https://www.wwlp.com/world/caught-on-camera-close-call-on-the-tracks/1323593498
Rich
Impaired individual…More common on paved roads, that are infrequently traveled. Impaired individuals with impaired thought processes; sometimes will stop, and ‘take a nap’(?) regardless of their location. Generally, such actions have sad endings for those particular individuals. In this case the person was saved by an alert patrol officer. Might say this officer was a lifeguard, at the New Jersey Gene Pool(?)[:-^]
Is this your attempt to avoid being censured for using the offensive “Darwin Award” insult? FYI.
The man who was saved had likely been diagnosed with a mild to moderate intellectual disability. Although we have known for years that these conditions are caused by inheritability in <5% of cases, there persist some people who continue to erroneously think of them in the same fashion as in the 1930s when forced sterilization and even the Aktion T4 program of euthanasia were developed, especially for the “feeble-minded” and other disabled individuals.
He was reported as being homeless.
Many homeless folks have diagnosed or undiagnosed conditions, such as an intellectual disability, schizophrenia, bipolar and substance dependence. From the little I heard of his speech, and based on my outreach CMH work years ago, I would speculate the former along with some substance use. In any case, removing someone from the gene pool is an ignorant and vile thing to say about anyone.
To say the “Darwin Awards” is an insult is an insult to Darwin himself, it’s real, it’s given out every single year to those that fall under Charles Darwin’s idea that it’s the survival of the fittest. If anyone considers it an insult I would tell that person to educate themselves before speaking…I think it’s a lot better than calling someone a r***** or a d******* or m****, etc., etc., those are more insulting as well as insensitive.
Also, you can’t really see how this person is laying down…are they laying in between the rails flat on their back or stomach(most likely survivable if you don’t move)? Are they on their side between the rails, not sure, it depends on how high above the rails the body is. Are they laying across or on a rail/rails, that’s either going to result in amputation or death…those are important questions.
The popularizer of the tongue-in cheek-award, Wendy Northcutt, estblished five criteria, #4 being:
Capable of sound judgment. The nominee must be at least past the legal driving age and free of any mental defect. (Northcutt considers injury or death caused by mental defect to be tragic, rather than amusing, and routinely disqualifies such entries).
Furthermore, your use of Darwin’s concept (Natural Seletion)is incomplete.The expression “survival of the fittest” (taken on its own and out of context) gives a very incomplete account of the mechanism of natural selection. The reason is that it does not mention a key requirement for natural selection, namely the requirement of heritability. The phrase "survival of the fittest&
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Another instance of that ‘conductor’ stopping the train business.
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Note that the unit stops just before the tie the person was standing on. Shades of that LRC accident where the crewman bails out at the last minute, but the physics kept the locomotives out of collision.
So this is much less of an actual news story than it might seem. But still, not an opportunity for cheap eugenically-oriented knocks.
- I have to wonder what happened afterward, with detention and charges filed and fines. Considering that for all the running and puffing the train wouldn’t have hit anyone, but now the police are on site…
He’s a human being. Many would rejoice that he was saved, and that an officer was able to help him to save himself. Two successes.
There was a youtube video elsewhere in it the man was talking and his speech was impaired and to me sounded like he had a mental disability. Here is a video from Canada and to me the guy looks drunk, though he might just be a clumsey…also looks fake to me because he disappears so quickly out of the frame.
Looks like the camera is on a tripod - begging the question of why…
I saw the video first on NJ.com, the Newark “Star-Ledger” newspaper website, and listening to the man I got the impression he was either drunk, stoned, or just plain zoned out. The last I heard was he’s not homeless, but has family in the area and was returned to them.
Great job by that young cop! As they used to say years ago, “That young man has a future!”
Having said all that, I do have to admit to a guilty snicker at Sam’s “Lifeguard at the Gene Pool” comment.
Mind you, Sam and I being former Marines one thing we can tell you is that in boot camp one of the things forceably drilled into you is “situational awareness,” because NOT having it can get you killed, or even worse, it can get another Marine killed, and then you have to live with that for the rest of your life. It’s why we shake our heads in disbelief at those who don’t have it.
“Stay alert, stay engaged, be aware of your surroundings, and what’s going on in your surroundings.”
I imagine any veteran of any service will tell you the same thing.
It’s a stern school and believe me that training stays with you, and it’s saved my life on our “killer highways” more than once!