Stephen Eick here. Neil Steinberg, a Chicago Sun Times Columnist, slammed me again this morning – see here.
First, there is some confusion about the facts in this case. Unfortunately, I was out of town on business when the story broke and some critical details were omitted. See here .
What happened, which has now been confirmed by eye witnesses, is that on their final day of 8th grade Shannon lent Stephanie her iPod. Stephanie returned the iPod a minute later by placing it in Shannon’s purse on her desk while Shannon was in the room. A few minutes later, Shannon then left her iPod and purse unattended and went to the bathroom. While she was gone the class bell rang and when she came back the iPod and students were gone.
According to Ms. McCarthy we need to take responsibility and should buy Shannon a new iPod, pay some extra for lost iTunes songs (which are still on her computer), and give her a bit for her trouble. Yes, she even posted this to a blog. Wow. Wait a second. First, iPods are prohibited at Still Middle School, a rule that we confirmed with the principal. Second, Shannon left her iPod and purse unattended, doesn’t she share a little responsibility? We have confirmed with other kids that Shannon frequently left her possessions unattended. Third, in my one and only time speaking with Ms. McCarthy, I offered her $100 to split the costs. She actually filed her lawsuit before even contacting me about the dispute, Why did Ms. McCarthy go after the kid who took it? Why didn’t she file a police report? Why wasn’t there an investigation when the event occurred?
Honesty and Ethics
According to Ms. McCarthy "it's a matter of honesty, responsibility and what I feel are diminishing ethics in today's society." Wait a second. This is a she-said, she-said dispute between 14-year olds. Every fence has two sides. Your kid broke the rules, then left her iPod unattended, and has now blamed my kid even though she knows that somebody else took it. Responsibility is something that we all must share.
Enter Neil Steinberg
Neil doesn’t like me. In his first column Mr. Steinberg accused me of being morally wrong for not caving in to Ms. McCarthy’s demand for compensation. Hold it, I already offered to split it. Based on what happened, this seems fair to me. Next I got whacked for hiring a lawyer. Wow, my kid, a minor, has been sued in what many consider a frivolous lawsuit. Of course I’m going to invest a little money to have a professional handle her case. Then he slammed my kid for posing, at the photographer’s request, with her new (according to Steinberg) 9 month old iPod video. Gee, she’s only 14 and probably pretty nervous about the whole event.
Is This a Class Issue?
Quoting Mr. Steinberg, “This is a class issue, and we like to pretend class doesn't exist in America. The average family income in Aurora, where Shannon lives, is $61,000. In Naperville, where Stephanie lives, it's $93,000. That's a big difference. McCarthy can't win against the Eicks because the game is rigged in their favor.”
Wow. I thought this was a dispute about a lost iPod. Both kids live in the School District 204, went to the same middle school, and go to the same high school. I’m not sure what game Neil’s talking about but he doesn’t seem to know Aurora/Naperville demographics. This isn’t about class, it’s about a parent who, in my opinion, has wrongfully accused my kid of taking her iPod.
Judge Mathis TV Show - (I blogged about it here)
I’m sorry Neil, I don’t agree with you. Reality TV would be a great way to settle a she-said she-said dispute between kids about an iPod. I proudly admit to being young at heart! As I said in my blog post, there is backlog of over 1,000 others who would like to be participants on the show. I would like that number to be 1,001!
Who Is Right?
Quoting Mr. Steinberg, “I feel for McCarthy because, while Eick is panting after limos, she sees the situation clearly and knows she is trapped by the misfortune of being right.” I don’t agree. Rather than working toward a constructive solution, Ms. McCarthy started what many see to be a frivolous litigation. Her original demand was to get Shannon an iPod. She’s now had three chances. First, between the $100 I offered and her court costs, she could have bought without the bother of a court case. Second, an anonymous women offered her an iPod, case and iTunes gift certificate via the Naperville Sun. Third, the Judge Mathis TV show offered her the chance to win her case on national TV along with appearance money.
Who Wins?
Again from Mr. Steinberg "We've already lost," she says. "I already count the iPod gone, the money for filing gone ... but I believe that what they did was wrong, and they're not taking responsibility." Ms. McCarthy you have now had three chances to get your daughter an iPod. Didn’t she say how awful it was not having an ipod, and having to listen to radio? Is your goal to get your daughter an iPod or to litigate?
tags: iPod, lawsuit