White Collar

White Collar Situation 1: A telephone marketer promises a solar-powered clothes dryer for $500 and then sends the buyer only a clothesline and clothes pins. The degree of responsibility depends on the exact transcript of the telephone marketing conversation. Assuming the marketer promised only a "solar-powered clothes dryer," and the buyer asked for no details, then the responsibility rests firmly with the buyer. The buyer should likely realize their stupidity and perhaps commit suicide as a result.

To deceive someone in this way would not be a crime in any state, because the product does deliver as promised. A clothesline and pins are technically solar-powered drying apparati. One should hope that the line and clips are of the best possible quality on the market and will never degrade. Caveat emptor always applies. No one forces a consumer to purchase anything. Taking personal responsibility is an art that many Americans have forgotten.

Marketing is an integral part of business, and businesses will do whatever they can to sell products. As long as there is no outright lie, then marketing may be as aggressive as the business is comfortable with. Lying is crossing the line. If this company's marketer sent a photo of an solar-powered electric dryer, or promised that the clothes would be dry in fifty minutes rain or shine, or anything like that, then it could be considered fraud and therefore illegal.

Situation 2: A store selling cigarettes to a customer with emphysema. This is a tricky situation, because how does the store know the customer has emphysema? The customer with emphysema should already be aware that smoking causes emphysema and can certainly exacerbate it. Therefore, the customer might have the responsibility in this case.

If the store had sold to this customer fifty years ago before the warnings were public knowledge, then it is possible that the store was at fault if it can be proven that the sales clerk was aware of the person's health issues. People with emphysema generally do not walk around with signs on their necks reading "I Have Emphysema Please Be Careful With My Lungs." Situation 3: A casino allowing a person with a gambling addiction to gamble.

As with the person with emphysema, the person with a gambling addiction likely does not advertise his or her problem. The casino cannot possibly know which of its customers has a gambling addiction that is impacting their lives, and which are just having fun. The person with the gambling addiction could go to any casino, or even play the lottery, if they want to. Therefore, the responsibility does remain with the consumer.

The only case in which the casino must take responsibility, is if the customer is a known addict -- such as if the staff knew that the customer had been in gambling rehabilitation programs (Benston, n.d.). Then, the casino needs to communicate its policy -- but this would be for ethical and not legal reasons. Situation 4: A fast-food restaurant selling cheeseburgers to an obese customer. Obese customers should not be eating in fast food restaurants.

A clerk is more than welcome to point this fact out to the customer, but would.