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2. Pornography Leah Plunkett, the author of “Sharenthood: Why We Should Think Before We Talk About Our Kids Online,” says photos of kids on social media are sometimes stolen by child pornographers. Plunkett told Vox, “A number of the images that are pornographic of children are pictures of real kids that are taken offline and photoshopped or otherwise retouched.” Yikes! 3. Kidnappers and Burglars If you like to post on social media about where you and/or your kids are, you could be tipping off potential kidnappers and burglars. When you post about your kids’ day care, you’re letting the whole world know where to find them, and by sharing details about a vacation, you’re broadcasting that your home is empty. There’s also an odd phenomenon called “digital kidnapping,” where
strangers steal photos of children online and repost them as their own, role-playing as the parent or the child.
4. Screenshots Identity theft, child pornography, and other criminal activity is possible even if your social media accounts are private. If someone you trust screenshots one of your posts, they can post it anywhere and share it with anyone, including total strangers and, if their accounts are public, criminals. 5. Privacy and Consent Apparently, cute little kids grow up to hate the naked baby photos their parents post. According to Quartz, one survey of UK-based kids aged 12–16 revealed 70% of them “felt their parents didn’t respect their online privacy.” Our decisions now — especially if our kids are too young to give a thumbs up or down to what we’re posting — can cause conflicts and resentment later. Since reading up on these issues, I hope we’ll all think twice before posting on social media. If you’ve found yourself in “sharent” territory lately, I hope you’ll do the same! Our kids are counting on us, even if they don’t know it yet. P.S. The Vox article is based on an episode of the “Reset” podcast called “Sharenting: How Much Should You Share About Your Kids Online?” If you want to learn more, you can check it out on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or Spotify.
It Was Justified All Along Remember the ‘McDonald’s Hot Coffee’ Lawsuit?
When McDonald’s refused to pay more than $800, the case went to court, and it came out that they’d known for at least 10 years about the dangers their hot coffee represented, with over 700 recorded burns and several lawsuits. But in 1992, their policy was to store coffee at 180–
Back in 1992, an elderly woman named Stella Liebeck sued McDonald’s in what became known as the infamous “hot coffee lawsuit.” The public relations team at McDonald’s has made sure the case is remembered as frivolous, but, like the third-degree burns Stella Liebeck suffered from a cup of McDonald’s coffee, her lawsuit was dead serious. The facts were simple: Mrs. Liebeck used the drive-thru with her grandson, who was at the wheel. Once the car stopped moving, she placed the cup of coffee she’d just ordered between her legs and tried to add some creamer. The cup tipped over, dumping the contents into her lap, causing third-degree burns over 16% of her body. She required hospitalization for eight days. Whirlpool debridement of the burns and skin grafts followed. She was at least partially disabled for more than two years, and that’s to say nothing of her pain and suffering.
190 degrees F, which is almost the boiling point! Furthermore, McDonald’s higher-ups testified on the stand that no matter what happened, they had no intention of changing their behavior. Unsurprisingly, at the end of the trial, McDonald’s was hit with a $2.9 million penalty. Although the penalty was later reduced, McDonald’s still dragged Mrs. Liebeck’s name through the mud in the press, with their version of the story being the one that stuck in the public consciousness. But it wouldn’t change the fact that they had to pay her around $700,000 at the end of the day — or that their coffee is now being served at a reasonable temperature
For all of this damage, Mrs. Liebeck asked McDonald’s for $20,000 — arguably not even enough to pay her hospital bills.
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2 • www.RobinetteLaw.com
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