[at-l] Stiffed by Hiker

[rickboudrie@hotmail.com (rick boudrie)]

>So if it makes you feel better critizing me, please feel free to do >so, as 
>I'm tough and can handle it.
>Jensine

I'm not sure that was critisism, Jensine.

I think that was just the kind of pragmatic advise you want to hear from a 
good attorney.  As a person who has rental property, runs his own small 
business and watches his wife run another, I think it is good when our 
advisers remind us to be pragmatists.  And on the internet there are no 
shortage of advisers!  I think its good when they remind us to take care of 
ourselves and our business interests first.  Even when it doesn't feel 
exactly right.  If we decide to ignore them, well, thats part of the fun of 
being our own boss.

With regard to posting a person's name and address and accusing them of a 
crime, it opens yourself up to some potential hassle.  Probably not going to 
happen, but if it does it could be a real pain in the tail.  I think the 
attorney's comments were just recognizing that.  For your benefit and others 
in the future.  Its a risk vs. reward thing.

If this kid is a criminal, then he might have been using a stollen ID and 
check book.  Sure, chances are slim, but what if?  Or what if the bank made 
a mistake and closed his checking and savings account rather than just his 
savings account?  Probably not the case, but who knows?

I think good lawyers think about stuff like that.  Now, what happens if 
someone on this list of 700+ people e-amails the kid's dad (everything is on 
the net somewhere) and rants about his deadbeat son?  What if the dad has as 
much principle about that kind of libal (or whatever) stuff as others do 
about getting stiffed by a check?  Short answer is you have a problem.  One 
that you would have to pay more than $50 to straighten out.   There are a 
gazzillion scenarios.

Chances are very, very slim for all of them, but good council recognizes 
that "stuff happens".  On balance, the decision to post a person's name and 
address and accuse him of being a criminal is yours.  It just that there is 
some exposure to doing that.  I think that is what the attorney was getting 
at.

As for making decisions at your business regarding future hikers, that is 
one of the great joys of being your own boss, right?  Its completely up to 
you.  Sometimes the decision's we think save us money have the opposite 
affect, though.  I think good council reminds of that, too.  Then we make 
our own decisions, because that's the way it should be in the end.

Rick Boudrie
(Who still can't figure out why people keep telling me to mind my own 
business ;-) )




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