Where is this society heading to?

[ioan]

An apparently suicidal man waded into San Francisco Bay on Monday, stood up to his neck, and waited. As the man drowned, police, fire crews, and others watched idly from the shore.

[url=http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110601/ts_yblog_thelookout/handcuffed-by-policy-fire-and-police-crews-watch-man-drown]&#8216]

Doesn't look like the society I want to live in. :\

[Mark]

Had a similar one in the UK a little while back, boy drowning in a lake but the police community support officers didn't help as they didn't have the training. Thankfully some locals jumped in to rescue him.

[Dave B]

Had a similar one in the UK a little while back, boy drowning in a lake but the police community support officers didn't help as they didn't have the training. Thankfully some locals jumped in to rescue him.

On the other hand, during the coverage of the inquest into the 2005 Tube bombings a survivor was interviewed along with the police officer who sustained injuries rescuing him. Asked why he risked his life going into the bomb site the copper replied "because I was nearest".

There's always be some jobsworths who put the rules ahead of common sense, and there'll always be heroes. Oh, and there'll always be media who distort stories to fit their agenda of "it's PC gone mad innit" or the "elf and safety" culture.

[Mark]

There's always be some jobsworths who put the rules ahead of common sense, and there'll always be heroes. Oh, and there'll always be media who distort stories to fit their agenda of "it's PC gone mad innit" or the "elf and safety" culture.

Watching the coverage of those who are commended for bravery etc in conflicts. It's quite often those who disobeyed direct orders in order to save the lives of their fellow soliders. So what do you do in those situations, give him a court marshal for disobeying an order, or give him a medal? Or both?

[anthonyvop]

‘Handcuffed by policy,’ fire and police crews watch man drown - Yahoo! News (http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110601/ts_yblog_thelookout/handcuffed-by-policy-fire-and-police-crews-watch-man-drown)

Doesn't look like the society I want to live in. :\


Notice where it happened and all your questions will be answered

[ioan]

Notice where it happened and all your questions will be answered

Are they allergic to water in SF area?

[Rudy Tamasz]

My take on it is that in SF everybody's free to choose his/her lifestyle ans well as his/her deathstyle...

[Jag_Warrior]

My take on it is that in SF everybody's free to choose his/her lifestyle ans well as his/her deathstyle...

I hate to be crude, but that's what the libertarian side of me says too. At least he didn't jump off of a tall building and land on some unfortunate person below. Also, I saw in the story how some commented that a bystander should have helped. How? From what I understand, even a person who doesn't want to drown can drag a rescuer down with them. Who in their right mind would try to "save" a person who is determined to kill himself? Whatever influenced this man to take his own life is sad. But I don't see it as a poor reflection on society in San Francisco or anywhere else.

And BTW, I'd say anyone who has lived in or spent significant time in a major city has passed by a homeless person with mental problems. Maybe you gave them a few bucks or maybe you turned your head and walked faster. But those people are also dying... slowly, a little bit day by day. Those are the people that society really doesn't give two craps about. If I was in that situation, I'd rather go out quickly (though maybe not in such dramatic fashion as the guy in the OP) and just get it over with. If they'd saved him, he would have been placed in an institution for 48-72 hours, they'd have turned him loose and then he'd have been "free" to freeze to death this winter on the streets. But we wouldn't hear about that, so we wouldn't have to feel guilty about it.

[markabilly]

It is very understandable why it happened.

Everyone knows they were guvermit workers who not certified to save people from drowning, therefore they had no choice but to watch, sitting on their dumbutt buttocks, playing with themselves.

Indeed they were not certified in dragging bodies to shore, so someone else had to do it.......



A volunteer eventually pulled Zack's lifeless body from the Bay.
"The incident yesterday was deeply regrettable," D'Orazi said Tuesday. "But I can also see it from our firefighters' perspective. They're standing there wanting to do something, but they are handcuffed by policy at that point.


$40,000 to certify 16 firefighters in land-based water rescues



See you got to be certified to save lives, and them little babies were not certified :dozey:

At first, ithought it must have been France or britain to have something this chickenshot to happen, but no, it San Franisco.................. :rolleyes:


well at least nobody died who was important

[Roamy]

‘Handcuffed by policy,’ fire and police crews watch man drown - Yahoo! News (http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110601/ts_yblog_thelookout/handcuffed-by-policy-fire-and-police-crews-watch-man-drown)

Doesn't look like the society I want to live in. :\

ioan - the world has become a sh!thole sprinkled with a few gorgeous whores!! - Live with it !!

[ioan]

ioan - the world has become a sh!thole sprinkled with a few gorgeous whores!! - Live with it !!

I know, still I would prefer it better. Oh well I can still hope that one day common sense will return to this planet.

[ioan]

At first, ithought it must have been France or britain to have something this chickenshot to happen, but no, it San Franisco.................. :rolleyes:

Don't know for Britain but in France they would have got him out of there, certified or not.



well at least nobody died who was important

I also wondered if certification would have been so important if an important politician was to be saved.

[Zeakiwi]

Didn't the fire crew have their inflatable rescue boat with them ?

Rescue Boats Water Rescue Equipment Oceanid RDC Inflatable Rescue Boats (http://www.oceanid.com/)

[ioan]

Didn't the fire crew have their inflatable rescue boat with them ?

Rescue Boats Water Rescue Equipment Oceanid RDC Inflatable Rescue Boats (http://www.oceanid.com/)

Even if they had they were not certified to use them.
This the point of the whole story. In today's world, mostly in the US, you better not help save a life if there is the tiniest risk that you might have a legal problem after it.
Nowadays one has to be certified to walk the dog otherwise who knows...

[markabilly]

it is one thing to be just somebody on a street, faced with an emergency

It is another to be an emergency fire and rescue person, who needs a volunteer to drag bodies to shore.

but since it was nobody important, no one will be getting fired, and next week I am getting my dog walking certification so I can take Jote el donKey's momma for a walk

[AAReagles]

I know, still I would prefer it better. Oh well I can still hope that one day common sense will return to this planet.

Hate to put it this way, but I think you're opening up a whole can of worms on that notion. Mankind is paradox of good and bad. In which frankly I can't forecast a reasonable possibility that any real common sense will prevail on this planet as there will always be conflict about one issue/agenda or another.

Not to mention that the current digital 'craze' age we live in isn't going to help much either with people's obsession of being wired into the latest tech gadget - e.g. Black Thursday sales (on Thanksgiving Day) with lines of people waiting out in the cold for hours just to get the latest product at say Wal-Mart or Best Buy... while others around the world are sleeping out in the cold or would just only wish to have clean water to drink.

[Bob Riebe]

Even if they had they were not certified to use them.
This the point of the whole story. In today's world, mostly in the US, you better not help save a life if there is the tiniest risk that you might have a legal problem after it.
Nowadays one has to be certified to walk the dog otherwise who knows...IN the U.S. as long as politician are in the pockets of trial lawyers, or as it is becoming, the majority of politicians are lawyer, it is only going to get worse.
As a radio speaker said the other day, the judicial branch was supposed to be the weakest of the three, NOT the one making or cancelling laws.