Nutjob Dennis Kucinich Sues Cafeteria Over Olive

[The Central Scrutinizer]

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/01/26/kucinich-vs-the-olive/?hpt=T2

$150,000 for a cracked tooth? Really?

 

[dtugg]

There are nutjobs on the left? No way.

Sent from my Samsung Epic 4G using Tapatalk

 

[hgc]

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/01/26/kucinich-vs-the-olive/?hpt=T2

$150,000 for a cracked tooth? Really?

You only get one set of teeth (not counting baby teeth), so it's certainly worth something substantial. On the other hand, Kucinich ain't no spring chicken, so he's already used up a goodly portion of the expected life of his teeth anyway. I'd say it's worth about $40,000*.


ETA: *Not much more than the cost of tooth repair to start with.

 

[novice skeptic]

You only get one set of teeth (not counting baby teeth), so it's certainly worth something substantial. On the other hand, Kucinich ain't no spring chicken, so he's already used up a goodly portion of the expected life of his teeth anyway. I'd say it's worth about $40,000*.


ETA: *Not much more than the cost of tooth repair to start with.

True story: There is a case that went to the Mass. Supreme Court about a guy who bought clam chowder and bit on a shell and sued for damages. Writing the majority opinion the Justice (and I forget his name) stated that a reasonable person could expect that there might be some shell in New England Clam Chowder. Then, in the middle of the majority opinion, he wrote his own favorite recipe for it.

Just thought I'd share that.

 

[The Central Scrutinizer]

I'd say it's worth about $40,000*.


ETA: *Not much more than the cost of tooth repair to start with.

What dentist do you go to?

 

[Puppycow]

Chipped Tooth Repair Cost

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So, how much is the average cost of dental implants? Normally a basic implant cost would range from $1200 to $3000. But depending on various other procedures involved, the price could shoot up to $30,000! This includes the cost of the material, dentist charges and laboratory charges.

 

[BenBurch]

My root canal and crown cost me nearly $4000. And it was uncomplicated.

Plus, folks, when you sue, you NEVER sue for what you think you will get. You sue for many times more than that, and on that basis you can usually settle at what the tort is actually worth without the expense of trial. Basically, the "sticker price" on a suit is notice to the other side that they should be afraid to go to trial unless they can prove their case.

 

[The Central Scrutinizer]

My root canal and crown cost me nearly $4000. And it was uncomplicated.

Wow. I've had several root canals and several crowns. None have ever approached $4,000, much less $40,000.

 

[Puppycow]

Don't members of congress have really fancy health insurance that pays for this stuff?

OTOH, does the cafeteria have liability insurance?

 

[joobie]

i think my one crown was $1200 before insurance. probably if i hadn't had insurance it would have cost whatever my copayment was, which i think was like $250.

 

[UnrepentantSinner]

True story: There is a case that went to the Mass. Supreme Court about a guy who bought clam chowder and bit on a shell and sued for damages. Writing the majority opinion the Justice (and I forget his name) stated that a reasonable person could expect that there might be some shell in New England Clam Chowder. Then, in the middle of the majority opinion, he wrote his own favorite recipe for it.

Just thought I'd share that.

I did a search of the court opinions and the only reference was to a sexual assault case in 2004. I would have loved to have read that opinion.

 

[leftysergeant]

There is absolutely no question that the case has merit.

The question is, how did the cafeteria operators respond to any complaint they may have recieved?

Beyond the cost of getting his teeth fixed, there is the issue of the pain he suffered. I am sure it must have hurt like a mofo. I would consider it an additional grievance if the operators just figured to pay the dental bill and say "Stuff happens, let's move on." They go on with their business and Kucinich has to live with the memory of a meal gone horribly wrong.

Excuse me, but I have always felt that if you cause someone to suffer pain or hardship in your pursuit of profit, you owe the victim some recompense. You have no intrinsic right to serve an unsafe food. You have a right to expect that the food you purchase is safe.

If you commit a tortious act, you need to be prepared to pay a penalty as well as just fixing what went wrong. It keeps people a little more honest to have to worry about that sort of thing.

 

[TragicMonkey]

When I saw the thread title, my initial thought was "what did he think the olive was saying to him?"

 

[Cleon]

When I saw the thread title, my initial thought was "what did he think the olive was saying to him?"

"Your wife is cheating on you with John Boehner."

 

[TragicMonkey]

"Your wife is cheating on you with John Boehner."

Is his wife named Olive?

 

[Meed]

More like OLIVEJOB

 

[novice skeptic]

I did a search of the court opinions and the only reference was to a sexual assault case in 2004. I would have loved to have read that opinion.

I found it, and I did misremember it a little. It wasn't a shell, it was a fish bone. The case is Webster v. Blue Ship Tea Room. The Judge (Reardon) was famous for putting humor in his opinions.

Another case of his I remember was about a family that bought a house next to a golf course. His opinion is just hysterical.

http://masscases.com/cases/sjc/353/353mass534.html

 

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Don't members of congress have really fancy health insurance that pays for this stuff?

OTOH, does the cafeteria have liability insurance?

It's not about the insurace, it's about the money. He suffered, you see.

 

[The Central Scrutinizer]

There is absolutely no question that the case has merit.

Remember, this is a skeptics forum.

The question is, how did the cafeteria operators respond to any complaint they may have recieved?

Likely - "OK, send us the bill and our insurance company will pay it". Of course, that wasn't enough. He's Dennis Kucinich, don't you know!

Beyond the cost of getting his teeth fixed, there is the issue of the pain he suffered. I am sure it must have hurt like a mofo. I would consider it an additional grievance if the operators just figured to pay the dental bill and say "Stuff happens, let's move on." They go on with their business and Kucinich has to live with the memory of a meal gone horribly wrong.

Oh the poor dear! How will he ever be able to go on?

Given the embarassment he's feeling right about now (this story is all over the news, and everyone is having a good laugh), I suspect he will quietly drop his suit in the very near future.

 

[leftysergeant]

Remember, this is a skeptics forum.



Likely - "OK, send us the bill and our insurance company will pay it". Of course, that wasn't enough. He's Dennis Kucinich, don't you know!

And they don't owe him anything for the pain they caused him?

I have no idea how you can reach such a conclusion.