a company like McDonalds could refuse an order from someone who weighed over a certain amount? They would be sued for discrimination.
What else can they do?
Tara Paterson 2004- 2007, All Rights Reserved
There was a headline in our local news last week about a group of parents who are going to sue the fast food industry for their overweight children. I took pause to this highlight and found that it angered me a bit. When did we as a society decide that we could make our own choices, but as soon as we are unhappy with the outcome, we could blame or in some cases, sue someone for them?
My imagination won’t even allow me to consider going after a company who never claimed to be healthful in the first place! Isn’t it common knowledge that McDonalds, Burger King and Wendy’s serve food deep fried in oil; covered with grease and mayonnaise; and loaded with fat? I have never shared such a vocal opinion about something like this, but we need to curtail this dangerous movement of suing everyone the moment things don’t turn out the way we want them to.
How does this affect us?
We the taxpayers pay for these people to go into our court systems and attempt to take money from big business. We will inevitably pay more when we go to a fast food restaurant, because the cost will be deferred on to the consumer.
It’s frustrating to see people in the comfort zone of blaming someone for their choices rather than taking accountability for them. When Philip Morris was sued for filling their cigarettes with additives that kept people addicted to them, it made sense for people to go after the company and Philip Morris has since taken accountability for their actions. Does it make it better for the people who died from cancer or their families? No, but they have at least made the effort to change the way they conduct their business.
I don’t feel sympathy for parents who willingly took their kids to fast food restaurants and allowed them to fill up on junk food. They made choices that had an adverse affect on their child and now want to hold the merchant responsible for their actions. I do however; feel empathy for the children who are now dealing with the results.
My mom has always said that the day will come when- if you are stricken with a disease such as diabetes- someone from a health insurance company will follow you around a grocery store to make sure you don’t put something in your shopping cart that could impact your disease in a negative way, like sugar.
If we aren’t careful, that could be next!
Companies need to protect themselves from people who want to accuse them for- our individual right- to make choices. What would we think if a company like McDonalds could refuse an order from someone who weighed over a certain amount? They would be sued for discrimination.
What else can they do?
Tara Paterson 2004- 2007, All Rights Reserved
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