Gator's Blog: While I Was Watching Court TV...

I don't really want to stand too tall on a soap box here, but...

Recently I was privy to watching that awful lineup of Court TV shows while in a waiting room and though it was entertaining in a guilty pleasure way, it was also very sad. I wasn't that upset with the content of the show or the ridiculousness that has these people in front of the cameras in the first place, but rather upset with the advertisements during the commercial breaks.

I have nothing against lawyers at all nor do I have a problem with Capitalism. What I have a problem with is the way that we're being told to cash in on being involved in an accident.

Whether it's a dog bite or a fender bender, countless law firms are on television touting how they've gotten hundreds of thousands of dollars for their clients. I'm all for someone recouping their losses, but when it comes to "pain and suffering", my blood begins to boil. There's a reason these things are called accidents and to a large extent, pain and suffering can be attributed to life. Sometimes life sucks and you're dealt a crappy hand, but not everyone is lining up at the door of Dewey, Cheatem', and Howe to cash in their misery.

This isn't to say that all claims are illegitimate, quite the contrary. But when we're inundated with the promise of six or seven digit settlements because someone has deep pockets, I get disgusted and think it's a giant reason why we all have larger than life insurance premiums for auto or health care. You want to see your insurance costs go down? Let's talk about tort reform and put a reasonable cap on "winning" cases.