9 March 2009

Reading about the acceptance of fate in a time past caused me to think about how much things have changed in that respect today.  We accept very little as "fate" - in fact we immediately look for someone to blame.

That "blame game" has had a great impact upon our society - and particularly on our economy - because knowing that blame is inevitable prompts people who are engaged in risk - doctors, for example - to take whatever action they can to ensure they are not subject to blame that will have negative economic consequences.  That adds significant cost to our economy.  Necessary costs?  Perhaps; perhaps not.

Any medical procedure entails some risk, particularly if it involves cutting.  There is always a threat of infection.  Any financial transaction also entails risk.  Any physical activity, any intercourse with the world around us has some level of risk involved.  Why must we always seek to find blame?

Unfortunately we need not seek far: where there is the "opportunity" of a law suit built upon blame, regardless of risk, there will be a lawyer ready to file.  Do they serve any positive purpose?  Probably they do, and if so it is to incite an extra level of care, though at a cost that might be far in excess of the benefit it might provide.  One can not put a price upon a life, is the reason always given.

A colleague of mine had a brother whose whereabouts had long been lost to his family.  One day he stumbled home drunk to his one room walk-up in Los Angeles, fell down the stairs and broke his leg.  A reluctant physician was prevailed upon to come to wait upon him.  Later that night he drowned in his own vomit.  Two days later his mother was contacted by a trial lawyer to inform her that she had "a good case" for a law suit.  A common occurance?  I cannot say; probably not.  But not uncommon I would guess.

As in all things in our society, tradition is built upon precedence and the precedence in our country is lawsuits - it has, actually, almost always been so.  We are a litigous society, the most litigous in the world.  It is difficult to believe that trial lawyer aggressiveness and litigant greed is not at the bottom of why law suits are so prevalent.   Another example: my son was walking with his perhaps six or eight year old son, and tripped on a curb.  Dad, said the son, you can sue.  Where did he get that?

The blame game has taken hold of our society as brake shoes on a brake drum: sue!  When something happens, anything, the first thing one hears is blame - even before anything is known about the act itself.  Someone must be at fault; someone must be made to pay - even if not as a result of a suit.  There is a phrase that soon follows in many cases: deep pockets - not only blame but blame that can result in large payments, although rolling heads are another common phrase - someone must pay.  Several companies have been destroyed before it was finally proven that there was, in fact, no blame involved.  Many firings have occurred to provide a scapegoat.

So even beyond law suits the habit has caught on: nothing can go wrong in which someone cannot be found to blame.  In our society there is no such thing any more as an acceptable level of risk mistake.  We cannot eliminate all risk from our lives, but we are tying hard to do so.  And that which we cannot eliminate we buy insurance to cover.

Where will it all end?  Cessation of all activity?  Or lawyers contolling all the wealth?  Or both?