New Millionaires in Austell, Georgia

This is a tragic story, but I have a wager on the outcome.

At Six Flags Over Georgia this past Saturday, a teenage boy was decapitated by a roller coaster. With all the inspections and safety precautions, how could such a thing happen? Well, the boy evidently lost his hat when he rode the coaster. So when he got off at the end of the ride, he climbed one 6 foot fence festooned with "Restricted Area" signs, then he scaled another 6 foot fence with "Restricted Area" and "Danger" signs in an attempt to retrieve the hat. He was hit by the coaster as it reached its top speed of 50 mph.

Whose fault was this accident? All right thinking people will say, "It was the boy's fault. He went where he was not supposed to go." But I can imagine when this case hits the courtroom, and there's no doubt it will, the jury will see only that a grieving family can get a large amount of money from a faceless corporation with deep pockets. Of course, the faceless corporation with deep pockets is insured -- maybe by a subsidiary of the same insurance company you use. And when they have to pay that big settlement, guess whose insurance will go up?

And, what the heck, let's sue the fence manufacturers as well. They know people who don't think the rules apply to them can climb 6 foot fences. And what about those signs? Shouldn't they be in Braille as well as written English? Sue the sign manufacturers, too. And of course, the roller coaster manufacturers. And lest we forget, the hat was what caused all this in the first place. Sue 'em! No more hats that may fly off your head when you're going 50 mph!

It may seem that I care nothing for the pain this family is undoubtedly enduring. That's not true. I just know how things work in this litigious society, and it's pretty much a given that when a horrible accident occurs, even one obviously caused by the victim's own stupidity, lawsuits will be filed, and the taxpayers' money will be wasted on hours and hours in the courtroom.

If the facts as stated in the newspaper are true, and if our judges and lawyers really care about justice, there won't be a case stemming from this incident. However, my money's not on whether or not there will be a case -- it's on how much the family's gonna' get.