Help me to understand and maybe get wiser
Hairy Dane
Denmark Posts: 205
Hey all,
I like many other Europeans are bombarded on a daily basis with all kinds of different American "cultural" gems be it movies, TV-shows, books, comics, music and so forth. But there are a few things that have been puzzling me for quite some time now. Some of them are perhaps more urban legends (I hope) than factual truth.
This is in no way a critisism of American way of life and the stuff that comes out of it, I like my movies, comics and music.
Well here goes:
1) Everytime I see something involving someone getting out of the hospital, they are being wheeled out in a wheelchair - yes we fixed your gunshotwound to our arm, so now we have to push you around in a wheelchair, because obviously you can't walk after being shot in the arm... I mean the few times I've been to the hospital I was able to walk out of there myself, isn't that the general point in a hospital? They fix you up?
2) Sometime somewhere I read or saw that an apple (that's one) costs more than a burger - seriously is that true? Here I can buy ten apples for the price of a (Danish sized) BigMac. Please oh please don't let this be true.
3) As a historian I have read (but not fully computed) your constitution, but I need to know if it's true or just another Hollywood myth that you can get a permit that gives you the right to carry a firearm in the general public. As in being armed with a letahal weapon amongst people who are not (armed).
4) In many of Quentin Tarantino's movies his protagonists very often smoke a cigarettebrand called 'Red Apple'. Some say this brand is made up by Tarantino others say it's a real brand - is it? If so I need to get some
5) More or less on the same subject; these silly lawsuits about people sueing the cigarettecompanies if they are diagnosed with cancer and another one about someone sueing MacDonald's because the coffee was hot and it didn't say so on the cup - really? Does things like that occur?
As stated this is in no way a critisism or anything, I for one would love to go to the US one day and have that experience of everything being bigger than life it self and lose a thousand dollars in Las Vegas, get a ridiculous big car and just drive for the sake of driving.
Thanks for your time and your possible answers to my questions.
PS: Sorry for the wall of text.
I like many other Europeans are bombarded on a daily basis with all kinds of different American "cultural" gems be it movies, TV-shows, books, comics, music and so forth. But there are a few things that have been puzzling me for quite some time now. Some of them are perhaps more urban legends (I hope) than factual truth.
This is in no way a critisism of American way of life and the stuff that comes out of it, I like my movies, comics and music.
Well here goes:
1) Everytime I see something involving someone getting out of the hospital, they are being wheeled out in a wheelchair - yes we fixed your gunshotwound to our arm, so now we have to push you around in a wheelchair, because obviously you can't walk after being shot in the arm... I mean the few times I've been to the hospital I was able to walk out of there myself, isn't that the general point in a hospital? They fix you up?
2) Sometime somewhere I read or saw that an apple (that's one) costs more than a burger - seriously is that true? Here I can buy ten apples for the price of a (Danish sized) BigMac. Please oh please don't let this be true.
3) As a historian I have read (but not fully computed) your constitution, but I need to know if it's true or just another Hollywood myth that you can get a permit that gives you the right to carry a firearm in the general public. As in being armed with a letahal weapon amongst people who are not (armed).
4) In many of Quentin Tarantino's movies his protagonists very often smoke a cigarettebrand called 'Red Apple'. Some say this brand is made up by Tarantino others say it's a real brand - is it? If so I need to get some
5) More or less on the same subject; these silly lawsuits about people sueing the cigarettecompanies if they are diagnosed with cancer and another one about someone sueing MacDonald's because the coffee was hot and it didn't say so on the cup - really? Does things like that occur?
As stated this is in no way a critisism or anything, I for one would love to go to the US one day and have that experience of everything being bigger than life it self and lose a thousand dollars in Las Vegas, get a ridiculous big car and just drive for the sake of driving.
Thanks for your time and your possible answers to my questions.
PS: Sorry for the wall of text.
Have fun, walk hard and stay alive.
