Jury Idiocy Comes to Montana

[Skarp]

Ask you DD if softball is dangerous? I'm betting they will tell you...No. They certainly recognize that they can get hurt. I don't think they equate getting hurt with getting killed. I dare you to find a kid that thinks they can get killed playing softball. If the bats are continually allowed to remain hot, it is simply a matter of time before the incident on the baseball field happens to one of YOUR DD's. Mine is done.

A broken bone or a cut or even a torn ACL will heal. Internal injuries sometimes don't heal....brain injuries sometimes don't heal....and death just won't heal.

An activity that is fun, but can kill you is something that adults do....not kids.

Interestingly, and quite coincidentally, the girls on dd's team were talking about the possibility of getting killed playing softball during pre-game stretches this morning. True story. I'm not sure how it came up, but they were on the topic for a good 5 minutes. Needless to say, I was eavesdropping with considerable interest.

Of course, being aware of the possibility in the abstract is a lot different from having a real appreciation of the risk, but the girls do understand that the game is dangerous.

[SkinnyFats]

Re: the difference between risk elimination, risk mitigation, and being a total dumbass.

At some point, you might be faced with the prospect of buying your kid a car to get around in. You could go about this several different ways.

1) Try to eliminate risk
"It's a dangerous world out there. My daughter might be killed. So, she's not allowed to leave the house".

2) Try to mitigate risk
"I got my daughter an late model Accord. It's not indestructible, but it has front and side airbags, anti-lock brakes, and a 5-star crash rating".

3) Be a total dumbass
"I was gonna get my daughter an Accord, but if she drove directly into a bridge abutment she'd be killed anyway. So I got her an old Pinto".


Type 3 thinkers are everywhere. Nuances and distinctions that are clearly visible to others are invisible to type 3s. They think anyone who disagrees with them is a paranoid type 1. "Accidents" happen to type 3s all the time - they chalk this up to "bad luck". More prudent people are viewed by type 3s as somehow having "good luck". Ironically type 3s love to discuss personal responsibility. Arguing with them is pointless, because they honestly do not understand what you're saying.

[Sam]

Life does not come with warning labels. It's just assumed.

My 1st skate board? I didn't know I could crack my skull till I actually cracked my skull.
Dad just called it boys being boys

My 1st Bike? After jumpin curbs and ramps I wish I had a FEMALE Bike. We now know the difference between Male and Female bikes. But when you foot slips off the petal you wish you had the girls.
Dad just said "If bikes were for jumpin they would have springs"

My 1st year in baseball? Took a ball in the chest during practice. I leaned the term "Gettin the wind knocked out of you".
Dad just said "Suck it up!!"

My 1st year in football? They never said what happens if you take a helmet in the back. Well you get to pee blood. Scared the crap out of me.
Dad just said "Well you took it like a man". What the hell did that mean?

My 1st year in boxing? 1st fight got my ass whooped by a 28 year old man. I was 16. Nobody told me that age means nothing!!!! It's about weight!!! Amature my ass!!!
Dad said "Great job kid you really hung in there". Yeah, for 1 round.

My 1st car? Did you know you could take the air out of the tires and ride the railroad tracks? Nevermind that story and what Dad said.

My 1st job? I worked in a feed store loading hay in the back of flat beds for $80 bucks a week. Paying for the damages at a party my sister had while Dad was out of town. Trucks would pull up and say "I'll take 75 of those 125lb. bales"!!!!!!!!!!!
Dad said "This will make you a man". While my sister sits on her ass and watches!!!

In all of our lives there have been situations that we have been in that have been risky. That's life. There is no sport or job in this world that is without risk. Kids dont know it cause parents don't tell them. If parents tell them then there is no sport. If I said you can drown while swimming they wouldn't swim. If I said you can die while playing on the jungle gym, they wouldn't play on it. You can die sitting in a chair. What I have told my DD's. Is that, when it's their time to go then it's their time to go. That doesn't mean go running on the freeway. But enjoy life!! Be wise that their action may cause a re-action. They play the game the way it should be played. With smiles.

If I woke up everyday living the life I live worrying about the risks that are associated with my job I wouldn't live. I live for the hugs and kisses from my DD's. Not this world, my boss, job, paycheck, but for the ones I love. Just so they can enjoy the things they love. Risks or no risks. They are on this planet to enjoy everything it has to offer. Good or Bad. I pray for good. But I also know Bad is never that far. That's just life.

When is your kid going to start pitching?

[Blind Squirrel]

A broken bone or a cut or even a torn ACL will heal. Internal injuries sometimes don't heal....brain injuries sometimes don't heal....and death just won't heal.

An activity that is fun, but can kill you is something that adults do....not kids.

