What happened to personal responsibilty?

[jchaplain]

Your more than burned out your a . What is the matter with you. Have some respect for the families. It's very sad when any one dies. Isnt this the scuba board.
This post isnt about scuba diving. You may not have any comassion for these folks but i shure do. Your a !

Seabully....that was a really nasty response to a guy who is ( an EMT I think?)...a person involved in saving peoples lives.... and sees this stuff all the time and sounds pretty torn up about what he sees. He's not any of the names you called him, he is a regular here and is a pretty cool guy actually. But I'm sure you've made quite an impression on many people here with your response.
John C.

 

[George Scherman]

Man, I thought this board was about scuba not a forum for self righteous blowhards, who have never made a mistake in their lives. Well, maybe they have and just didn't die as a result. People make mistakes, they always will. One doesn't neccessarily "deserve" to die but everyone does.

 

[Chebby]

Man, I thought this board was about scuba not a forum for self righteous blowhards, who have never made a mistake in their lives. Well, maybe they have and just didn't die as a result. People make mistakes, they always will. One doesn't neccessarily "deserve" to die but everyone does.

You thought wrong. It's a forum where divers talk and exchange ideas without someone telling them any non scuba related topic is illegal to discuss.

 

[Otter]

Man, I thought this board was about scuba not a forum for self righteous blowhards, who have never made a mistake in their lives. Well, maybe they have and just didn't die as a result. People make mistakes, they always will. One doesn't neccessarily "deserve" to die but everyone does.

Intereresting conclusion you draw. IF you read the post, you would see that the issue is one of taking responsiblity, not of making mistakes. As you rightly point out the rather obvious, people make mistakes and they don't deserve to die. I have two teenage boys who drive and I worry about them everytime the leave the house. I worry that they will make good decisions, I worry that they won't be the victim of someone else who made poor decisions. If they make bad decisions and do something stupid and end up getting hurt or worse, I am not going to sue the city for putting a tree next to the side of the road, I am not going to sue the music industry for producing lyrics that 'brainwash' kids, and I am not going to sue the film industry for producing films like Too Fast Too Furious which glamorizes excessive speed. I'll accept the responsiblity that my son made a bad decision and of course I'll accept the responsiblity for making the decision to allow them to take the car in the first place.

In my mind, there is a major difference from being self-righteous and being self-responsible....this is true whether we are talking about DIVING or DRIVING. As was pointed out above, its is refreshing to see that much of the resistance to accept personal responsibility that is evident in society is not mirrored much in diving...maybe thats one of the reasons it appeals to me.....yes I screw up...no I don't blame others..yes I hold my buddies accountable for their screw-ups.....we all will live longer that way.

 

[Otter]

As an aside, I have edited out the personal attacks above. Accepting personal responsiblity for my actions, as a Moderator who is posting in this thread, I am not supposed to do this. Since the posts were flying fast and furious, I did. I will be asking another Mod to monitor this thread for now on.

 

[swampy]

I am in the same boat as Decopod. I am a firefighter medic. Maybe he is burned out. after all the years of doing this job and seeing what Ive seen I can honestly say that some times when I reach into into the ambulance cabinet for the big bag of compasion I find it just isnt there. At an accident during a rain or snow storm we hear "Oh the roads were wet" So I ask "did you consider slowing down?" Usually the answer is "Why?'
Or the patient that states "I can't breath" as I set the oxygen tank next to the full ashtray. It is always difficult when avoidable accidents happen. I feel badly for the parents and friends of these girls. This is one of those situations that happen occasionaly that make us think of our actions and surroundings until we become complaisent again.

Swampy

 

[dbg40]

Although this started as an accident related issue, lets not loose the bigger picture. People, as a whole, seem to believe that arrogance, rudeness, selfishness, and a keen sence of self. are all it takes to get by in life. And when $h!t hits the fan over their unbalanced behavior, it was everything, anything, and everyone elses fault for their now "traumatized condition. CRAP!! When you screw up, stand and deliver. If it was your fault deal with it, and move on, but these days, with everyone being so gentle, and understanding, there are no screwups, only poor souls that need a hug. The original post was right, R-E-S-P-O-N-S-I-B-I-L-I-T-Y.... is not tought, or enforced anymore. And for this, we ALL loose. Mistakes can, and will happen, how you deal with them is what matters.

 

[decapoddiver]

I left out a few things.

1. I'm deeply saddened for the family. I always am; regardless of the reasons behind the accident.

2. No. I don't think the sister or the friend should have died because of the driver's actions.

3. I never pass judgement on a patient. Ever. I never allow my opinion to affect my care. Ever. There would be some dead drunks if I did.

4. I have made mistakes but I owned up to them and if I didn't there was someone who held me accountable.

5. I apologize for posting a non-diving related post on a dive board.



P.S. I've been a Paramedic for 10 years FWIW

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

In California at least the news refers to these things as "crashes"...not "accidents."

Just yesterday I was reading about a situation involving a lady who was an innocent victim of road rage. Apparently a dude was chasing is ex-girlfriend down a busy highway, punching into the back of her SUV with a pickup truck till he forced her into oncoming traffic, where she slammed into a car coming in the other direction. The lady in the oncoming car was severely injured ... her medical bills have piled up to almost $2 million.

Her insurance company has refused to cover her (the road rage dude who caused the accident was uninsured). Their rationale? He caused the crash on purpose, therefore it wasn't an "accident". And if it's not an accident, it's not covered.

This lady spent a month in a coma, has required intensive treatment, and will require therapy and rehab for the rest of her life ... and all her insurance company has to say about it is "it's not our problem".

Personal responsibility? It's been bred out of American culture at every level of our society ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[RIOceanographer]

1. I'm deeply saddened for the family. I always am; regardless of the reasons behind the accident.

P.S. I've been a Paramedic for 10 years FWIW

If you weren't saddened by it, I am sure it wouldn't have bothered you enough to post about it in the first place. And I think it is totally understandable that it would make you angry that so many people are so reckless or irresponsible. I think it bothers a lot of us, and we don't see half the stuff you do.

I am sure most of us would have a really hard time doing what you do for a living and respect you for doing it.