Post edited by Unknown User on
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Comments
I just wanted to say I'm of Danish decent and tracing my family tree as of late. I would like to visit Denmark one day, the land of my Paternal Grandmother and her kin, family name, Christensen. All us Americans have roots somewhere else, this connecting us to the rest of the world. Its a joy to remember that and to learn about it
oh and I like your avatar but I have already mentioned that.
1) I am not sure. Tradition maybe? I was in a car wreck over the weekend and my wife was injured and hospitalized very briefly. They did not wheel chair her out. Sorry, no help here.
2) Prices vary widely across this country. In my area (Texas), I go to the store and pay about $1.79 for a pound of apples. I like Gala apples and that's how much they cost. I can also go to McDonald's and get a burger for $0.99. Depends on the apple and burger I guess.
3) The laws vary by state and city. In some you can indeed get a legal permit to carry a firearm. In some cities you can carry a concealed firearm and in some you can carry it in open view. Other cities have very tight restrictions on handguns.
4) Red Apple is made up. Not real.
5) Unfortunately, yes. It is very easy to sue anyone over just about anything. Doesn't mean you will be successful though.
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PHL-5/27/06,5/28/06,10/30/09,10/31/09
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Bridge School-10/23/2010,10/24/2010
PJ20-9/3/2011,9/4/2011
OKC-11/16/13
SEA-12/6/13
TUL-10/8/14
Regarding the infamous McDonalds coffee: That coffee was entirely too hot! McDonalds and others had been warned (nationwide) to lower the temperature of the coffee repeatedly. Coffee "keeps" longer the hotter it is and McD's was trying to make it last all day. Unfortunately this lawsuit had merit despite what you may believe.
2) I suppose you are talking about something like a really cheap burger from a fast food place vs an apple from a grocery story (and probably organic at that). There is probably some truth to this. As has been said before: fast food for a family of 4 can be vastly cheaper than buying ingredients at a grocery store and making your own meal. It's certainly part of our obesity epidemic. Why pay $3 for lettuce when you can buy a burger, fries and drink for the same price?
3) This is done at the state level. Some stats let you cary a concealed weapon in public if you have a permit, others do not.
4) Fictional brand for Tarantino movies.
5) Yes, these occur. We've become a litigious society, and people seem to not want to own up to their own stupid decisions (i.e. putting scalding hot coffee in their lap with a loose lid and driving away). This is a huge pet peeve of mine and for MANY others as well. If you smoke for 30 years, and each time you reach for your cigarette you see the label on the box, then don't cry foul when you get lung cancer. It's bad enough you'll be using my tax dollars to pay for your treatment; you don't need $7.4M from the tobacco companies.
Typo Man: "Thanks kidz, but remembir, stay in skool!"
Ok....here goes:
1. In my experience....it is hospital policy that you leave in a wheelchair if you stayed over night. I dont know why, and if you say, no thats ok...i can walk, they say, sorry...hospital policy.
2. Im not too sure.....but fruit is pretty damn expensive here...thats part of the reason y people are fat...its cheaper to eat crappy food....I wouldnt be surprised if one organic apple cost about the same, if not more than a burger.
3. You can get a gun if you have a permit...shit...you can get a gun if you dont have a permit...they have gun shows that arent very strict on screening buyers - last year a 9 year old kid shot himself in the face at one of these gun shows in Connecticut, by accident, because the kickback was too powerful for this little kid to handle. Also...see Michael Moore's movie about Columbine...the movie takes place in his hometown of Detroit Michigan...it starts out with him going to a bank to open an account...because the bank offers a free gun to anyone who opens an account?!?!?!?!? Can you freakin believe it?!?!?
4. I have never seen a Red Apple ciggarette - but they do have many flavored smokable items here in the states. and Tarantino is the freakin man!!
5. People sue each other for stupid shit all the time - see the show Seinfeld - episode where Kramer sues McDonalds for hot coffee and then another where he sues ciggarette co for his diminishing appearance...Also, people have sued McDonalds because they didnt know eating the food could make you fat - thats y they have to display their nutrition facts now...
Man...this Country is fucked, right!?@?@?
