http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2010/06/pedestrian-accident-in-lagrange-delays-metra-trains.html
another one taking the eternal dirt nap. LOL
For personal reasons, I find nothing humorous about incidents such as this one.
I guess the forum rules allow personal attacks if the one being attacked is already dead. LOL
I personally don’t find it humorous either. However, I recognize that particular poster is a professional railroad engineer, and likely has been, could be, or has ‘brothers’ who have been, involved in such incidents, almost always without any warning beforehand, and without any choice about participating in it ‘up close and personal’, either. In view of the sardonic, cynical, and ‘gallows humor’ often encountered in the business - perhaps as a psychological method of coping with the enforced tragedy and its aftermath, and relieving the anxiety and maybe even some suppressed rage over it - I’m inclined to give him some slack and the benefit of the doubt, and just let the comment pass. It really confirms the futility and senselessness of the act, whether accidental or intentional.
- Paul North.
This kind of “dancing on the grave” response to crossing deaths by some railroaders and many railfans is a part of what I call, the psychology of the grade crossing. I don’t expect to change that culture, nor do I care. But I do find it to be incredibly hypocritical of Kalmbach to allow it while otherwise splitting hairs over the slightest little comment that might offend someone’s politics for instance.
I think it’s sad, and my livelihood as a railroader doesn’t enter into the equation at all. I’m sure I’d feel worse if I were a crewman on the train involved (and frustrated if I were a passenger being held there for hours, or delayed on Metra–the Dinky Parade was definitely rained on with this one!)
But the bleeding hearts have to face facts here. This person was either terribly distracted or just ignorant (I’m ruling out suicide–I suppose someone could do that any time, but somehow the evening rush hour seems unlikely), On the BNSF, there is practically no way to cross the tracks anywhere in LaGrange, and the pedestrian crossing at Stone Avenue is protected with bells and flashing lights. The bell quits sounding when a train is in its island circuit, but sounds again for anything that comes toward it on another track, regardless of whether there’s a train already in a circuit. I’m thinking it was probably someone who had gotten off Metra and didn’t look before crossing behind the departing dinky.
All of the foregoing rambling is courtesy of a person who has no more knowledge of the actual incident than what’s there for everyone to read. Take it for what it’s worth.
With due respect to all parties and with no intent to exacerbate reactions to this thread, I nonetheless must comment that the second post hereto might have been more acceptable without the “LOL (laugh out loud)” suffix.
My own life is forever affected by the loss of a relative (teenage boy) killed by a train in MS.
Violent death is not a laughing matter, to the victim, to the train crew, and to the family of the deceased.
Let us not use “LOL” so casually and flippantly.
Having counseled an engineer who was involved in such a tragedy, I would say railroaders are going to deal with the situation with humor or any other coping strategy they use. It is simply an awful experience. However, I do not see why there is a need to tolerate joking about it publicly or the usual blaming of the victim. It is a sad event, period, regardless of the guilty party (usually the vehicle or pedestrian). In this case, it appears (not yet confirmed) to have been a suicide. The train was the California Zephyr. There is nothing humorous about such an event.
People will never learn to stop walkingaround railway rightaway’s account they never know when a train will show up and ruin their day.
The reality of operating at train on line of road as a Engineer or Conductor…it is not a matter of if they will kill someone in their daily train operations…it is a matter of when. Sad but reality.
Actually, the station at Stove Avenue is currently undergoing a major renovation and the platforms are being ripped out, the pedestrian crossing has been permanently closed and is fenced off, and will eventually be completely removed. I wonder if this one was a suicide or not.
Just what in my statement is a attack? I made a statement that the guy is about to take the dirt nap, that is not a attack its a fact. and because i laughed about the situation thats a attack i dont think so. i made a statment such as you did and many others, or you can say i stated my opinion, and that is with in the rules of the forum. Oh and if i find something funny i will LOL.
Your statement was not taken as an attack, at least not by me…however the frivilous way you treated an extremely serious subject was inappropriate to be sure (again, in my personal opinion). Otherwise, you can say what you want to say about anything, whether others agree or not…that’s one of the rights provided by our constitution that we all should celebrate every day.
That is correct. Well-put, Paul.
Until you have had the experience of looking into the eyes of someone just before they disappear below the nose of your locomotive, and then feeling that ever-so-slight thump that tells you that your train hit that person, and then you have that distressing duty of ascertaining that there are no body parts still stuck to or caught on any part of your locomotive – until you have been through that, please spare us your peanut-gallery condemnations.
Wabash,
You are right that what you said was not a personal attack. I should not have made the comment and I apologize for doing so. I stand by my second comment in post #6, and that was what was on my mind when I responded to your comment. However, it was a mistake on my part to lump your comment into the behavior that I described in post #6.
Regarding that behavior in post #6, the personal attacks would be calling the victim of a train conflict a moron, idiot, and so on, simply because they were at fault. That is what I meant when I referr
[quote user=“Bucyrus”]
Wabash,
You are right that what you said was not a personal attack. I should not have made the comment and I apologize for doing so. I stand by my second comment in post #6, and that was what was on my mind when I responded to your comment. However, it was a mistake on my part to lump your comment into the behavior that I described in post #6.
Regarding that behavior in post #6, the personal attacks would be calling the victim of a train conflict a moron, idiot, and so on, simply because they were at fault. That is what I meant when I referred to “dancing on the grave” of the victim.
While I am a truck driver , not a trainman, I do understand very well where Wabash is coming from. I see near misses and acts of Utter Stupidity many times a day. Fortunately (especially so for many Idiots) I have more options than train crew do in avoiding those acts of Utter Stupidity.
About 10 years ago, just driving along a rural highway, I had a school bus turn across my lane of traffic in front of me. Seeing that Big Yellow wall in front of me, knowing that there was no way on God’s green earth that I would be able to stop in time was about the absolute worst feeling of my life. When I hit that bus, that Cummins was pushed 18" out place, and the windshield joined me in the cab. After things came to a stop, I ran over to the bus and my heart finally started beating again when I saw that there weren’t any children on the bus. I couldn’t think of many scenarios worse than hitting a school bus, and judging by all the emergency vehicles that responded, neither coulld the 911 operator that got the call without any injury details. There were enough Disco lights there for a Bee Gees reunion.
Doug
Another winner of a Darwin Award.
This “award” should be promptly retired for lack of decency.