Thursday, January 10, 2008

Unanswerable Questions

Some hypothetical scenarios:

1. My company gives me a Ford to drive. I don't like Fords for various reasons, and I publish this opinion on my blog. I get into an accident, harming someone in the process. The victim sues me. Am I in a worse position because I published the fact that I don't like Fords?

2. My company gives me a Ford to drive. I don't like Fords for various reasons, but due to Ford making it clear that they don't tolerate dissent, I refrain from publishing my opinion of Ford on my blog. I get into an accident, harming someone in the process. The victim sues me. Am I in a worse position because I knew Fords had problems but didn't publish that fact?

3. My company gives me a Ford to drive. I don't like Fords for various reasons, but due to Ford making it clear that they don't tolerate dissent, I refrain from publishing my opinion of Ford on my blog. Joe Schmoe, whom I know in passing, buys a Ford, not knowing of my dislikes. He gets into an accident, harming someone in the process. He subsequently finds out that I knew Fords had problems, but refrained from publicising this fact. Can the victim sue me? Can Joe sue me?

4. My company gives me a Chevy to drive. I like Chevys, and I publish this opinion on my blog. Based on my article, Joe Schmoe buys a Chevy, then gets into an accident, harming someone in the process. Can the victim sue me? Can Joe Schmoe sue me?

1 comment :

Anonymous said...

Here is another:

My company gives me a Rover to drive. I don't like Rover for various reasons, and I publish this opinion on my blog. I get into an accident, harming someone as a direct result of a fault I had pointed out some time before. Who sues Rover?