What is Digg?121 Comments
- iomegaboy, on 10/12/2007, -4/+94WTF is this world coming to?
Where the f*@$ is 2.7 Mil. gonna come from? The local fire department? That's probably the whole city's budget for firefighting for a full year. What a crock of *****. - andyrobo60, on 10/12/2007, -2/+73I don't know about you but I would eat some dog food for $2.7m.
- Bluth, on 10/12/2007, -5/+67YOU ever tasted dog food?!? IT TASTE JUST LIKE IT SMELLS!!!
...delicious. - RichPowers, on 10/12/2007, -5/+57The guy sweats his ass off fighting fires, cleans up burned out homes, sees all sorts of trauma victims, yet isn't "tough" enough to handle dog food? Hell, my neighbor's poodle eats it just fine :)
Seriously, this isn't worth $2.7m. Maybe some internal disciplinary measures at most, but not a chunk of the city's budget. - YumYumKittyLoaf, on 10/12/2007, -15/+60Replied at the wrong place, digg me down
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+38The sad thing is that every time someone uses race as a basis to sue an employer, it makes it more difficult for the rest of that race to get a decent job. Nobody wants to hire somebody who is a financial liability, no matter how qualified they are.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+36Its a shame. This event will only fuel the fires of racism. But I am sure Mr. Pierce will not care much after he receives his check. People will do anything for money. I have had co-workers do some weird ***** to me in the past I should have claimed that they did it because they were prejudice against Irish. I could be $$RICH$$ right now.
- DCMacHead, on 10/12/2007, -2/+33Bet if he did it on a dare, the stakes would have been a lot less than $2.7 million.
- LeFrenzy, on 10/12/2007, -1/+28I'm sorry but I can't look at this thread without saying:
"only in America".
even $50,000 Settlement, I would consider that overkill. $2.7M? Get out of here. - SpasticThinker, on 10/12/2007, -7/+34Incredible. I wonder if he ever went to any kind of school, where guys pulling HARMLESS pranks like this on one another are the norm. I hope he enjoys the money, because it will never be worth his newly acquired "I'm a douche" reputation.
- guytoronto, on 10/12/2007, -4/+29Ummm...you never use the "n" word jokingly in the office. That's just stupid.
Unless you work for a hip-hop record label. - Flytrap, on 10/12/2007, -2/+23I think that you are missing the point... Of course he can handle dog food... He probably could have eaten a can full just to show how tough he was if he was dared to.
However, this was not a dare. These were people that Tennie Pierce had been sweating his ass off shoulder to shoulder fighting fires, cleaning up burned out homes, seeing all sorts of trauma victims... and then they commit a small, on the surface harmless, act that really should have been laughed off by everybody.
But Tennie Pierce reports the incident, which he is entitled to do; and there should have been some people called into the office, some verbal reprimands and Pierce would have been labelled a poor sport who cannot take a joke, and it would/should have been left at that. Clearly Jorge Arevalo and the two captains involved, John Tohill and Chris Burton didn't know Pierce well enough to realise that he would take the prank personally.
Great prank on the wrong guy with no sense of humour. Smart people would have seen that, apologised profusely, bought the guy some beer and moved on.
But these guys make matters worse, by turning what should have been a simple prank gone wrong into a racial thing and start subjecting Pierce to "verbal slurs, insults (and) derogatory remarks," including taunting by firefighters "barking like dogs (and) asking him how dog food tasted."
Surely, when Pierce reported the incident everyone should have realised that Pierce was not one of them, didn't share their sense of humour and that the joke was no longer funny. Some people were now risking suspension and not just a slap on the wrist.
My two cents worth - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -7/+27I can't believe I am admitting this, but you, sir, are correct. :)
- ZetSabre, on 10/12/2007, -0/+20If I'm reading correctly, Pierce called himself "The Big Dog."
HOW IS THIS ABOUT RACE? - masamunecyrus, on 10/12/2007, -3/+19I believe this has been posted before, and if not, it should have been:
http://www.thepeoplescube.com/images/Race_Card.jpg
^_^ - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -6/+22If he got $2.7 million for eating dog food, I wonder what he will get for the beating he will get when his fellow fire fighters find him alone and off the clock... assuming they don't kill him.
I agree with iomegaboy when he asks, "Where the f*@$ is 2.7 Mil. gonna come from?" It truly would be a shame if the taxpayer foots the bill on this. After all is said and done, it's nothing that a 1/2 drunk frat boy wouldn't do for a free beer any day of the week. That guy needs to grow a pair and take his revenge out on the volleyball court, not the legal court.
(that last statement makes since if you read the story, for those of you left scratching your heads.) - YumYumKittyLoaf, on 10/12/2007, -2/+16How stupid. People actually taste test dog food before it gets put onto the market. Not to mention some people that can't afford food (the ederly or homeless) will eat dog and cat food. It's not as uncommon as you think.
- ltuspud, on 10/12/2007, -5/+19This is what the ***** world is coming to. One ***** prank on a guy because he beat them at volleyball and the city pays 2.7 million to this guy. What a ***** joke. This is why our justice system doesn't work in America.
