Friday, September 16, 2005

Class Action Insight...

..came to me this morning when I woke up. I recalled something Judge Borrello said yesterday. He informed us that if we live in Michigan, residents have to opt-in to be included in a class action suit, but federal class action requires the class individuals to opt out. Then he mentioned the CSX derailment as a case in Michigan where we had to opt out. Duh! ...something about interstate commerce no doubt? My motivation for being so much against a big ol' class action suit involving all of us living along the Tittabawassee River floodplain had to do with that opting out thing.

Other comments about yesterday:
  • Mrs. Damore extended her sympathy to me for the recent loss of my husband and I'm sure she meant it. Later a few others also did so. To the young man who I verbally 'struck back' at for an incident in Midland, I'm sorry. The incident took place at the Dow Library after a meeting sponsored by MDEQ. I think the fellow who caused it was of your 'body type' but older and fatter.
  • I hope the attorneys representing Dow know that there actually IS a Tittabawassee River floodplain and it is more 'real' than that big expanse defined by FEMA. Some of the FEMA designated properties have never been flooded; my backyard floods at least once a year.
  • The Dow attorney referred to the original 8 plaintiffs and an additional 101 plaintiffs - all recruited by at least three individuals over a period of time. Just an FYI - we obtained 147 signatures in a contiguous area along the Tittabawassee River in a matter of a couple of days going door-to-door! If we had extended the efforts done by the litigants we probably would have signatures of most of the other 2000 residents!

I remain yours truly, healthy and vocal after raising a family, living, gardening, and mowing the lawn along the Tittabawassee River floodplain since 1960.

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