Man Sues "Burning Man" for Getting Burned

Dear Lord, save us from such fools!

SAN FRANCISCO -- If you approach the flames at the Burning Man festival, you're taking your chances of getting burned. That was the verdict Tuesday from a state appeals court in San Francisco, which refused to reinstate a festivalgoer's damage suit against the promoter of the annual celebration in the Nevada desert. Anthony Beninati, a Los Angeles-area resident, was badly burned at the September 2005 event in Black Rock City, Nev. A college-educated real estate manager, he was making his third visit to the weeklong festival, which culminates with the incineration of a 60-foot wood sculpture.

It seems that Mr. Beninati wanted to toss a photo of a recently departed friend into the flames. It is customary for participants to toss things into the fire. This was not Mr. Beninati's first trip to Burning Man.

He walked 7 to 10 feet into the burning embers, with flames on either side of him, threw in the photo, then took a few more steps forward, tripped and fell into the fire.

Would anyone venture to guess that Mr. Beninati had availed himself of either adult beverages or mind altering substances before taking his little "trip"? Had the promoters simply availed themselves of a convenient warning label, such as the one above, applied with a good swift kick to the backside, I'm sure all of this unpleasantness could have been avoided! Hat tip Jammie Wearing Fool Cross posted at Say Anything