- canyonblue, on 10/12/2007, -0/+12"That sum will probably come down quite a bit on appeal. A previous case awarded $220,000 for sexual harassment."
No it won't. This wasn't a verdict able to be appealed, this is a settlement between the firefighter and the LAFD, they have *agreed* to give him the money. Ouch. - skoles, on 10/12/2007, -0/+13My dad is a firefighter and pranks/good natured harassment happen all the time to the newbies.
You wanna know what kind of man you're going to rush into a burning building with. And the guys in the station are a brotherhood that are as close as their own families are to them as individuals. And as brothers will do in real life there is some teasing and honest joking around that goes around. - Wavey, on 10/12/2007, -2/+14For a person who takes the nickname "rationalist," you seem to be having a lot of trouble rationalizing.
How the hell is this in any way racist?
1. The guy was a 6" 5' 22-year veteran who worked with multiple stations, whites, blacks, Hispanics, you name it through his career.
2. He called himself "the Big Dog," which was a playful boast and a reference to his size. During the volleyball game, he taunts the other guys with "keep on feeding the Big Dog."
3. The other guys respond after the game by pulling a prank in which they lace his spaghetti with a little dog food.
4. Guy eats two bites of the dog food. Of course, has a hard time living it down considering that this is a close-knit group of men we're talking about. He gets kidded by the rest of the guys off and on for a year about it.
5. Guy files a lawsuit, and two years after the fact, gets awarded $2.7 million. His lawyer says he was subjected to "verbal slurs and insults." (Translation from lawyerese: he had to listen to KIDDING from his fellow fireman.)
Nowhere is there any reference to racial ANYTHING. But the guy plays the race card anyway and says that the reason for all of this is because he was black.
*****. The reason for all of this is because he is a fireman, and firemen pull pranks on each other. The guy himself was known to have pulled a LOT of pranks over his 22-year tenure. The usual response from his fellow firemen was to get even with pranks of their own. That's the way living in a fire station works. But nooooooo....It was a RACIST thing, says this guy all of a sudden after 22 years of pranks. Suddenly, having to eat two bites of dog food is not about a playful prank -- No, it's all about him being BLACK. Of course! Because in messed-up California courtrooms, that's the ticket to 2.7 million! - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11Hell, for $2.7M I'd gladly eat dog *****.
- easyone, on 10/12/2007, -5/+16You can't be serious... I'm against racism and all but I swear to god the next time a non-white person insults me I'm going to go crying to the ACLU that it was because i was white. >_
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -11/+21And this is exactly why I am against affirmitive action, political correctness, people who say anti-semitism, people who think it's ok for blacks to be proud of themselves but not whites, gay rights, and any other thing that gives people BENEFITS like these. This is EXACTLY why all those things I mentioned should be destroyed.
- Monk1932, on 11/04/2007, -1/+10@W00DR0W
"[I]n fact even when the World Trade Center went down the white firefighters didn't want to work with the black ones."
I wanna know where you heard this piece of cr@p?!?! I'm gonna give you the long and short of that (9/11) and any other emergency situation, people are judged solely on their ability to perform white, black, hispanic, gay, or any other group. There is racism in the fire service, but it is no more prevalent in the firehouse than it is anywhere else. So before you go spewing the "facts" on my brothers and sisters (no mater their race) why don't you get a clue. - twinklyJesus, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8What I find odd is that nothing I saw in the article, beyond the "victim's" claim, indicates that any of this was racially motivated. I am pretty sure that, who ever won, they might've done the same to them, especially if they went around referring to themselves as "Big Dog."
- siszam, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8I know a family who has a child brain damage by the dentist putting her on nitrous and leaving her alone too long. The child will never be much more than a vegetable. They only got 250,000. LIFE IS SO UNFAIR.
- dgh1973, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8Dude's a cry baby. I wish I could get 2.7 mil for being a cry baby, I think my pride is worth far more to me though.
- thereaintnojust, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8That might make sense, but this was a settlement. It was not a jury award.
- thestorey, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8okay guys Digg is going to have a spaghetti cook off at Kevin's house some one lace my ***** with dog food and i will sue then we split the winnings... i mean settlement all around!
- firewrx612, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7The nature of our business allows for some down time, get over it. It's a great job and I don't deny that, but the fact is not everyone can do it. I agree with you that people throw around that hero term way too often, so often that it's lost it's significance. The Fire dept is a cross section of society, there's good firefighters and bad firefighters, just like there are good employees and bad employees in every job, don't lump people in to categories, we don't fit. People are a diverse group.
Before you judge what we do as "nothing all day" I invite you to ride along with a major metro fire dept for a little while and see if you have the same opinion. I think that you will not. Because although there is some down time, when we work, we work our asses off. It's too bad you couldn't experience what it's like to be in a fully involved structure fire, it's nothing like what you see on TV or in a movie. It's much worse. - Wavey, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8I happened to hear this on Larry Elder. Turns out, according to a couple of his fellow firefighters that worked in the same station as this guy, that:
1. He is a 22-year veteran.
2. He had a long history of pulling pranks just like this one on his fellow firefighters.
3. Any firefighting team is a close-knit, almost fraternity-like environment. The guys spend half of their lives together. Of course there is going to be razzing and practical jokes.
