What the Fuck is wrong with people? No one stops for car wreck.

[Junker]

I'm on my way home from school tonight, and I'm taking a back road through Carson City (Curry st.). As I'm approaching a very tight turn, I notice the end of a car jutting into the road. It is immediatly obvious someone did not intentioanly park there. There is a car in front of me, and one behind. I pull over just past the wreck, and the one in front just keeps going. I call in the accident, and then I look in the car for the driver. Airbags deployed, doors locked, but no one in side. While I'm waiting for the cops, I scout around the area for the person. They hit one of those cement dividers hard enough to knock it over, and the front of the car was pretty jacked. It didn't look like the wreck happened imidiatly before I arrived, but a little while before I got there. This is a very busy road (even at 10pm), and there had to be at least a few people passing by before I got there. Why was it me who called it in and stayed around? I don't understand it. I felt responsible to do something. Why didn't others?

[BigAirSkier1580]

Hah, sounds like someone was driving drunk and took off.

[endlesswntr]

Maybe the guy in front of you was too...

[iceman]

Hey, if the guy who was in the wreck didn't wait around, why should anyone else?

[Stone-Free]

You did the right thing.

If the car was unlocked, you should've checked for wallets, purses, golf clubs and shit. You know to get their info and stuff...

[TomK]

Good on ya for stopping to check.
Too many people just go on by and don't want to get involved.
They don't even think about "what if that was me?" but just go on thier way.

This happens more when people have a time limit (even a self-imposed one).
Since this happened during "go home" commute time, most were probably thinking "I've got to get home to do X, I'm sure someone else will stop."

[BigAirSkier1580]

This happens more when people have a time limit (even a self-imposed one).
Since this happened during "go home" commute time, most were probably thinking "I've got to get home to do X, I'm sure someone else will stop."

Well part of that stems by the fact that our lives are lived by the clock in most circumstances. We are expected to be at places by a particular time, and if we aren't we risk losing our jobs, or getting into altercations in our relationships, even if we were doing the right thing to start with.

Sad really.

[TomK]

Well part of that stems by the fact that our lives are lived by the clock in most circumstances. We are expected to be at places by a particular time, and if we aren't we risk losing our jobs, or getting into altercations in our relationships, even if we were doing the right thing to start with.

Sad really.

Not so much sad as just a fact of human nature and the subconcious.

Read about an experiment where students were told "Go see this person in thier office across the quad" or "You have an appointment in 60 minutes with this person in thier office across the quad, don't be late". Time to walk there was less than 5 minutes. They planted a "sprained ankle victim" on the path. Guess who stopped to render aid? Guess who refused even if the victim asked for help?

Interestingly, it made no difference on how the students scored on a "helpfullness" test beforehand earlier in the week. It was the "don't be late" and a specific time expectation that caused walkers to ignore the victim.


Knowledge is power - if you are aware of this inate tendency, you can out-smart yourself sometimes into doing the right thing.

[WWCD]

Probably scared of being sued.

[phUnk]

Be careful who you try to help.



(Tom Green)

[Obstruction]

Sometimes its just a slow processor on the CPU.

ex. -- I worked the 3 -12 shift in a factory for about 1 1/2 years and every Friday night driving on the highway home it would be like a fucking Mad Max reunion.

One night I was peacefully motoing along and glanced to the right and found I was looking at the underside of a car in the breakdown lane. No smoke, no lights, no screaming, wheels didn't appear to be turning. I drove another mile or so and said to myself, "that was fucked up." Another mile and I said "holy shit I should call someone." But it was before cell phones and it was three miles to the next exit so I thought someone sharper than me would probably pickup on it and make the call.

[jbach]

I was at Bogus Basin this weekend for their closing day and on my way down I noticed a truck pulled over and I thought they were just adjusting their rack but I saw the driver peer over the cliff and look down into the ravine as I passed him. Farther down the road, I was passed by 3 firetrucks, 12 cop cars, and an ambulance. Turns out some drunk guy flipped his SUV and rolled down about 500ft on his way back from the festivities. The dude I saw apparently saw the accident, pulled over, and called 911. I think the guy is going to be ok thanks to the people behind him seeing the accident.

[Junker]

Hah, sounds like someone was driving drunk and took off.

That's what the cop thought, and it makes a little more sense given the situation.

Not so much sad as just a fact of human nature and the subconcious.

Read about an experiment where students were told "Go see this person in thier office across the quad" or "You have an appointment in 60 minutes with this person in thier office across the quad, don't be late". Time to walk there was less than 5 minutes. They planted a "sprained ankle victim" on the path. Guess who stopped to render aid? Guess who refused even if the victim asked for help?

Interestingly, it made no difference on how the students scored on a "helpfullness" test beforehand earlier in the week. It was the "don't be late" and a specific time expectation that caused walkers to ignore the victim.


Knowledge is power - if you are aware of this inate tendency, you can out-smart yourself sometimes into doing the right thing.

That's interesting, so a lack of time, may be used as an excuse to not get involved. It probably serves to mask their own fear. I definately felt some fear as I was approaching the car. I was wondering what I was going to find, and what decisions, and actions I would have to take.

[BigAirSkier1580]

There was a show on MSNBC last nite from 11p-midnite, and it was some guy who went to a wealth neighborhood and broke into peoples homes, in plain sight, in the middle of the day. He even invited attention, just to show the apathy of people and how very few will step up to stop a bad situation.

This guy was able to walk into homes, clean them out, in broad daylight, with people around, and noone around did anything.