Wacky Warning Labels

[the_sandman_454]

I think the funny thing about the label is that people shouldn't need to be told to "avoid death". One would think it should be common sense.

I wouldn't mind seeing such warnings go away, in favor of letting evolution do it's job. For example, if you don't understand that a mower uses a rotating blade, you have no business using one.

 

[Gatorboy]

Perhaps an indication that none of us have any common sense anymore??

No, rather to keep attorney's from taking them to court.

 

[N80]

I'm serious when I say this but I'm having a hard time understanding why so many peopple think this is a "Wacky Warning". Would anyone care to elaborate?

It's the caption. The large print. Sure, in a small skid steer an uninformed person might lean forward and get wacked by the loader. But, to say "Avoid Death". That's wacky. For those folks who don't believe in a higher power, avoiding death is the primary principle in life. Must we be told to do so? The point is, it is just too non-specific a warning. I'm sure the small print elaborates, but wouldn't "Crush Hazard" have been a better caption? Of course it would. But you know what? "Crush Hazard" makes the legal dept. squirm. It implies that the unit has hazards associated with it, and that just looks bad in court. So what can they put on the warning label that removes any hint that the machine has any dangerous qualities at all.....shazam!: Avoid Death! What great advice and totally legally neutral with no hint of culpability.

So yes. Its wacky.

On the other hand, as a new user I felt like my user manual got so bogged down in absolute legaleez warning minutia that it failed to prepare me for the things I was really ignorant of. I might intuitively guess not to put my hand in the fan belt or that diesel fuel actually burns. But I did not understand how a raised loaded bucket affected tractor stability. And that warning got the same bold type and emphasis that putting my hand in the fan belt did. I had to learn that part. Fortunately without accident.

My point is, when the warnings against things that any moron should know get the same level of emphasis as the real important stuff that you might not intuitively know, its easy to blow the important stuff off along with the 'wacky' stuff.

I didn't need a warning that diesel fuel is flammable at all, and yet I would have appreciated a chapter on tractor ballast and stability.

 

[chh]

The first 4 wheeler I bought (Polaris) owners manual had NOTHING about maintaince, very little about operation(a numbered photo showing all the levers and shifters) and untold pages if warnings. Looked to have been written by a lawyer who had never seen the 4 wheeler and was told to cover all the bases.

 

[chh]

I think it's being stripped out of our kids by the public school system, with the liberal NEA/Dept. of Education at the root. And MTV and all that other similar crap doesn't help either.

I also think it's the ultra protective society that we're living in right now. We don't let kids go out and experience life and learn things the hard way. I've got an 11 year old nephew that until this past summer, I don't think has ever used a lawn mower. His mom won't make him go outside and mow the lawn, so that he doesn't get hurt on anything. I don't know about him, but when I was a kid, I usually didn't LEARN anything unless it drew some blood or left a blister on my fingers! How are our youth going to get prepared for the world when they're so "protected" from it as children?[/QUOTE

Basically; They don't. They call mommy and daddy to come fix it. Talk to a high school teacher or a someone who works at a university. Many 16 to 21 year olds don't have a clue about how to handle money, auto maintaince, or anything of the practicle nature. I am a "mean" parent that gave his kids jobs on the farm the same way I had them. All 3 (1 girl, 2 boys) learned about dirty fingernails, sweat, and blisters. Can't tell it hurt any of them. All have jobs and take care of themselves.

 

[North Dakota]

One of the contractor's employees got hurt on my project by a flying Grease Zert. The had a small bobcat mini excavator with tracks. The track on one side kept coming off. To get the track back on you loosened a Zert one quarter turn which let a ram back up (the ram held the track tight) put the track back on and tighten.

I show up and the guy is laying there having a hard time breathing. He had been hit right on the boney sternum of his chest. He was alright later but had a bruise the size of a dinner plate. I asked what he had been doing and they told he was putting the tracks back on. I went over and looked at the machine and a right above the hole where zert was supposed to be was a big warning label that said do not loosen more then 1/4 turn serious injury or death may occur and showed a head siloutte with a chunk of head missing and a flying zert symbol that had obviously bounced off the head. There was dashed line showing the path of a flying zert from part to head.

The man was lucky it did not hit his eye, soft stomach, or head. What a fool. The label was not dirty or damaged and showed exactly what happened.

 

[Richard]

1. This isn't really the kind of wacky warning label that's being generally discussed here.

2. I think we all know what it is really saying, but I especially like the top sign which, to me, can be construed as to illustrate what the bottom sign is talking about


That said, I can't STILL help but to smile every time I see this sign (which is on the road I live on so I pass it daily)

 

[SkyPup]

That's the first public wildlife refuge I ever heard of where backpackers are considered legal "game"!