I love how his lawyer said that "This sort of abuse has been going on for blacks for 350 years." What, dog food?
Play the race card just right, and you can become very rich. In a just world, this guy and his lawyer would be laughed out of the courtroom and fined big bucks for wasting everyone's time with such a stupid lawsuit. - GianDoe, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7He was talking ***** on the court, his buddies wanted to humble him, they were laughing when it happened (obviously a joke, its not like they fed him glass or something hateful)....why not get them back with a prank like they got him??! ...be a man, get a sense of humor...
Although, his way you get 2 million dollars...what a dick. - DrGonzo1184, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6@ SpasticThinker
"I hope he enjoys the money, because it will never be worth his newly acquired "I'm a douche" reputation."
Hey, for $2.7 million, you can call me a douche all you want... - eclosis, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7bah.. my post was a responce to the guy making racist comments.. I guess his post got nuked
- pickypg, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7@markthewiz
Yep, people owe YOU money for something we didn't do, and you were unaffected by. Yep, I can see that.
Guess I never deserve to talk again though, right? - BIGmog, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9That sum will probably come down quite a bit on appeal. A previous case awarded $220,000 for sexual harassment.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -6/+11You are a ***** retard brickbat...
People who sue for ***** like this should just be sent out of America. Deport them to another country and they can see how much they took for granted.
Pieces of ***** like this guy, and ***** morons who think this is in any way shape or form respectable, should be ***** castrated and deported. Why do you think health care is unattainable for a huge percent of Americans? It is because so many ***** asshats sued that malpractice insurance has pushed the price to unreal levels. Why do you think we have to walk through 5000 ft of paperwork every time we ***** breath...asshats like this guy.
Seriously who the ***** lets these people win their case. If I was on the jury I would hope to god the city counter sued and I could take every penny this asshat has and put him on the street.
asshats - webdwarf, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7@Flytrap
"Smart people would have seen that, apologised profusely, bought the guy some beer and moved on."
Smart people would sue for 2.7m ;)
I definitely agree with everything you said though. - chedabob, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7This reminds of the dude that was hungry, so he ate the paint off his radiator. Turns out it was lead based paint, he got brain damaged, then got £2 million in compensation.WTF?!?!
- altidude, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4>How did they come up with the $2.7 million figure?
Easy. The lawyer knows how much money he wants to make, knows his cut of the take then comes up with the $2.7 million figure. - GianDoe, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4eclosis, heck yeah it got nuked, because some of us can apparently identify real racism
i'm offended by that guy's comment too...and i'm now suing for 2 million dollars... - qazxsw, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4That's good money.
I'd eat the dogfood, the tin, the bowl and the dog for that. - brickbat, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6@y0bailey
With ***** like that, you must be a Republican.
1. Look at the numbers. The GREAT BULK of the money goes to million dollar salaries and profits - not litigation.
2. They probably could have settled for 100k and an apology. The fact is that the insurance companies LOVE litigation. It takes for ever and a lot of people give up or die before getting any justice.
3. Thankfully, ***** like you are not on the jury.
4. I hope some ***** happens to you and you get ***** over by litigation "reforms" that limit your constitutional rights.
I think its fine that people digg my comment down if they disagree but they should have real arguments - not your crap. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5If someone fed me dog food like that, I would beat them to a pulp. And then they would sue for 2+ Million.
- Wavey, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5@ZenMojo -- I think you are thinking too much. Some people insist on "reading between the lines" when there is really little to nothing to read between. You think that there just HAS to be something here that we are not being told. Yet there is absolutely no evidence of this. At all. Period. Usually, there would be leaks from someone in this guy's 22-year-career past, something that would reveal an inkling of what you are claiming. A quote, a call in to a radio show, something. Yet there is nothing. So your posts amount to nothing more than pure speculation.
People sue for big bucks for stupid ***** like this FAR too frequently. And also far too frequently, they win. This is just the latest example.
Come back when you have some hard evidence to support your claim, and I might be interested. Until then, this stands as just another example of the race card being played, and ridiculous sums being paid. - chedabob, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I feel kinda bad, cos the only link I can find, is about some three year old.
http://alexanderharris.co.uk/article/_1M_FOR_BOY_POISONED_BY_LEAD_BASED_PAINT_164.asp
It sounds exactly like what I was thinking of, but Im sure whoever ate the point was like an adult, and thats why i thought it was so daft. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6I guess some of you didn't get it, it's a Darnell the Crack Head joke from Chappel Show.
- MusicalGenius, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Just like McDonald's made me fat.
- BruceDeuce, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3WTF! Where's my money. I almost died in a car accident that wasn't my fault, and after the lawyers doctors took their share of small amount that the insurance paid out I only got $3,000. That didn't even cover all the work I missed.
Ruined Body = $3000
Eating Alpo = 2.7 million
I wish someone fed me alpo instead of smashing into me. -
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