The Setting
We live in a three street town right off the curve in a two lane road. This road has a lot of traffic and the average speed is between 45 to 55 mph. The road curves often and there are segments where passing is prohibited. There are three entrances to our community from this road. One entrance/exit sits exactly in the middle of the curve. Across the street there is a similar road. One side of the road has a No Left Turn sign. At the back of our property, we can see the road in between the neighbor's yard.
It is a dangerous stretch of road. It is a common spot for traffic accidents. I have heard the sound of crunching metal followed by the sirens of the Police, Firemen and Paramedics. There have been several times a Medevac Helicopter has landed less than 100 yards from my house in the Fire Company's parking lot.
The Story
My husband was home cutting the grass while I was out with our daughter back-to-school shopping. We arrived home and my husband walked over and described a terrible automobile accident at the curve. Apparently an SUV turned left despite the No Left Turn sign at the exit. A motorcycle with two passengers, a husband and wife, were approaching the curve and could not stop in time. The motorcycle ran into the back of the SUV and the passengers were thrown off. The traffic stopped in both directions. The Fire Company was the first to respond.
My husband walked through the neighbor's yard to the edge of the road. My husband spoke to the man in the first car in the line of traffic. The man witnessed the accident and said that the motorcycle had nowhere to go. The husband was lying in the middle of the road seriously injured. It took a few minutes for the ambulances to arrive because the traffic had congested the road. As they were waiting, a woman from the line of traffic walked up to find out what was going on. She saw the man lying across one lane of the two lane highway.
She asked "Why can't we just go around him?"
The man in the first car said, "Lady, the man is fighting for his life!"
I read in the newspaper yesterday that the man died shortly after he arrived at the hospital. He was lying in the middle of the road...dying... and the woman's only concern was to find a way to go around him.
What is wrong with people?
4 comments:
When you find out - let us all know. :(
Good example of the indifference of some people.
I was kind of hoping you'd say she went over to the man and comforted him while he lay there dying, but your post title kind of gave it away. That is just sad.
Boy, I sure hope she realizes how selfish that sounded!
I think it's called narcissistic personality disorder, it's probably not even her fault since lacking empathy could be a sign of a neurological deficit or some kind of psychological trauma (the person was hurt so badly he or she becomes incapable of caring for someone else). It's disturbing I agree but narcissism is mostly just annoying and in a way less distressing than antisocial behaviour which usually results in others getting hurt (physically or emotionally) and/or property damaged.
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