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Archive for February, 2009
« Previous EntriesMuskogee nursing home’s failure to apologize triggers a predictable lawsuit
Saturday, February 28th, 2009Recently, the Muskogee Phoenix reported that Ernest Maxwell, an elderly resident of a local nursing home, was beaten to death by another resident. According to news reports, Maxwell’s alleged attacker was known to have a mental condition and had reportedly hit others with the cane he wielded on Maxwell. Nevertheless, the bereaved family [...]
Senator Bunning’s public statement was NOT an apology
Wednesday, February 25th, 2009Today’s “Foot in Mouth Award” goes to Senator Jim Bunning for his prediction during a recent speech that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg will die within a year of pancreatic cancer, and for the fumbled apology that followed. Justice Ginsburg underwent surgery earlier this month for what doctors characterized as a small tumor [...]
Why didn’t Tampa police apologize faster to Brian Sterner?
Monday, February 23rd, 2009On January 29th Brian Sterner, a wheelchair-bound quadriplegic, was arrested by Tampa police over a driving offense. When he was brought in for booking, officers ordered Sterner to stand up which, of course, he was unable to do. Unfortunately, Deputy Charlotte Marshall-Jones apparently thought Sterner was bluffing, and unceremoniously dumped him out of [...]
The right lawyer can help you apologize
Friday, February 20th, 2009This morning’s Today Show included a segment on corporate apologies - naturally, I watched with interest. The guest made several excellent points, but lost me completely when he started lawyer-bashing. Admittedly, I’m a little sensitive on that subject because I’m an attorney, but my back went straight up when the guest dismissively said [...]
Was Allen Stanford in league with Bernie Madoff?
Thursday, February 19th, 2009As the bad news on the economy continues to worsen (at this point, nobody seems to be predicting a recovery any time this year), it’s disheartening to learn that yet another big investment guru has been charged with massive fraud. The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged Texas billionaire Allen Stanford and three of [...]
The Boston Globe examines public apologies
Monday, February 16th, 2009Many thanks to Peter Schworm of the Boston Globe for inviting me to comment on the recent spate of public apologies. As I told Mr. Schworm when we spoke, America finally seems to be rejecting the “never say you’re sorry” mindset that has bogged us down for so long. Thankfully, we seem to [...]
People are worth more than peanuts!
Thursday, February 12th, 2009When word got out last fall that babies were dying in China from consuming contaminated formula, the U.S. media were - quite rightly - all over China’s government for failing to establish and maintain appropriate quality controls on consumer goods. Kids are, after all, a nation’s future, and they’re especially vulnerable. What kind [...]
Why A-Rod only gets a B from me
Tuesday, February 10th, 2009New York Yankee superstar Alex Rodriguez apologized Monday for failing an allegedly anonymous steroids test in 2003. At the time, Rodriguez was playing for the Texas Rangers who, he now says, “felt an enormous amount of pressure to perform.” And he certainly has - since then, Rodriguez has become the highest-paid athlete in [...]
So, you really can’t manage on half a million?
Monday, February 9th, 2009It’s been disheartening to read news reports that Wall Street’s compensation gurus are already looking for ways around the cap that President Obama would like to impose on some bank executives’ compensation. The proposal isn’t exactly hard-hearted. If a bank is in shaky enough condition to partake of federal bailout money, the President has proposed [...]
Why Daschle’s apology wasn’t enough
Wednesday, February 4th, 2009Pity poor President Obama, who’s had two of his hand-picked nominees withdraw from consideration today over their alleged failure to pay taxes. The big news, of course, is that Tom Daschle, whom everybody thought was a shoo-in for confirmation as Secretary of Health and Human Services, decided to step aside even though he had unequivocally [...]
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