Talk:Accident

This page is a bit bizarre in its current form. The general intro is fine, but then to have a (longish) section on bicycle accidents yet not mentioning significant shipwrecks, air accidents, major car pile-ups, etc is weird!!! Calls for a significant reworking, IMO. GRAHAMUK 23:34, 25 Oct 2003 (UTC)

OK, this paragaph:

"Some incidents are called accidents even if they are not accidental. The Chernobyl accident for example occurred when technicians disabled the safety system and violated a long list of safe operating procedures. The resultant explosion has been termed an "accident", even when it was clearly caused by intentional acts meant to undermine the stable operation of the plant. Such are not accidents within the literal meaning of the word, but by constant repetition, may become known as accidents."

... is just a bit silly. The paragraph of the Accident article defines accident as "unintended" yada yada. The Chernobyl accident was CLEARLY unintentional. Yes, the 'acts' were intentional, but the intended outcome was a test of some of the safety features of the plant, not to cause a horrible accident. If it wasn't an accident then what was it ... a botched plot to take over the world? I propose changing this paragraph and possibly removing it. Ppe42 14:58, 25 October 2005 (UTC)[reply]

I agree, it's bollocks. Of course it was an accident. I think the author is splitting semantic hairs for some reason - trying to draw a distinction where things "just happen" for no good reason, and a chain of events which lead to a particular outcome. Maybe lawyers enjoy arguing about this sort of thing, but the everyday meaning of the word accident is pretty clear. Graham 23:52, 25 October 2005 (UTC)[reply]

For consistency, I am taking work accident and bike accident as separate entries, just like car accident. More cleanup is needed. Miguel Andrade 03:00, 5 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I removed the link to cows under workplace safety, as it has the uncyclopedia nature, and thus is unfit for this page. If it actually has a place here, sorry about the remove. 83.109.216.254 21:51, 6 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Why all the quotes? Saying that so-and-so many people died in "accidents" implies a lot of things. It does not take a large strech of the imagination to suggest that these people were murdered.Simen 88 18:48, 13 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Just wondering about the line "Non-physical examples include babies being born.". This seems to be a bit POV. How is it an accident, unless it is assumed that all pregnancies are outside anyone's control?Simen 88 19:56, 13 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]