tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4290163255778893789.post6648839723034630997..comments2024-03-16T05:19:07.061-04:00Comments on Retirement Blues: In Which I Encounter Brain Damaged People And Am ConflictedJazzbumpahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07337490817307473659noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4290163255778893789.post-8163078004418124812009-07-15T01:15:35.853-04:002009-07-15T01:15:35.853-04:00J: There is nothing more certain to allow evil to ...J: There is nothing more certain to allow evil to thrive, than that good men do nothing.<br /><br />I do not know what the proper action to be, but I know what it is not, and that is "nothing". If there is a cost to doing right, so be it.BadTuxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01345749557330760251noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4290163255778893789.post-50912123057285799712009-07-14T23:50:47.339-04:002009-07-14T23:50:47.339-04:00Good Samaritanism generally backfires (and could ...Good Samaritanism generally backfires (and could cost you, legally as well). That's what I was talking about. I'm not a hard-core machiavellian, but generally refuse to assist in any street-situation, unless life-threatening emergency as they yawp.Jhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11567400697675996283noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4290163255778893789.post-26740600080078084702009-07-14T11:46:02.858-04:002009-07-14T11:46:02.858-04:00Windhover -
Thanx. More full disclosure: I haven...Windhover -<br />Thanx. More full disclosure: I haven't read every book on the required list in its entirety. <i>The Conservative Mind</i> is particularly appalling. By Pg 35, I was ready to throw it in the trash. <br /><br />Sallie -<br />Thanks for the encouragement.<br /><br />Jerome -<br />We disagree a lot - which I cherish - but I believe we are kindred spirits. And pretty close to the same age.<br /><br />J -<br />I really have no idea what in the hell you are talking about.<br /><br />Kitty -<br />It's an open forum. Have AT IT. And thanks for your insights.<br /><br />BadTux -<br />Great to see you. Thanks for stopping by. This is a surprise. I just discovered your excellent blog yesterday, following a commenter at The Anonymous Liberal. Glad the Campbell incident had a happy ending.Jazzbumpahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07337490817307473659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4290163255778893789.post-10418410829309236962009-07-13T16:32:12.700-04:002009-07-13T16:32:12.700-04:00We had a recent incident here in Campbell, Califor...We had a recent incident here in Campbell, California, where a man suffering Alzheimer's wandered away and his locator bracelet failed so his caregivers could not find him. A massive volunteer effort and a couple of alert 11 year olds finally <a href="http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/local/south_bay&id=6910385" rel="nofollow">found him yesterday</a>, sleeping in a ditch, unharmed other than being a bit skinnier and a bit dehydrated.<br /><br />I don't know that there's a better way to handle things when you come across someone like this. There's different ways, but not better ways. In this case of the 63 year old Alzheimer's sufferer, the shop owner called the police because the man obviously needed immediate medical attention. But if the man had been alert and seemingly well, would it have been wrong for the shopkeeper to call the caregivers instead? Or to drive the man to the man's caregivers' home? I don't think there's any "wrong" in any of those.<br /><br />- Badtux the Seen-it-before PenguinBadTuxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01345749557330760251noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4290163255778893789.post-82645103182891251912009-07-13T16:29:36.278-04:002009-07-13T16:29:36.278-04:00Jazz, I hope you won't mind if I speak to Jer...Jazz, I hope you won't mind if I speak to Jerome's comment, first.<br /><br />Jerome, I was horrified when I read your comment. My mother is now 92. She lived with us for 20 years and now she has a full-time caregiver in a lovely condo. She HATES it. She can't understand why a stranger is living with her, and why we won't let her go "home." Unfortunately, for the past few months "home" meant the place where she lived as a teenager. Right now, I'm not sure what she means by "home." Mother is well into dementia, having suffered encephalitis.<br /><br />When my mother was at the nursing home, she would pack her bag at night and sit in her transportation chair at the front door, waiting for someone to open it for her. During the day, she cruised the halls, casing the joint, waiting to make her escape. Had she gotten out, she would not have been able to tell anyone who her children are, or how to reach them. <br /><br />My point in all this is that by giving that man a ride, you were putting him in potential danger. His very brief stab at freedom could have resulted in tremendous danger to him, and possibly being incarcerated until police could figure out where he belonged. <br /><br />I'm not without compassion. I understand that you were giving him a last chance to have some control over his life, and, after watching my mother deteriorate, I can appreciate how we ALL want to control our own destinies. But, before you opened your car door, you had no way of knowing what mental and physical challenges the man faced. I'm not sure you made the best choice. I think the consequences of your actions outweighed the pleasure gained from your brief conspiracy.