"Google "John Smoltz iron shirt" sometime and you'll find out why you need a label that says "Do not iron clothes while wearing them."

So are you suggesting that if there HAD BEEN such a label, that it wouldn't have happened? Of course not. Labels and safety precautions don't work on idiots. It's that simple.

Amen ..patrick.

I like the suggestion of the sleeping bag, and moving him when we go to bed. Thanks Buttercup.

Interesting political angle to this hot topic of pull out couches...but, uh, thanks...I think...

Patrick, Ahhnold, et al,
Perhaps I didn't make my point as I intended it. My point wasn't that people won't continue to do stupid things if properly warned. (Such as the woman who decided to get out of her car in the bear section of the Great Adventure Drive-Through Safari. Despite signs saying "bears can be hostile.")

Having a label saying "don't iron your shirt while wearing it", doesn't stop the John Smoltz's of the world from doing just that. But, it does at least limit what their lawyer will try and get from the iron's manufacturer.

To be clear, idiots will be idiots despite a warning label. The only way to stop said imbecile from profiting from their stupidity, is to tell them what could occur.

My brother is a NYC fireman - I've heard plenty of stories about people who'd qualify for "Darwin Awards." Such as the guy who broke his eye orbit after being hit by a golf ball that richocheted from his home made potato gun (he'd run out of potato's and needed something else) and the guy he had to cut out of a dryer because once he'd gotten in, he couldn't get out.

On the other hand, government intervention will sometime bring a potential problem to the attention of an otherwise cautious but under-informed citizen.

Ie - my kids go sledding all the time here in Massachusetts. We sled in an area that is free from granite walls, trees and other obstacles. We use the usual amount of precaution but sometimes the kids get in each other's way and knock each other over. Currently, I would never think to ask the kids to wear helmets. But if I was told that wearing the helmet could prevent serious injury, if I was made aware of just how prevalent sledding injuries were, and was made aware of how those injuries occur (ie granite walls vs. kids knocking each other over) and how serious the injuries can be, then I would now be a better informed parent and could make better decisions for my kids.

Common sense is a strange thing - no one shares the same defination of common sense - what makes sense to you is based on your cumulative experiences. It might not make sense or be obvious to me if I haven't had the same experiences as you.

I think that the term "common sense" should be redubbed "uncommon sense" because it seem like there is less and less of it around as time goes by.

Maybe the problem is the lawyers.

Should a bed read" Caution: Rolling out of this bed improperly may cause injury". Without that warning, lawyers can file a lawsuit.

I still love the warning the my morning coffee is hot;-)

Back to the original question:

If you think anything about the sofabed will be dangerous, then do what I do as an adult who's been stuck with a sofabed a couple of times:

Pull out the mattress & put it on the floor. Close the sofa back up.

Your kid won't notice it, but any adult can vouch for a miserable bar half way down that always sticks in your back or side trying to sleep. I even remember a Saturday Night Live SNL news story about the death of the Castro Convertable heiress who passed away, something to the effect of "we'd like to report that she died peacefully in her sleep, but that bar in the bed was killing her"

I do agree with asking for FRESH linen if the bed's already been made up - it can be weeks or even months old. I have never had a guest request staff to come up & open a bed. It's not exactly rocket science.

You made some excellent points, Bennnie.

By pullout-couch, are we all sure that they mean "sofa bed" or "convertible couch"? I have been in a couple of hotels where there's what amounts to a standard twin bed that tucks under a shelf/table affair, and looks like a sort of a bench-sofa with a side table. You roll it out from under the shelf to use it as a bed. The only hazard for a child here would be rolling off on the shelf-side and rolling under it -- which would be frightening but no more dangerous than landing on the floor on the other side.

Have I described this at all clearly? Do people recognize what I'm trying to describe?

You are right Bennnie. Note the further proof that common sense is subjective.

Agree w/rapunzll, just use the unopened couch if the child is young enough. I've done it myself while staying with friends in Hawaii. The "bed" is horrible but as a free couch....it's pretty good!

On the political note, warning labels are entirely about legal liability something we've become obsessed with.

I was reading a thread somewhere between several Australians who were in high hilarity over the US mania about warning labels. Apparently the Superman haloween costume has a warning on the cape to the effect the user can NOT actually fly.

We've become the laughing stock of the world. Maybe if we paid teachers what we pay lawyers, we get better teachers and fewer lawyers.

ahhhnold, I'd thought someone would throw this one to the expert during court recess.

Thanks for the entertaining thread, all. Personally, I think this is one area of his theory that Darwin had right. Those who win the Darwin award generally deserve to.

Lighten up boys...I was concerned that the couches might fold with a child who weighs much less than an adult.( Specially with one little boy who sees jumping on the bed as an Olympic sport.) Don't own one, wanted to know, got SOME good answers.
For those, I thank you very much.

Wagonwheel, when my boys were little, they often slept on pull-out sofas - they survived. Just place the seat cushions in the gap to prevent "things" from falling into that space.

The fact of the matter is, your 3 year old is probably not tall enough to let that center bar even bother him. There is also nothing wrong with asking housekeeping to prepare the bed with fresh linens - just ask and they will do it for you.

Just think how amazed your child will be to see a bed come out of a sofa - that's the great thing about kids, they'll get a kick out of almost anything Have a great trip!

travelactually..Now that you mention it. My brother the divorce lawyer keeps me informed of imbecilic lawsuits. The best was the Oklahoma Sooner football fan that bought an RV for the games. On his way back from a game, he put the vehicle on cruise control and went to make a cup of coffee. Surprizingly, the vehicle crossed the median strip and was destroyed, he was fine(that is also subjective).

Well, he won a lawsuit stating that the manufacturer never informed him of the likelyhood of an RV crashing without an operator. He was awarded a new vehicle and $500,000 pain and suffering.

What a country!

I was thinking out of the box, so to speak, and thought the government might put a label on Michael. Sort of a UL thingeee that warned against removal, on pain of law. Could someone please calculate a C-B analysis?

Thank you for all the funny mental pictures!

wagonwheel, just ask and make sure the resort hasn't put a trick sofabed in the room for laughs

And I was just thinking, you might check out the sofabed before you accept the room. I took a teenage grandson up to Portland. I did not find out until after 5 days that the sofabed in our room was soooo miserable. I wish he had told me.

I received a guest questioneer in the mail a few weeks later from Marriot and I told them about their sofabed. No response!

But your little one is so light compared to a teenage boy that will probably not be a problem.