 

[dirtworksequip]

In another 15 or 20 years machines will be totally covered with warning stickers and you won't be able to identify them by their brand name colors.

Sincerely, Dirt

 

[patrick_g]

I've always liked this one myself. Its absurd but it points out a serious problem with all these signs. When we try to warn everyone about everything the few really important messages "bridge out" get lost with all the other crap.

I just loved the bridge out sign. One of the best laughs!

Pat

 

[patrick_g]

The other one I can't understand is what this 710 cap is for on my tractor???

That opens up an entirely new discussion about what intervals to change your 710 and whether it is worth it to use synthetic 710 or just the old fashion stuff. If it is a new tractor you need to consider break-in 710...maybe. What change intervals? How do you dispose of 710 as undoubtedly it will cause cancer in California.

Pat

 

[SkyPup]

Yet a Kawasaki ZX-12R one-liter crotch rocket that does 0-100 in four seconds and has a top speed close to 200mph doesn't even have any warning signs on it.

In fact, anyone 16 years old can walk in and drive off in one, in most states without a helmet?

You'd think the crotch rocket bikes would all be plastered with warning labels?

 

[patrick_g]

During the little fracas we called the Viet Nam war during the height of the air campaign the warning tones in the cockpit of an F4 were so numerous and distracting all vying for your attention to let you know who had search RADAR sweeping you, who detected and locked on, who had fire control RADAR locked on you (SAMS batteries all over the place) that it got to be common place to turn the warnings off and just try to do your job, which was nearly impossible with all the cacophony of various warnings. Some of the Navy pilots flying under these conditions just turned the warnings off when going feet dry due to their contribution toward sensory overload for the pilot.

I think we have reached that point with all the liability motivated warnings and placards we are inundated with regularly. It is an out of control situation that does not improve safety for most of us as we get so tired of the junk we tend to ignore it.

Pat

 

[jimg]

No, rather to keep attorney's from taking them to court.

Exactly...safety is a secondary concern. I think 99.9% of the population has a clue. Its the other .1% that keeps 90% of the lawyers in business.

BTW some of the replies to this thread are hilarious esp the 710 cap. I would have never thought to read it that way. Dont think I can look at a 710 cap again w/o laughing.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

...I felt like my user manual got so bogged down in absolute legaleez warning minutia...

I am now looking for the next opportunity to use the phrase "absolute legaleez warning minutia" in a real conversation. I can't wait!

I don't have any specifics to add to the forum, but I've seen my share of rediculous signs and warnings. I'm right there beside the rest of you who lament our future of safety paralysis. My only consolation is that each generation seems to be in large part a reaction to generations past. I think a lot of the legal precedent against which most of this "absolute legaleez warning minutia" is aimed is an overreaction to some true negligence back in the beginning of industrialization.

I am eager to see how my children's world is shaped by the reaction to our current situation of being held hostage by fear of blatant stupidity and those who refuse to take responsibility for their own actions.

 

[thatguy]

1. <deleted text>

That said, I can't STILL help but to smile every time I see this sign (which is on the road I live on so I pass it daily)

I wish they would put one of those signs up where we deer hunt on national forest lands.. For the past 3 to 4 years on on opening day (a saturday) and the next saturday (doe day) there are tons of ppl (including a boy scout group) hiking and not a one is wearing blaze orange..

brian

 

[ASGAR]

Some warnings are really good... Still like this sticker off of my Kubota FEL...
Effective, eh? Makes you think twice when you're thinking about lifting a heavy load up high.
I can just imagine the people in the Sticker Design Department (surely directly reporting to the Legal Department) trying to come up with these graphics. Think of the conversation:
"Hey George, what do you think of this large cannonball falling on the guy in the tractor?"
"Yeah, that's great, Gus, but you need to put his hands in the air trying to stop the cannonball to show the futility of it."
Gus: "Oooh, ooh, yeah and the cannonball needs little motion marks around it!"
George: "Ooh yes! And make the cannonball LARGER and BLACK!!"
Gus: "Oooh, yeah, and MORE MOTION MARKS!!! Legal will love this one!!"

 

[Soundguy]

Yep!

soundguy

Exactly...safety is a secondary concern. I think 99.9% of the population has a clue. Its the other .1% that keeps 90% of the lawyers in business.

BTW some of the replies to this thread are hilarious esp the 710 cap. I would have never thought to read it that way. Dont think I can look at a 710 cap again w/o laughing.