During the trial it was revealed that McDonald’s knew that heating their coffee to this temperature would be dangerous, but they did it anyways because it would save them money. When you serve coffee that is too hot to drink, it will take much longer for a person to drink their coffee, which means that McDonald’s will not have to give out as many free refills of coffee. This policy by the fast food chain is the reason the jury awarded $2.7 million dollars in punitive damages in the McDonald’s hot coffee case. Punitive damages are meant to punish the defendant for their inappropriate business practice.
Yeah, it’s the “I did my own research on the internet” compulsion. Something on the internet lets you in on a little secret and if you buy into it, it makes you smarter than everyone who’s not aware of it. Once someone’s been convinced that they’re special for having some knowledge that most people aren’t aware of, it’s very hard to convince them that the majority is correct about it, not matter how many facts are presented that contradicts the special knowledge.
It’s why flat earthers exist. Of course that’s way more extreme (it’s almost a lifestyle really) than this thing. But this thing takes a lot less effort to verify scientifically, just stick a thermometer into a cup of coffee. The compulsion is different by degrees, but the psychological cause is similar.