In most cases frivalous lawsuits are thrown out of court. In fact, you can be charged all sorts of court fees and legal fees for the defendant if your case is tossed.
The case against McDonalds was actually pretty crazy. She received third degree burns from the coffee. For those not familiar with burns, that is the worst you can get. It is what is called a full thickness burn and it was in her perineum area, basically her genitals. Being 79 at the time, it is much harder for her to heal. The coffee was around 190 degrees. That is dangerously hot. For reference, most coffee is served at around 140 degrees, hot for sure, but not dangerous. She only ended up getting a tiny fraction of what was awarded her. She actually tried to settle for less, but mcdonalds wanted to go to court. The court awarded damages and then reduced them by 20% because the jury found her 20 % responsible. It was further reduced on appeal, and eventual they settled in a secret agreement.
To anyone who thinks lawsuits should not be able to be brought, tell me, how much is an unnecessary 3rd degree burn on your genitals worth to you?
It may be the most overly misrepresented story in America I would say. Civil court is a way for people to have recourse against action by a business or fellow american that is negligent, hurtful, or caused harm in some way.
It is terrifying when you are too stupid to know who is dumb
- Joe Rogan
Yea we had to learn about that case in the law course I had to take in university. It is annoying how that case always gets brought up as the most ridiculous case ever when like you said it has merit. McDonalds was keeping there coffee at like 20-30 degrees hotter than it needed to be (and way hotter than industry standard), there had been accidents before (including workers I think) and like you said they had been warned that it was a problem (and they chose to ignore the warnings). When the woman spilled the coffee she received 3rd degree burns (think how hot coffee has to be to get 3rd degree burns through your clothes). When she tried to just get her medical costs paid for McDonalds refused to settle and forced the case to go to court, where they lost and she ended up getting way more than the 20 grand she was originally asking for.
At *most*, McDonalds should have paid her medical bills.
When I buy hot coffee, at 140 degrees or 250...IT DOES NOT GO IN MY LAP. Yeah it sucks that she got scalded, but who in their right mind puts HOT COFFEE in between their legs? I'm sorry, but if you play with fire you can't complain when you get burned.
Typo Man: "Thanks kidz, but remembir, stay in skool!"
It's a courtesy of the hospital to wheel you out. You certainly don't have to, it's just a service. While in a hospital months ago, I saw a few patients refusing the wheelchair. And that's OK.
The price of an apple depends on the growing season; they're more abundant (and cheaper) during their harvest. So if you buy one in the middle of off season, and compare it to a cheap hamburger, prices could be similar, I suppose.
It's probably a liability issue. Patients who have been admitted in the hospital have likely been 1. given medication, 2. had some type of surgury, or 3. have some type of lingering after affects of a sickness.
To say a body is weak upon leaving a hospital is a fair statement.
My guess is the wheelchair limits the hospitals liability from lawsuit, given that I'm sure some people might have the propensity to fall as they weakly walk out of the hospital.
If they can wheel you to your car, then they avoid that risk.
And sadly as asked by the OP, in a sue happy culture, business entities need to protect themselves best they can.
Ya... their coffee temperatures were much closer to boiling water than "normal" coffee temperatures... "thank you elderly lady... here's your near-boiling coffee in a flimsy styrofoam cup while you're driving... enjoy...."
Granted, customers should be careful, but when you order a beverage, getting 3rd degree burns shouldn't be one of the potential things that could happen to you if you spill it.
was like a picture
of a sunny day
“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.”
― Abraham Lincoln
Where I'm not ugly and you're lookin' at me
This is true (from at least what my mother tells me and she works at a hospital)... The rule where she works is that admitted patients have to be "escorted" out in a wheelchair when they are discharged. This is because of liability... ER and outpatient procedures usually don't unless the patient was sedated or it was some sort of leg injury, etc...
was like a picture
of a sunny day
“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.”
― Abraham Lincoln
You are correct. It minimizes falls which are very costly to hospitals. Falls not only lead to lawsuits, but longer hospital stays.
