It certainly takes all kinds.  I thought we were past the sue-happy era, but apparently not.  I’ll admit, I sometimes let my attention wander while walking down the street; perhaps I’m embroiled in a phone conversation, checking my email, finding the perfect song on my Ipod, or (occasionally), reading a book.  The latter is often unsuccessful, as I’m so paranoid about where I need to put my feet, I lose track of the novel in my hands.  Not so for 15 year-old Alexa Longueira of Staten Island, who plunged 5 feet down an open manhole into a pit of “smelly darkness” losing a shoe in the process.

Common sense would dictate she got what she deserved.  Not looking where you are walking does not abscond you from the personal responsibility (or liability) for any hazards you may encounter.  If I were to trip and break my ankle on an irregular sidewalk, the only one responsible would be me, for not watching where I was going, whether I was texting or not!

Granted, the manhole should have been marked, but according to sources, the city workers had just opened the hole and were fetching orange cones to section off the hazard.  Longueira claims she would have seen cones, but fails to account for missing the gaping, 5-foot deep hole in the sidewalk.  The cherry on top of this sundae is her parents, who, blessed with the opportunity to teach their daughter personal responsibility and humility, opt to toss those options out the window in favor of the money-grubbing, sue-happy attitude prevelant in the late 90s.  Shame!

The Geek’s advice: take the lumps, the bruised ego, the smelly swim and learn from it; don’t let the habit follow you behind the wheel (Longueira should be getting her driver’s license soon) where the danger is much more serious.

-SnowytheGeek

via [Wired] and [GAS]