The warning was clear: “Fasten your seat belts!”
Earlier this summer, we took a family trip around the Grand Canyon. I knew it might get hazardous at times, but a ride we took on our first day surprised me.
Before we set out for the rugged country, we took a gondola boat ride in Las Vegas.
A hotel there offers rides like the ones in Venice, Italy, so we thought it would be a relaxing way to start our trip. But as soon as we sat down, the Italian gondolier told us to fasten our seat belts. I asked him if the canal had any rapids. But he just laughed and said “No.” “Some crazy turns then?” But again, he said “No.”
“So why do we need seat belts?” And without hesitation, he said, “This is America, land of the free and home of the personal injury lawyer.”
Ouch! But let’s be fair, we all know he’s right. Because of our lawsuit-happy culture, many Americans live in fear of the next lawsuit, and even our Italian-born gondolier knows that.
Maybe you have a story about how lawsuits are changing America. If so, I’d like to hear. Share your story with me at BobDorigoJones.com.
Bob Dorigo Jones, who serves as Senior Fellow for the Foundation for Fair Civil Justice, is the author of the bestselling Remove Child Before Folding, The 101 Stupidest, Silliest and Wackiest Warning Labels Ever. He is the host of a new national radio/Internet commentary, “Let’s Be Fair.”