# OW My Feet! Is it useful to sue? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 26, 2003, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ow-my-feet-is-it-useful-to-sue/184431 "2003-06-26T02:14:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5fc32e/32.png) [@Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bad_News_Baboon)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ow-my-feet-is-it-useful-to-sue/184431/21 "2003-06-26T16:48:04Z")
Here is but one of _many_ threads regarding the McDonald’s lawsuit: [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=22459](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=22459) ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ow-my-feet-is-it-useful-to-sue/184431/22 "2003-06-26T17:00:30Z")
HennaDancer: Have you ever read _Follow My Leader_? It’s a children’s book, quite old. The protagonist, Jimmy (IIRC), is a teen who is accidentally blinded for life. He ends up at a school to learn how to use a guide dog. While there, the school’s director shows him where the local mailbox is. The director also points out that there are sharp edges to the mailbox. Jimmy says, “They really should put foam on these edges so none of us blind people get hurt.” The director asks him, “Do you think the world should make everything comfortable for you or do you think it would be better for you to pay attention?” (Or words to that effect). My question to you is: Why didn’t you pay attention? The world does not exist to serve you. It merely exists. I’ve paid attention for many years and have noticed that no matter how attractive the ground is, it’s always a better idea to wear shoes. One never knows what’s on that ground, such as the broken glass mentioned above. ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ow-my-feet-is-it-useful-to-sue/184431/23 "2003-06-26T17:10:36Z")
The McDonald’s thing has been done many times before, and it will take over this thread entirely for days if it’s gone into here. Please no. ---
**Author:** ![XJETGIRLX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9fc29f/32.png) [@XJETGIRLX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XJETGIRLX)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ow-my-feet-is-it-useful-to-sue/184431/24 "2003-06-26T17:11:48Z")
Regardless of the heat, one would imagine that wearing shoes would be at least a sensible requirement for safety reasons. One never knows when there will be a sharp object or insect in one’s path. I’ve lived in the south all my life and as a result spent half my life barefoot. Even the most backwards of us, though, understands that you wear shoes in public, regardless of the situation, because you never know what kind of jackass is going to leave something sharp around, and you never know when your feet could get hurt. Shut up about it already and put some bag balm on your tootsies. ---
**Author:** ![nebco9](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/cc9497/32.png) [@nebco9](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nebco9)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ow-my-feet-is-it-useful-to-sue/184431/25 "2003-06-26T17:26:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by HennaDancer \* > There were several thousand people in the water park that day, and I saw perhaps ten pairs of shoes being worn. Was this the first day the park was open? Probably not. Let’s do a little math here: Thousands of people X number of days the park has been open = Many thousands of complaints and/or lawsuits would already have been brought to the park’s attention. Now let’s add a little common sense. Don’t you think the park would have been forced to take some precautions, like warning signs, prior to your visit if there was a serious hazard here? Like **Q.E.D.** alluded to: Life is a learning process, sometimes painful. Once we learn a lesson, we go onto the next lesson to be learned. Many thousands of people have been exposed to the same hazard as you and your children. It seems they must have already learned this lesson without blaming others and resorting to lawsuits. By the way, in your original OP you said your children were in bed, and you didn’t know how their feet were. I hope they’re OK. ---
**Author:** ![lorinada](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b5e925/32.png) [@lorinada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lorinada)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ow-my-feet-is-it-useful-to-sue/184431/26 "2003-06-26T17:30:54Z")
If your intent is truly to make them make their patrons aware, then why don’t you simply call them or write to them? I always though lawsuits were supposed to be a last resort tactic. ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ow-my-feet-is-it-useful-to-sue/184431/27 "2003-06-26T18:35:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Q.E.D. \* > \*\*Cite? I have a hard time imagining how McD’s could have been remotely at fault no matter how hot the coffee was, unless the kid behind the counter said “sure, go ahead and spill it on yourself, it won’t burn”, and even then she’d have to be pretty stupid to believe it. \*\* The extent to which McDonalds should have been liable has been debated, but the woman’s injuries were undeniably extensive: she recieved third degree burns to her thighs, buttocks, groin, and vagina, spent a week in the hospital, three more weeks bedridden at home, and required skin grafts. [Cite](http://library.lp.findlaw.com/articles/file/00369/005150/title/subject/topic/consumer%20law_consumer%20protection/filename/consumerlaw_1_392) [Cite](http://lawandhelp.com/q298-2.htm) [Cite](http://www.lectlaw.com/files/cur78.htm) [Cite](http://www.osmond-riba.org/lis/essay_mcdonalds.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Avarie537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/48db29/32.png) [@Avarie537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avarie537)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ow-my-feet-is-it-useful-to-sue/184431/28 "2003-06-26T19:09:19Z")
IIRC, at Paramount’s King’s Island in Cincinnati, OH, you’re not allowed to wear shoes in their water park. It’s been a while since I’ve been there, and they don’t have that info on their website, but that’s what I remember. Just my $0.02 ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ow-my-feet-is-it-useful-to-sue/184431/29 "2003-06-26T19:31:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by pravnik \* > \*\*The extent to which McDonalds should have been liable has been debated, but the woman’s injuries were undeniably extensive: she recieved third degree burns to her thighs, buttocks, groin, and vagina, spent a week in the hospital, three more weeks bedridden at home, and required skin grafts. \*\* I wasn’t debating the extent of her injuries. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ow-my-feet-is-it-useful-to-sue/184431/30 "2003-06-26T19:52:00Z")
Please don’t get into the McDonalds trial in this thread, it has been debated to death elsewhere. If you feel you must, start a new thread. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ow-my-feet-is-it-useful-to-sue/184431/31 "2003-06-26T20:07:35Z")
Doesn’t anybody use swim shoes? They’re recommended by physicians. Well, at least by _a_ physician. [http://shop.store.yahoo.com/perfectlysafe/80205-swimshoes.html](http://shop.store.yahoo.com/perfectlysafe/80205-swimshoes.html) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ow-my-feet-is-it-useful-to-sue/184431.md?page=1)