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November 21, 2004
FROM THE "DUH" FILE, PART
FROM THE "DUH" FILE, PART II
Anyone who was a kid -- ever -- could have told you this: "NY Lawsuit Questions Safety of Dodgeball." Duh... really?
Look... I actually enjoyed dodgeball when I was a kid. I loved it. I was pretty good at it. But while I was athletic, I was also a smaller kid (hard to believe now, I know -- but my big growth spurt didn't happen until the summer between 9th and 10th grade, when I went from being 5'4" to being 5'9" in three short months. Until that point, I was always the little guy). And I got pummeled in dodgeball; I gave as good as I got, but I got pummeled. So any time I see a headline saying that people are questioning the safety of dodgeball, I have to wonder if they were ever kids... or ever played. Of course it's dangerous, Skeezix.
New York's case began in the fall of 2001. Seven-year-old Heather Lindaman was playing a variation of dodgeball in gym class on a hardwood court. The version included several balls and no safety or protection zone to run from the thrown balls.
The New York appellate judges upheld a lower court ruling that the school district's request for summary dismissal of the case, without trial, should be denied. They said there is an argument to be heard about whether this version of dodgeball "was particularly dangerous for younger children."
Okay, I know this is easier for me to say, because I don't have children; if and when I do have a brood of mini-Mudges running around, I may feel differently if someone breaks my child. But man... lawsuits over "dangerous activities?" Court cases for every injury suffered in gym class or sports? Might as well ban Little League and kids' soccer -- kids do get hurt, you know? And someone better get ready to sue Huffy, because bicycles can be dangerous.. do you know how many kids fall off bikes every year and hurt themselves? We complain that our kids are getting more obese and less active every year, but then we litigate their way out of activity?
I'm sorry this little girl broke her elbow. Really. That's a painful injury no matter how old you are... and because the break appears to have happened along a growth plate, she may have some issues as she gets older. But when I was a kid, we called things like this "accidents." I had plenty of those when I was growing up -- fell out of trees, fell off my bike, took foul tips off my fingers, broke bones when a bigger kid landed on me while we both tried to recover a fumble, fell off the jungle gym at recess... and guess what? I turned out all right. I lived. And my parents didn't need to sue anyone.
Lawsuits because dodgeball is dangerous. What's next -- is someone gonna sue McDonalds because their coffee is too hot?
Never mind.
