When people file lawsuits blaming large corporations for their own stupidity, they're telling us they're not responsible for anything they've done. In a sense they're telling the world they should not be trusted, because it's not their fault they climbed over an eight-foot fence and onto an electrical transformer, nearly killing themselves in the process.

My complaint about frivolous lawsuits has always been that people are shirking their personal responsibility in their desire for a huge settlement. For example I just read that a lawyer representing this mother of a 21 year old Hudson, Wisconsin man who committed suicide this last November. She blames EverQuest, a popular online game, for her son's death.

"I believe in free enterprise," he said. "but this time they have gone too far! Sony Online Entertainment, the owner of EverQuest, should have put on their product a warning label claiming their game to be "addictive! My client's son's suicide was a direct result of playing EverQuest for hours at a time, despite being diagnosed with depression and a schizoid personality disorder!"

According to the lawyer's plea, his client's son played the game despite the neurological problems it caused him. Because he was obsessed with the game, he quit his job and ignored his family. In fact, he loved it so much that he played right until a few minutes before he shot himself Thanksgiving Day, 2001. Being epileptic, playing the game 12 hours a day would cause seizures the plea went on.

In his interview with a local reporter, the lawyer complained, "The actions for which these corporate ghouls should be held responsible are marketing a game that they know is addictive and is designed to be addictive and prey on addictive personalities, with absolutely no warnings whatsoever."

So what would this lawyer sue for if he had clients who constantly wash their hands or cleaned their house every day? They had Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders is what we used to say; they could be treated with drugs and therapy. Would he sue the many soap companies and vacuum cleaner manufacturers now? After all, people do use cleaning products to support their addiction, don't they?

To make sure that only mentally stable people are allowed to purchase it, should the law require that Dial monitor the sales of their hand soap? How about a five-day waiting period and background check on anyone trying to buy a liquid soap dispenser? We could demand that Eureka put warning labels on all their vacuum cleaners, warning obsessive cleaners that using their product might lead to carpal tunnel syndrome and lower back pain. Or we could just have them come to my house once a week to vacuum and dust.