1. I am on board with the idea of switching to wood bats. All things considered (given my limited knowledge of bats), it seems like a good idea. I would vote yes on whether non-wood bats should be prohibited.

2. Sam, do you believe that it is significantly more likely that a 16/17 year old kid will be killed or suffer brain injuries while driving a car with air bags and other normal safety equipment, than while playing baseball or softball? Did you allow your kids to drive when they were that age?

3. I do not subscribe to the idea that if a measure would result in the saving of one life or 2 lives or 3 lives, out of tens of thousands of people engaging in the same activity, then imposition of that measure on everyone is automatically justified. At the same time, I wouldn't allow my child to play in a minefield even though no kids in this country that I am aware of died last year from an exploding land mine.

John

[Skarp]

Re: the difference between risk elimination, risk mitigation, and being a total dumbass.

At some point, you might be faced with the prospect of buying your kid a car to get around in. You could go about this several different ways.

1) Try to eliminate risk
"It's a dangerous world out there. My daughter might be killed. So, she's not allowed to leave the house".

2) Try to mitigate risk
"I got my daughter an late model Accord. It's not indestructible, but it has front and side airbags, anti-lock brakes, and a 5-star crash rating".

3) Be a total dumbass
"I was gonna get my daughter an Accord, but if she drove directly into a bridge abutment she'd be killed anyway. So I got her an old Pinto".


Type 3 thinkers are everywhere. Nuances and distinctions that are clearly visible to others are invisible to type 3s. They think anyone who disagrees with them is a paranoid type 1. "Accidents" happen to type 3s all the time - they chalk this up to "bad luck". More prudent people are viewed by type 3s as somehow having "good luck". Ironically type 3s love to discuss personal responsibility. Arguing with them is pointless, because they honestly do not understand what you're saying.

One person's "type 3" thinker is another person's "type 1." It's all a matter of individual line drawing and perceived risk, and the fact of the matter is that very few people draw their lines based on a rational evaluation of the actual risk involved in an activity.

What is a certainty, though, is that everyone believes that they personally have the right take on things, and that it is other people who are either too strict or too lenient. And they are all correct.

[Joe]

Re: the difference between risk elimination, risk mitigation, and being a total dumbass.

At some point, you might be faced with the prospect of buying your kid a car to get around in. You could go about this several different ways.

1) Try to eliminate risk
"It's a dangerous world out there. My daughter might be killed. So, she's not allowed to leave the house".

2) Try to mitigate risk
"I got my daughter an late model Accord. It's not indestructible, but it has front and side airbags, anti-lock brakes, and a 5-star crash rating".

3) Be a total dumbass
"I was gonna get my daughter an Accord, but if she drove directly into a bridge abutment she'd be killed anyway. So I got her an old Pinto".


Type 3 thinkers are everywhere. Nuances and distinctions that are clearly visible to others are invisible to type 3s. They think anyone who disagrees with them is a paranoid type 1. "Accidents" happen to type 3s all the time - they chalk this up to "bad luck". More prudent people are viewed by type 3s as somehow having "good luck". Ironically type 3s love to discuss personal responsibility. Arguing with them is pointless, because they honestly do not understand what you're saying.

One person's "type 3" thinker is another person's "type 1." It's all a matter of individual line drawing and perceived risk, and the fact of the matter is that very few people draw their lines based on a rational evaluation of the actual risk involved in an activity.

What is a certainty, though, is that everyone believes that they personally have the right take on things, and that it is other people who are either too strict or too lenient. And they are all correct.

Don't forget about 'type 4'!!!!

He's the attorney and the reason why we pay $300 for a bat that costs less than $50 to make.

[Skarp]

Don't forget about 'type 4'!!!!

He's the attorney and the reason why we pay $300 for a bat that costs less than $50 to make.

Hey now...there's no need to get personal here.

[Joe]

Don't forget about 'type 4'!!!!

He's the attorney and the reason why we pay $300 for a bat that costs less than $50 to make.

Hey now...there's no need to get personal here.

Not getting personal. I have multiple family members in the profession.

...makes for a lively Thanksgiving dinner! Fortunately, no trial attorneys... so they all have their RNC pins on their lapels.

[SkinnyFats]

Don't forget about 'type 4'!!!!

He's the attorney and the reason why we pay $300 for a bat that costs less than $50 to make.

I disagree. I think the reason you pay $300 for a $50 bat is because it will hit the ball farther and faster than a $40 wooden bat that costs $20 to make. Or are you wasting your money?

[Joe]

Don't forget about 'type 4'!!!!

He's the attorney and the reason why we pay $300 for a bat that costs less than $50 to make.

I disagree. I think the reason you pay $300 for a $50 bat is because it will hit the ball farther and faster than a $40 wooden bat that costs $20 to make. Or are you wasting your money?

I think....

... you don't have a clue...