So in light of last week’s post in which we examined the need for restaurants to remind their patrons to inform their server if they have allergies by placing signs all over their restaurants and menus I bring you another classic example of the ridiculousness.
Of course we all need to be reminded that the coffee we drink could be scalding hot. I mean, really I don’t know what I’d do without these reminders printed on each cup. But what really pisses me off is that the stores that serve up these potentially deadly scalding hot beverages don’t have placards and posters all over their establishments warning their customers of the dangers of drinking hot coffee as well. It simply isn’t enough to print them on the millions of coffee cups they sell. What if said customer decided to pour the coffee directly into their eyes??? Shouldn’t the cups also tell the consumers not to pour hot coffee in their eyes as well?
It could happen. I’m just saying.
This leads me to the next idea- Toilet paper printed with warnings for people to not forget to wipe. We can’t just assume that folks will clean up properly and that could lead to a bevy of unpleasant consequences. We should all lobby our congressmen to enact the critical legislation which would ensure that toilet paper companies print warnings on each sheet of toilet paper reminding people to wipe.
We simply cannot trust the populace to remember to clean up their own shit.
Oh and while you’re busy writing your congressman on the toilet paper issue you may as well see if we can get some text added to the coffee cups. May I suggest "Do not pour scalding hot coffee in your eyes or on your genitals- It may cause damage"
I’ll now wait for the folks who have actually poured hot coffee on their nut sacks to write in and champion such ideas.
Thank you for your consideration on such an important matter.
I’m here to help.
-Joey
Good Morning Gloucester 
I suppose those warnings fall more into the CYA category than actual belief that people don’t know such things but you never know. “Take responsibility”? Come on, Joe! We live in a who-can-I-sue-and-get-rich? society. I remember being in a restaurant some years back and I bit into my sandwich and discovered a little silver gizmo that was obviously the top of a salt or pepper shaker in there. I pointed it out to the waiter and they brought me a new sandwich and didn’t charge for my meal — fair enough, no harm done. But everyone at the table kept telling me I should sue them. Oy.
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I loved your first post, but TP as the second example in the series?
If you were so enraged at the signage, did you bring up why it was posted?
Maybe it was some message in restaurant weekly, or a lawsuit we are unaware of.
A simple google of personal responsibility give quite a nice number of links, including this one from Live strong:
http://www.livestrong.com/article/14698-accepting-personal-responsibility/
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It’s not enraged. It is annoyed. The energy put into making this a law that the signage be placed everywhere to remind people to do things they ought to know to do is redundant and unnecessary if people would only take responsibility for themselves. Instead, the money to enact this could be put into restaurants on safe food handling where it will counts- the kitchens and training wait staff.
I get that food allergies suck for people but if you have one or a loved one has one do you really need to be reminded to ask the server? Wouldn’t you do this automatically?
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Howz about a sensible “cause” that few will disagree about?, ie: making sure that the last 2 weekends of December remain long, 3 days off, by giving us Friday off, automatically, for whatever. Rather than trying to track the December 25 bit. I’m sure Jesus and Santa would approve.
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Hahaha! I have been annoyed of the EXACT same thing! Every time I walk into the Tea Company, I see it painted ON THE WALL above the menu. If the allergy is enough to cause you to go into some sort of shock, I’m sure that you would have enough sense to say “Hey, please don’t put me in the hospital and ruin my day today.” All in all, agreed Joey, agreed.
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Joey, gotta “wipe” your sense of humor. You make me chuckle.
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I think it all started with the “employees must wash hands before returning to work” signage. Everyone else can take responsibility for themselves I guess.
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