Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Technorati's Tracy Williams is alive and safe in a local hospital

facebook.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

41–50 of 51 posts

Re: Technorati's Tracy Williams is alive and safe in a local hospital

#41

Post by samstave »

dsr_ wrote: post #20
samstave wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

OMG EVERYBODY HALP!!! MY FRIEND IS MISSING. [everybody attempts to help] OMG EVERYBODY THAN KYOU SO MUCH MY FRIEND IS SAFE!!! [everybody: YAY! Gald to hear it - what happened!] NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS YOU NOSY JERKS! ---- Yeah screw that. People will feel less inclined to assist - because they feel that they are an excluded outsider. If you are not told the outcome/reason for the situation in the first place - you are…

First, I don't work for Technorati. I didn't call for help but I'm glad the community responded. Second, I have enough empathy and imagination to think about how she might be feeling... and in none of the circumstances I can imagine does anyone owe you, random community member, anything more than the exact "Thank you! She's safe!" you mentioned above. I can get my empathy fix just fine from that.

My point was that this only will work for so long... you make calls to the community for help, people provide that help based on their empathy. If you take away any and all emotional payment for what you receive - people will be desensitized to such requests and will not respond.

Classic "boy who called wolf" syndrome

Re: Technorati's Tracy Williams is alive and safe in a local hospital

#42

Post by droithomme »

samstave wrote: post #18
dsr_ wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While lots of us are nosy enough to want to know, the answer is that it isn't any of our business. If she wants to say, she will... presumably after she gets out of the hospital.

OMG EVERYBODY HALP!!! MY FRIEND IS MISSING. [everybody attempts to help] OMG EVERYBODY THAN KYOU SO MUCH MY FRIEND IS SAFE!!! [everybody: YAY! Gald to hear it - what happened!] NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS YOU NOSY JERKS! ---- Yeah screw that. People will feel less inclined to assist - because they feel that they are an excluded outsider. If you are not told the outcome/reason for the situation in the first place - you are…

I hadn't thought of that, but I think you have a valid point. I remember being asked to help save a dehydrated kitten. From that point, being asked, forward, I was committed to concern for the kitten's welfare.

It is human nature that once you ask for help you are asking others to be concerned. It is not reasonable then to not expect others to continue to be emotionally invested and concerned.

Re: Technorati's Tracy Williams is alive and safe in a local hospital

#43

Post by droithomme »

ars wrote: post #22
mattdeboard wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When someone asks for help, you either give it, or you don't. Your aid ought not be contingent on what you get out of it.

It shouldn't be. But it is. People want to get "paid" in information.

You believe in a world governed by profit and financial transactions.

The real world is not like that.

Once invited to join a tribe by requesting assistance for someone, others who have joined that tribe by becoming concerned and investing time into worry and concern are not expecting to be paid, they are merely wanting to know what happened to the person they have been ASKED to care about.

It is exceptionally cynical and economically oriented to cast requested concern for a fellow human into something it is not.

Re: Technorati's Tracy Williams is alive and safe in a local hospital

#44

Post by droithomme »

mattdeboard wrote: post #21
samstave wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

OMG EVERYBODY HALP!!! MY FRIEND IS MISSING. [everybody attempts to help] OMG EVERYBODY THAN KYOU SO MUCH MY FRIEND IS SAFE!!! [everybody: YAY! Gald to hear it - what happened!] NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS YOU NOSY JERKS! ---- Yeah screw that. People will feel less inclined to assist - because they feel that they are an excluded outsider. If you are not told the outcome/reason for the situation in the first place - you are…

When someone asks for help, you either give it, or you don't. Your aid ought not be contingent on what you get out of it.

An observation.

You are ascribing nefarious intent to people motivated by concern and empathy for the welfare of a fellow human being, whom they were specifically requested to care about.

I find such projection malicious in itself and unwarranted.

Re: Technorati's Tracy Williams is alive and safe in a local hospital

#45

Post by ars »

droithomme wrote: post #43
ars wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It shouldn't be. But it is. People want to get "paid" in information.