<br /><br />On the other hand, I do think Jazz should have assisted the young man in the wheelchair. He was clearly in danger, and no one appeared to be there to assist him. I'd have been tempted to call the police, if only to bring it to his care giver's attention that they needed to do a better job. But, I probably would have helped him home, as you did. I never think about legal liability until after I've done something like this, but putting him in your van was very dangerous. If you don't have adequate insurance (AND an umbrella policy!), perhaps walking back home with him would have been the wiser choice.<br /><br />We all second guess our actions. There needs to be more compassion in dealing with those who are less fortunate. I'd say you made your choice from your heart, and that it was the right choice for that specific instance.KittyBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04666226081076161638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4290163255778893789.post-38675512147971928862009-07-12T20:57:19.981-04:002009-07-12T20:57:19.981-04:00Don't get off the boat, as the dude tells Will...Don't get off the boat, as the dude tells Willard in Apocalypse Now. <br /><br />I don't advise hangin' with the EotAM history-hipsters either--a blogger's known by the company he keeps--but it's a free country, sort of.Jhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11567400697675996283noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4290163255778893789.post-23802722922883028532009-07-12T18:49:46.376-04:002009-07-12T18:49:46.376-04:00Jazzbumpa,
Many years ago I was driving down a st...Jazzbumpa,<br /><br />Many years ago I was driving down a street and came to a nursing home. As I was passing by the home I noticed an old man in a robe walking as fast as he could and about a hundred yards behind him there were two men in the kind of uniform a nursing home attendant would wear. They were jogging and obviously after the old man. As I passed the old guy he started waving toward me in a frantic manner. I stopped, reached over and opened the passenger door to my truck and before I knew it he jumped in. "Get me outta here!" he yelled over and over again. I took off and could see his pursuers in my rearview waving at me just as excitedly as the old man had. <br /><br />The old guy was crying now and mumbling about wanting to go home. However he couldn't recall where home was. He said to take him across town and let him out and he'd figure something out. And that's what I did. I'll never forget his teary face and confused look as I drove away. I was eighteen years old. For forty two years I've never regretted that man's shot at freedom.Jeromehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06174332800591939009noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4290163255778893789.post-63051765233719719742009-07-12T18:45:22.712-04:002009-07-12T18:45:22.712-04:00Jazzbumpa: I think you handled everything just rig...Jazzbumpa: I think you handled everything just right. Too many would have just driven on. No way to know what happens to the person. But his chances of being OK were greatly enhanced by your actions.<br />SallieAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4290163255778893789.post-67352208010845440902009-07-12T18:23:58.090-04:002009-07-12T18:23:58.090-04:00This comment has been removed by the author.windhoverhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09185847697518005172noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4290163255778893789.post-45807608623568275172009-07-12T18:23:25.241-04:002009-07-12T18:23:25.241-04:00Jazz:
I'm following your prompt to read about ...Jazz:<br />I'm following your prompt to read about your recent experiences, but must confess that I don't have a clue how to respond, except to say that you did a great deal more than most people would have done, which is to keep driving. I've been in similar situations and regretted intervening, but I don't see how any person of conscience could feel right doing less. <br />My real reason for commenting is to take note of your required reading list. No doubt it doesn't begin to cover all you've read, but it suggests to me common interests. I notice also that you cite Bacevich. For a different perspective on empire building from a guy who influenced Bacevich, look for a book by William Appleman Williams titled The Tragedy of American Diplomacy. Bacevich wrote the afterword for a reissue of the book, first published 50 years ago. <br />Enjoy your posts on the Corner. If someone had told me as little as a year ago that I, a guy who just got a cell phone 7 months ago, would be blogging, I would have laughed out loud. Such is life. <br />Larrywindhoverhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09185847697518005172noreply@blogger.com