How can people be so heartless?

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This was an accident that happened on Friday night in my town. It's fairly close by, I ride past where it occurred when I ride to Uni. The 16 year old boy was riding on the footpath at about 8:00 pm when he collided with either a gate or a parked car, which sent him onto the road where he was hit by a car. He was not wearing a helmet. The driver didn't have time to stop and is not at fault. What's disheartening, apart from how sad a tragedy like this is, is the actions of passers-by. While witnesses and nearby residents tried to block off the street with their cars until Police arrived, motorists kept driving past, not seeming to care, one motorist actually saying he didn't care. Keep in mind, the boy's body was still in the middle of the road. One person actually took a photo of the boy's body with his mobile phone.

I don't understand how people can be so heartless and uncaring, a boy is lying dead in the middle of the road and all they care about is how it impedes them. What would you do in this situation? Would you stop your vehicle and see what's going on? What would you do once you did find out what's going on? Would you drive past as many motorists did?

I would stop and see what's going on, though I am not sure what I would do when I found out what was going on, there isn't anything you can do as the boy is dead and I wouldn't want to impede the police's investigation when they arrive. I would find a detour so as not to contaminate the scene before the police arrive to investigate. I'm not sure why the motorists did not simply take a detour, there is a really easy route they could have taken, which would have taken them around the accident. But casually driving past the body of a dead boy saying you don't care is just...heartless...

What would you do?

Uh, maybe someone should have moved the body out of the road. I guess it must have been quite the blodd bath if they needed the police to move it.

Still, people should be a little more selfless when it comes to situations like this. And the guy who took pictures with his phone? Thats just weird.

I think the situation is this: you see a stranger lying on the road. Seeing and/or hearing all those incidents where people can rob you, steal from you, or even kill you with these heartless tactics of acting injured or illed. It's only natural for people to "not care" about a person lying on the road. Why? Because our sense of "trusting strangers" is diminshing as our society gets worse year by year. Not to mention no one can guarantee whether if that person lying on the road is contagious or not.

It's not that people are completely heartless. It's because they care for their own safety as well.

I would probably just call the police, tell them the location of the injured person, and be on my way.

They couldn't move the body because the police need to do their investigations before it can be moved. They need the body there so they can extrapolate what happened. Position of the body, for example can help the police figure out exactly what happened, by seeing how exactly the body could end up in whatever position it ended up in.

I'd be the guy taking photos and sending them to snuffx.com.

Originally Posted by Mr Spork

I would find a detour so as not to contaminate the scene before the police arrive to investigate.

That's exactly what I do whenever anything remotely unusual in public happens. I try to ignore it, not get in the way, and generally just not support the gathering of a crowd, which will almost always make the person of attention feel humiliated. Assuming, of course, that they ARE alive. Whenever kids break out fighting at random, parents are yelling at eachother at the top of their lungs, or otherwise, I refuse to turn my head. I don't wish to be part of the crowd watching them. What's their business is theirs, and what's mine is mine. It's not my place to watch someone shamelessly while they handle their own business.

In terms of this accident, I probably would have stopped for a minute to ask a witness what happened, then be on my way. I wouldn't stay to partake in the mournful atmosphere, nor get in the way of people who should be stopping. I'd have just payed my respects and gone, hoping others are doing the same.

One person actually took a photo of the boy's body with his mobile phone.

It was probably some punk who thought sending it to all oh his high friends would be funny.

But that disgusts me that no one would help. People are starting to get more and more selfish everyday, think THEIR problems are the worst.

I would probably be the one to pull over, get out of the car, and try to help. (Happy Jada?)

Everyone who thought it was funny can go to hell.

Originally Posted by Kagura

People are starting to get more and more selfish everyday.
...
I'd be the one that uses my a car to block the road so people can't get by

Yeah. Good idea, Mr. Selfless-Good-Samaritan.
What if someone is rushing to the hospital, work, or somwhere else important. But there's some asshole blocking the road off in order be generous to some unknown kid who can't ride a bike? Try again.

