With the recession in full swing (cliché much?), it seems people are cutting back on expensive food. With that, McDonald’s has seen their profits jump as people turn to them for a cheap meal. According to an article in The Wall Street Journal on Feb. 10, McDonald’s saw their sales rise 5.4 percent in the United States for stores open over a year.

With people heading to McDonald’s, or any other low-cost, fast-food chain, in droves in an effort to save on cash, it’s only a matter of time before one of my biggest peeves pops up again: People suing the golden arches for making them fat.

In our money-hungry, lawsuit-happy culture of 2009, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s not soon before people start lining up like “Domino’s” to call up 1-800-LAWYER in hopes of pulling some dough out of the “Burger King,” just for making them a bunch of “Blimpies.”

I’d like to begin with my contempt for people that sue for everything that may have mistakenly gone wrong. It seems that if anyone fouls up anything that might be a tiny inconvenience to someone, a lawsuit will be on their door the next morning. You’ve all read about silly lawsuits being brought in front of a judge. The scary thing is that sometimes, the party seeking the payout actually gets paid. Most of the time, it’s the company settling out of court trying to avoid any more bad publicity, or “Arby’s-tration.”

But back to McDonald’s and the expanding waist band of America. If anyone, ever, thinks that it’s McDonald’s fault that they might be getting a little hefty, they need to be locked up in a padded room. If McDonalds, was misrepresenting their nutritional facts, that would be a different story – but that’s really not the case.
People actually believe that McDonald’s just magically makes them keep eating their food, even if they know it’s not good for you. I can envision that day when McDonald’s is going to have to put a Surgeon General’s warning on all Big Macs reading: “Warning: This food might make you fat. Eventually.” Hey, it worked for the tobacco industry.
When a lawsuit was filed back in 2002, the BBC quoted a woman as saying “[I had] always believed McDonald’s was healthy for my son.”

McDonald’s has never made claims to be the healthiest place on earth, and if you have even a shred of common sense, you’d realize that potatoes, deep fried in oil, hamburgers, a bun and a large soda might not be the best meal in the world.

If “Papa John’s” and “Wendy’s” families aren’t bright enough to understand that going “In-N-Out” of a fast-food restaurant every day might not be the brightest idea, then they have what’s coming to them. John Donne, an English poet, once wrote, “Therefore never send to know for whom the “Taco Bell” tolls, it tolls for thee.” Or something like that.

With America packing on the pounds, and lawsuits being filed at a drive-thru pace, it’s only a matter of time before the next French fry fatty puts Mickey D’s on the docket.