You believe in a world governed by profit and financial transactions. The real world is not like that. Once invited to join a tribe by requesting assistance for someone, others who have joined that tribe by becoming concerned and investing time into worry and concern are not expecting to be paid, they are merely wanting to know what happened to the person they have been ASKED to care about. It is exceptionally cynica…

You are taking the word "paid" over-literally. I put it in quotes for a reason.

"wanting to know" without also having the ability to help and without the other party appreciating your concern (i.e. it's not a personal communication) is not "concern for a fellow human" - it's curiosity. There isn't anything wrong with that, but don't make it out to be nobler than it is.

Re: Technorati's Tracy Williams is alive and safe in a local hospital

#46

Post by nobody3141592 »

MichaelApproved wrote: post #38

Have any of these all points bulletins for a missing person ever worked? I'm not trying to be a smart ass, just curious if this method has been affective in the past.

The official ones seem pretty ineffective. A child went missing 300miles from here a month ago, the freeway signs were all announcing an amber alert. But the first thing the police in the next state - less than 10miles from his home - knew about it was when it reached the national news, apparently only federal crimes require contacting neighboring forces.

Re: Technorati's Tracy Williams is alive and safe in a local hospital

#47

Post by tronicron »

AlexMuir wrote: post #6

I haven't been able to read this status update (it keeps timing out for some reason), so I'm just going off the title here. * The downside of these hugely public, and permanent, appeals for information on someone is that everyone will want to know every detail of what happened, will discuss it, and dissect it publicly. Imagine a situation where someone in our technology community quietly embarks on a suicide plan, as…

A friend posted a suicide alert as a joke on Facebook a couple weeks ago and two days later the police came knocking. They ended up keeping him in hospital for two days "just in case". The only reason he was there was that someone doesn't get his humor and reported it even though most people knew he was fine.

Re: Technorati's Tracy Williams is alive and safe in a local hospital

#48

Post by tronicron »

tronicron wrote: post #47
AlexMuir wrote: post #6

I haven't been able to read this status update (it keeps timing out for some reason), so I'm just going off the title here. * The downside of these hugely public, and permanent, appeals for information on someone is that everyone will want to know every detail of what happened, will discuss it, and dissect it publicly. Imagine a situation where someone in our technology community quietly embarks on a suicide plan, as…

A friend posted a suicide alert as a joke on Facebook a couple weeks ago and two days later the police came knocking. They ended up keeping him in hospital for two days "just in case". The only reason he was there was that someone doesn't get his humor and reported it even though most people knew he was fine.

edit: I guess it is worth noting that the misinterpreted public post and resulting hospital time was worse than whatever minor crisis than he was dealing with at the time. Fortunately no major medical bills (Canada) but he definitely lost a few contracts.

Re: Technorati's Tracy Williams is alive and safe in a local hospital

#49

Post by danssig »

eavc wrote: post #40
groby_b wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's nice speculation, but not how suicide usually works. You commit suicide because you feel there's no one left who cares about you. The idea that there are thousands of people asking you what happened works somewhat counter to that.

Do you have a source for that?

Did the OP?

Re: Technorati's Tracy Williams is alive and safe in a local hospital

#50

Post by arnoooooo »

tronicron wrote: post #48
tronicron wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A friend posted a suicide alert as a joke on Facebook a couple weeks ago and two days later the police came knocking. They ended up keeping him in hospital for two days "just in case". The only reason he was there was that someone doesn't get his humor and reported it even though most people knew he was fine.

edit: I guess it is worth noting that the misinterpreted public post and resulting hospital time was worse than whatever minor crisis than he was dealing with at the time. Fortunately no major medical bills (Canada) but he definitely lost a few contracts.

"We're never safe from people's kindness", says French comedian Jean-Marie Bigard...

Yet I suppose it's still a good thing in such cases that people care enough to do this ?

When it really becomes a problem is when the "kindness" is really misguided (religious nutjobs, etc.)

Post reply on HN