Being right can cost you!

So many of us take the easy way through life. We try surgery over diet and exercise. We cheat instead of studying hard. We pay a little extra instead of researching for the best deal or finding a coupon. We drive a car 1/2 a block to a store instead of walking or taking a bike. We refuse to show a Circuit City "exit guard" our receipt because we're not required by law to do so.

No, wait. Most of us would show the receipt because that's the easier way out -- a small inconvenience. But not Michael Amor Righi. This guy decided to take a stand. He'd done nothing wrong and he was being subject to an unwarranted search. He wasn't mean about it. He just answered "No thank you," when asked if they could examine his receipt. Oh what a tangled mess that led to, though -- including arrest (you gotta read that part!). You can read the whole story on his blog starting here.

He'd done a little homework and chose his words wisely, but he did nothing illegal. I heard this story on the radio the other day and got worked up just listening to it. This is a guy who was smart enough, bold enough, confident enough to know when to say "No." He knew exactly what his boundaries were (thought he learned an awful lot after the fact as well). He knew what his rights were. He knew what he was getting himself into -- at least up to the part where he was actually arrested! He chose to take a stand against the erosion of our liberties. He fought the big corporation. He fought the law, and the law ... Well there is not really a winner in this situation. He took a stand for the apathetic rest of us, and came out about $10k short for doing nothing wrong... but at least they expunged his arrest record.

This little act may not change the world, or even things at the Brooklyn, Ohio Circuit City, but maybe the press it has generated will at least make people think again about what rights they have and cherish as American citizens -- and which ones they're willing to cede to take the easy way out.

(p.s. I don't suggest trying this at home without a law degree and a sizable legal fund lying in wait.)