A 66-year-old woman froze to death while neighbors listened to her scream in distress. She suffered from Alzheimer's and nobody knows how she got outside or why she was confused. But neighbors heard her crying out and nobody bothered to call 911.
Who are we if we don't offer that basic minimum protection for our fellow man? I am sick at the idea of listening to someone cry, hearing those cries fade off as the woman froze to death, and not bothering to reach for a phone inside my warm, comfy home. What lessons did parents teach their children? What are they going to say to this woman's family?
This isn't an isolated problem. There was Ebony Garcia, only 21 years old when her boyfriend stabbed her. A neighbor heard her scream that he had stabbed her in the neck, but dind't actually respond. It isn't a new problem, either. Kitty Genovese was raped and stabbed multiple times while her neighbors listened. Her attacker was so bold that he ran and came back to finish the job when nobody checked out her screams.
We should be ashamed, collectively, for the ignorance and stupidity that led to this death. It was horrifying, painful, and completely preventable. Anyone who has been that cold knows how the nerves scream and there is no relief. My thoughts go out to her family, and I pray her suffering was as short-lived as possible.
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18 comments:
I see this happened in Canada.
I suppose you're not a fan of the Canadian socialist health care system then, huh.
We should be ashamed, collectively, for the ignorance and stupidity that led to this death.
If you want to feel shame over the Canadian's woman's death, go for it.
Now if Roe v. Wade supporters want to feel collective shame, and by all means I'm not going to stop them, read the story of Dr. Kermit Gosnell, who is charged with murdering seven choices...I mean babies...by cutting their spinal chords with scissors at his abortion clinic, along with a woman who was getting an abortion. Others are charged as well. They will also be charged with performing illegal late-term abortions, illegal abortions on minors, and a slew of other charges. Here is the grand jury report.
The report notes how the city of Philadelphia and the state of Pennsylvania made it a point to ignore what this alleged fiend did, along with ignoring any and all regulation of abortion clinics throughout the city and state. God knows how many of these houses of horror exist in Pennsylvania that nobody knows about.
Zandar once complained that he's seeing too many laws being put in to restrict abortions. Well, the story of Kermit Gosnell shows what happens when it goes completely unrestricted.
boy. i guess we're going to get a lot of ridiculous anti-abortion screeds now. guy sure has a lot of free time on his hands for somebody who works AND runs his own business. oh right, the wife runs the business. translation: "i'm not married, i have no job, i live in my parents basement and i spend my entire day trolling liberal blogs."
ugh.
Who cares if it's Canada or another country? The whole point is that we belong to the same species. We owe a basic response to our fellow man, period.
ICP: canada's HCS sux lolololol credibility problem oh no lololollol. What does this have to do with anything?
As for SteveAR... why do I get the feeling that he's an "abortion survivor"? That is, he stuck it in a woman, and she had the gall to terminate the pregnancy?
I like the story. For a time I was disinclined to believe it because it reads like your standard pro-forced birth scare story: greedy "doctor" making millions murdering babies, in filthy conditions and unlicensed "professionals". You just KNOW that he was collecting baby parts for some sick purpose like selling them to his lord Satan! Okay, that last sentence was hyperbole, but seriously. Biohazard.
I'd say that this makes the case for the destigmatization and widening of abortion services instead of an outright ban, but this is not what the thread is about.
StarStorm:
I'd say that this makes the case for the destigmatization and widening of abortion services instead of an outright ban,...
Pennsylvania was already doing "destigmatization and widening of abortion services" for 17 years. That's how Gosnell got to do what he did. I think there's been enough of this "destigmatization and widening of abortion services".
Typical response of the pro-abortion and pro-infanticide group.
...but this is not what the thread is about.
Sure it is. Bon feels shame, which is hers alone. But then she gets ridiculous since she demands everyone else share it with her. So I added this story to see how many Roe supporters feel any shame for what is the end result of what they support, Pennsylvania and "Dr." Gosnell. You don't. You want more abortions, more dead babies.
StarStorm is the unaborted dribblings of a drunken fuck.
If you believe every fertilized egg has a right to life, then you should team up with your fellow terrorists who assassinate doctors and put together a plan to shut down the world's biggest abortionist: God.
And I look at Bon's post title, and I look at the comments, and I go "Yep."
I had no idea what I was stepping into.
On Bon's subject, there really isn't much I can say about it. All I have are questions: "Why didn't they respond to her cries of help?" "What can we do to make people care?" "Can those who ignored her be indicted for this inhumane display?"
Well, I know the answer to the last two questions (not much, and not bloody likely), but we can remind people that this is what happens when we do not help others.
But then, at the same time, the police estimate this happened at 2 AM. 2 AM and biting cold? That's the kind of time you have to (or want to) wonder if you really heard what you just heard, and snuggle back into bed and go back to sleep or whatever you were doing.
Ultimately, I don't think it's as clear as "these people have no basic humanity".
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That said, to be fair Bon, you didn't intend to step into that, Stevie-poo just felt the need to bring his own shit into the thread.
Also, Stevie-poo... classy man. I know I call you a moron fairly often, but dayum what brought that one?
I'm just calling
StarStorm said "Also, Stevie-poo... classy man. I know I call you a moron fairly often, but dayum what brought that one?"
Probably this: "As for SteveAR... why do I get the feeling that he's an "abortion survivor"? That is, he stuck it in a woman, and she had the gall to terminate the pregnancy?"