Originally Posted by Epyon

Uh, maybe someone should have moved the body out of the road. I guess it must have been quite the blodd bath if they needed the police to move it.

Just so you know, you don't ever move someone who has been in an accident. There is a chance that they might still be alive and by moving them you could damage the spinal collumn and possibly kill them.

Some people are really sick nowadays.

This topic reminds me of a incident that happened in Seattle where a small mob of guys maybe 4-5 to five of them are stomping and beating up two helpless guys on the street and one of the guys has a tape recorder, recording the whole thing and to top it off the whole incident was taped by a bystander. There were people on the street not a part of the beating just watching and doing nothing. They even let the purps roll their car over one of the defenseless man's arm.

What ticks me off is that they didn't even catch the guys who were taped doing the act.

People these days are very cheap to rely on, you can never count on your fellow citizens. It's the way people are nowadays but the good thing is that this sort of attitude doesn't happen everywhere.

If I were there when that guy was taking that pic of that dead body with his cell phone, I would have snatched it from him and snap it in half, SPork. I also have something that ticks me off in camera cell phones.

Originally Posted by Ryuin

This topic reminds me of a incident that happened in Seattle where a small mob of guys maybe 4-5 to five of them are stomping and beating up two helpless guys on the street and one of the guys has a tape recorder, recording the whole thing and to top it off the whole incident was taped by a bystander. There were people on the street not a part of the beating just watching and doing nothing. They even let the purps roll their car over one of the defenseless man's arm.

What ticks me off is that they didn't even catch the guys who were taped doing the act.

People these days are very cheap to rely on, you can never count on your fellow citizens. It's the way people are nowadays but the good thing is that this sort of attitude doesn't happen everywhere.

If I were there when that guy was taking that pic of that dead body with his cell phone, I would have snatched it from him and snap it in half, SPork. I also have something that ticks me off in camera cell phones.

And risk yourself to be dragged into that senseless and cruel beating? I think not. People don't want to get hurt themselves. Not to mention, it's their fight, their business. Bystanders are not mandatory to "help" by becoming a victim themselves. Think about it. You see a person getting beat up by six guys with baseball bats. Are YOU going to rush in and stop them? I doubt it.

Reading this thread makes me wonder if the whole planet suddenly turned insane. First you say no one cared about the boy, and now we've got all these goddamn stupid replies to this thread. "I'd be blocking the road, I'd be taking pictures" Just shut the hell up and go cut yourself if this is fun to you.

People are just in it for themselves. There is nothing we can do about it. The only way for people like that realize how horrible something like that is, is if it happens to someone they know. Then when they see others walk by, they can feel the pain and ask the question "why?"

Agree with Gokuss. It's problematic for a stranger having to empathise with the victim, have compassion for relatives and friends. They cannot be demanded to cry, but certainly this kind of disrespect is inacceptable.

There isn't much anyone can do about it though. Sue them, throw things at them, threaten to call the police for their lack of understanding for the accident.

Mr Spork, you would have shown good manners and respect on such an occasion obviously. You say that you'd take a detour. It's relieving that a least one person cares even if the people that were present could not witness and appreciate your respect.

Originally Posted by Jada

Yeah. Good idea, Mr. Selfless-Good-Samaritan.
What if someone is rushing to the hospital, work, or somwhere else important. But there's some asshole blocking the road off in order be generous to some unknown kid who can't ride a bike? Try again.

First, I'm a GIRL, -_- and I did not say I wasn't selfish? Maybe I am? Maybe I'm not. That's for me to know, you not to care.
Second, one guy is dying, and maybe the guy or girl in the ambulance is too. Well, JUST because that person got a fancy ride to the hospital doesn't mean they should live, and the guy should die.
But whatever. I'll edit my post just for you.

Originally Posted by Kagura

Second, one guy is dying, and maybe the guy or girl in the ambulance is too. Well, JUST because that person got a fancy ride to the hospital doesn't mean they should live, and the guy should die.

How would clearing the blockade for an ambulance kill the injured person on the ground...?