Typo Man: "Thanks kidz, but remembir, stay in skool!"
She put it there to take the top off, in no way was she more than 20 % responsible, which is what the jury found her to be. She did something dumb, that is for sure, but I ask you, how much is a 3rd degree burn on your genitals worth to you? Is it simply the medical bills, (she offered to settle for 20,000 which would have covered her medical bills, but she is 79, which means she will not heal nearly as well as a healthy younger adult)? Or is there legitimate compensation for the pain caused by 3rd degree burns that should not have happened? If the coffee was kept at a decent temp she wouldn't have had the burns
Look up the details of the case, I promise you may be surprised by what you find. It wasn't just a woman pouring coffee on herself to win a lawsuit. She didn't want the lawsuit in the first place.
It is terrifying when you are too stupid to know who is dumb
- Joe Rogan
Yeah, if someone doesn't want to sit in a wheelchair they can't make them... I would guess that they'd probably make a note if someone refused just to cover their asses though.
was like a picture
of a sunny day
“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.”
― Abraham Lincoln
I don't know I suppose the same thing could be said for any product safety lawsuit. I mean there was that pinto lawsuit in the 70's where Ford had a bunch of warnings that the car was unsafe, and decided a recall would cost less than any lawsuits, so they didn't do it. The familes of people who were injured or killed in accidents sued and won millons because it was found that Ford knew they were making an unsafe car. I mean you could easily say that driving is a dangerous thing and if you choose to drive and get in an accident you shouldn't complain if you are seriously injured or killed. How exactly is that different from McDonalds? In both cases the company knew their product posed a danger to customers, that it would be easy to fix that problem, and in both cases they chose not to.
I feel that you might be missing the idea of a reasonable expectation of risk. Third degree burns are not a reasonable risk to expect from a cup of coffee.
I'm still a bit schocked by the concealed weapon "law" permit thingy. That in my eyes are just dangerous, but maybe that's just me.
So once again; thank you all for using a bit of your day to make me a wee bit wiser.
some lady gave her 2 year old (TWO!) a nice, steaming, super hot, hot chocolate.
no she didn't feed it to her, she gave her the cup!
well i'm sure you could imagine what happened,
next thign you know shes yelling at the barista and demands some sort of legal form in order to sue
yes, yes it was the barista's fault she gave her 2 year old daughter an incredibly hot bevvy in a paper cup :roll:
I honestly do not have a problem with law abiding citizens carrying a concealed handgun on their person, however, I wish the law to obtain such a permit would be changed to help filter out those that may be less responsible, or rather less mentally capable of handling that responsibility than others.
I have many friends and acquaintances that carry. It is surprisingly rare in this country of 300 million for a problem to arise where the fault lies with someone that was able to carry legally...at least that is my understanding of the issue.
Yeah, and that's pretty recent too. At least in Texas. Personally, I don't like guns and don't own one and never will, but in order to get a license to carry one, you have to take classes and pass background checks and all kinds of stuff. I'd like to know the stats on accidents with concealed weapons, or murders (not self defense).
I am not really anti-gun either. I personally think assault rifles and stuff like that are ridiculous and no one really needs one of those, but I do believe in your right to own a gun.
BOS-9/28/04,9/29/04,6/28/08,6/30/08, 9/5/16, 9/7/16, 9/2/18
MTL-9/15/05, OTT-9/16/05
PHL-5/27/06,5/28/06,10/30/09,10/31/09
CHI-8/2/07,8/5/07,8/23/09,8/24/09
HTFD-6/27/08
ATX-10/4/09, 10/12/14
KC-5/3/2010,STL-5/4/2010
Bridge School-10/23/2010,10/24/2010
PJ20-9/3/2011,9/4/2011
OKC-11/16/13
SEA-12/6/13
TUL-10/8/14
1) No, generally you do not get pushed out in a wheelchair.
2) A bag of apples is probably more comparable to the cost of a burger.
no. Tarantino is an employee of Hasbara......his latest movies scream it.
probably a fake brand, like everything about him.