I mean, StevieAR was pretty much just responding in kind.
Oh, fair point, I had actually forgotten about that.
yeah, let's defend steveAR, the guy who routinely insults anybody with the temerity to disagree with him. do i need to go through his shit-headed posts to cull all the inflammatory garbage he's posted here? the incessant (and wholly unmerited) condescension that marks his every post? the insulting responses to wholly innocuous statements? seriously, fuck that guy in the ear with a screwdriver.
on second thought, quite a lot of that could be attributed to me too!
Actually, I don't think Asariel was defending Stevie-poo as much as they were reminding me what would have brought on calling me a "unaborted dribblings of a drunken fuck."
So I'd actually not knock them for that.
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Anyways, more thoughts on the subject:
I've actually been thinking a lot about this while I was in the shower, and the question always comes back to me: "What would I have done in the situation?"
It's an anecdote (or, as I like to think, a point of datum), and I'm going into "all about me" territory, but here we go.
The thing is, I'm generally up at that time. If there is ONE part of my schedule I try to maintain a death grip, it's the fact that I am up at NIGHT. I have enjoyed the relatively quiet time considering the majority of the hub-bub in my house happens during other times. It's not perfect, but I'll run with that.
So let's say at that time, somebody starts screaming for help. I'm usually on the computer at the time, with my headphones on (because I don't want to disturb everyone in the house when I play music or games or whatever). Do I hear it? I might not.
What if I'm going to the bathroom though, or making something to eat? Assuming I hear it over something else, my first thought isn't going to be "oh no, someone needs help!". My neighborhood seems fairly safe (as in that I don't hear much about violence in the area, but I only leave the house when I absolutely have to, so that may not mean much) so my first thought is goign to be "did I hear that?"
Assuming that I figure I did hear that (which would be helped if that woke someone else up), my first response will be "did my computer make that noise?" Think of it what you will, Bon, but I'm fairly used to odd sounds coming from my computer without my bidding (I figure it's mostly AIM causing it, it allows you to customize what sound others hear when you login or logout).
So we go into "okay, I did hear it, and it was from outside the house". I'd like to think that I'd give help immediately. But that's fantasy, which helps noone at all. Being realistic:
I'm not likely to call the police immediately, unless I'm absolutely sure that something is going on (never mind those who outright distrust authorities, often for good reason). So what's going on? Is it someone in danger? Will I be in danger if I try to help? What if I call the police and it turns out to be nothing?
And then you get into the truly insidious thought: Someone Else's Problem. It's fucking late and fucking cold out, I'm dressed for a relatively warm house and it'll take time to get myself set up to go out into the cold. It's easy to blow it off and think "well, someone else has already got it, so there's no need for me to interrupt what I'm doing."
In the end, and this is only my example, but when I ask myself "Would I help in this situation?" I'd like to think "yes, I would, absolutely, and this is what I would do..." but again that's fantasy, which helps nothing. I suppose I won't find out until it happens, and the answer might not be a good one. Especially when just simply NOT doing anything is so easy.
All said, I don't find this as being "Fresh Out Of Basic Humanity", I find it rather disturbingly human.
Could people have done better? Hell yes.
Did they know it at the time? Probably not.
Would they be inclined to do better if they knew what would happen if they didn't help? Probably, in fact, I think it's very likely.
Thoughtlessness is infinitely more dangerous than heartlessness.
StarStorm, I'm picking up what you're laying down. I thought of the time of night, but I'm the sort who would call just to be safe. If it was a breezy summer evening, perhaps not. But my perspective has been stained by knowing the Kitty Genovese story, and the life-threatening conditions outside would have tipped me into the "better safe than sorry" call. It makes a statement either way, whether her neighbors knew they lived next to someone who suffered from Alzheimer's and didn't put it together, or if they lived next to her for a long time and didn't know that fact.
Also, I was upset by the conditions because when I was young I got turned around in the woods (long story) and I know what it's like to be that kind of cold. It's a whole different level than the discomfort we feel walking across a parking lot or even walking a mile. There comes a point when the pain is everywhere. Her suffering was preventable, and I have a pretty good idea of what she went through. These people weren't in the least bit responsible for what happened, they didn't contribute to the events that led to her death, but zero response is unforgivable in my book.
When I was looking up Kitty Genovese's murder on Wikipedia, I found the page that elaborated absolutely beautifully by twelfth paragraph (the Someone Else's Problem Paragraph): The Volunteer's Dilemma. Kitty Genovese is used as a standard example of the dilemma.
That said...
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I completely understand what you mean, Bon, and I see where you are coming from. The murder of Kitty Genovese is an absolutely *horrible* incident (although looking up Ye Olde Wiki gives indications that it might not have been simple as "a bunch of people ignored a woman screaming for help during her rape and murder").
And, also, I have not felt the pain of hypothermia, so I can't sympathize (empathize, maybe, but that's like lions and tigers: Related, but not at all the same animal).
About the only things I would disagree with, all said:
First is that this would be unforgivable (although, I imagine the community around the poor woman is probably kicking the shit out of themselves and wondering about the value of civil courage laws)
Second is that that it really doesn't mean anything bad that people might not know their direct neighbors. Especially as we progress into a more computer/internet-oriented age, I do not think it would be unusual to know people thousands of miles away better than your next-door neighbors.
That may be a discussion for another time though. In the end, you're absolutely correct. This could have been prevented, but it's not an indictment on society and people that it wasn't. It's just... sad.
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