Sometimes I really smurfing hate this society

[Grant Lamontagne]

Megan and I went to IKEA this evening to pick up a few things and walk around to find a smurf pile of other things we don't need but will buy anyway.  She loves wandering around that store, and I don't hate it myself.

As you walk in there is an escalator that takes you to the second floor where you begin your shopping experience.  When we got to the top of the escalator a small child, maybe 3-4 years old came running over to the top of the escalator and we smiled as we went by.

Then the child started playing on the steps, almost guaranteed to fall. 

The kid's parent was quite a ways away and started yelling and running over to the escalator as the child tried to jump down the up escalator.

I hesitated.

I'm an old man and I don't need a lawsuit or allegations of touching a strange child.

I also don't want to see a child get hurt when I could easily have stopped it.

As Dad got closer I reached down and grabbed the child and handed him off to his father.

Nothing happened, Dad didn't thank me (not that I care) but he did drag his son off, scolding him.

It bothered me that I didn't help sooner.

It bothered me that I was worried more about what would happen to me.

It bothered me that I even had to have that thought, rather than just get that kid out of danger.

Sometimes I really hate what we are becoming.

Def

[Alan K.]

You were right to be concerned.  We have become way too litigious as a society in the last couple of decades.  People will sue you for what you do and for what you didn't do.

[nate j]

It is frustrating.

I’m unsure of the laws in Canada, but in the US, every state has some form of Good Samaritan law, designed to provide legal immunity to any person who makes a good faith reasonable effort to help someone in dire need.  The goal of these laws is to encourage bystanders to step in to try to help.

[dks]

If they knew you were the sole owner of the No1 Multitool forum in the world, they would have sued you

[Farmer X]

We have become way too litigious as a society in the last couple of decades.

[lister]

Yeah, you don't want to be touching those flee ridden smurfs at our time of life, you might catch something

[AzteCypher]

I volunteer at my daughter's school as part of the WatchDOGs program.  As a result, a lot of the kids learn to recognize me.  Though they may not know my name, they know I'm a WatchDOG and someone they can come to for help when needed.  There's been numerous times that kids run up to me in school and out in public to tell me hi or to give me a hug.

When in public, I usually get questioned by a parent a such, "How do you know my chiid?!"  I then explain that I volunteer at the school as a WatchDOG and explain what the WatchDOG program is.

I get why we are as we are because of what society has done to us.  Good thing is, you did do something even if you hesitated.  Too many times we don't do anything, at all and to me, that's worse than any hesitation we may show.  I'll take a parent snapping at me any day for trying to help their child.  I would want the same to be done for my child should they have a need.

"Do unto others as thou would have done unto thee."

Just my humble 2cents.

[Grant Lamontagne]

I appreciate that.

Most of all, the child wasn't hurt and I'm most thankful for that.  And, if something bad had happened, I wouldn't have hesitated at all, so from that perspective I am glad that I hesitated- because I had the luxury of hesitating.

Def

[ThundahBeagle]

Добрые дела наказываются
"Good deeds are  punished"
A message that dates back centuries of nit millenia

It is unfortunate that those of us with good morals and intentions could find ourselves arrested or on the wrong side of a lawsuit for doing the good that we all need in this world

[lister]

A message that dates back centuries of nit millenia

Which means that not only this society is smurfed up, in fact all societies are. Which is... well. Even worse.

Humans are not good people.