# More stupid people die. Why are we supposed to care? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 1, 2022, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556 "2022-10-01T19:55:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2022, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/141 "2022-10-04T16:52:53Z")
The people of Doperland just assumed he might have had a rough day. Unless this happens all the time. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2022, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/142 "2022-10-04T17:13:46Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > they go outside to play in gale-force winds There’s gale-force winds and there’s gale-force winds. When the storm was approaching, I ran outside for exercise and the winds were supposedly in the high 20s, with gusts higher than that. The winds, and gusts, could have been slightly higher and I still would not have felt that the winds themselves were dangerous, although I did stay within a mile of home in case the rain and winds suddenly increased. To me, it’s not very clear whether the health effects of exercising in the very beginning of a storm, with very low gale force winds, are more beneficial than the slightly higher chance of injury due to falling debris or being knocked over by a gust. (But I really did it in order to keep my metabolism up, not for the long term effects.) ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2022, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/143 "2022-10-04T20:19:24Z")
> [@digs](#): > > But I’m sorry if I gave the impression of a “mocking caricature of other people’s behavior”. I said “imitating”, and it has much more affection in it. We all love each other, and that shows. Thanks, that does sound much less adversarial than I was thinking, apologies for misinterpreting you! ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/144 "2022-10-05T02:07:04Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > Then there are the morons in Florida who died in this most recent hurricane. Hell, I live a couple thousand mile away and I knew it was coming. Why are these presented as anything other than examples of how ridiculously stupid people can be? If you enjoy schaudenfraude, here’s clips of Shepard Smith from just before Hurricane Matthew. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/y_7WTfoWOMo/maxresdefault.jpg "If You Don't Listen to Shepard Smith, You Will Die | SUPERcuts! #373") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_7WTfoWOMo) Hurricanes in Florida are sort of like The Boy Who Cried Wolf. Every time we ask, is this a dud, or is it the real deal? The reality is that _every_ major storm is the real deal, if you are unlucky enough to be in the right place at the right time. ~Max ---
**Author:** ![ASL\_v2.0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asl_v2.0/32/3525_2.png) [@ASL\_v2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASL_v2.0)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/145 "2022-10-05T02:20:55Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > If I had a job like Dinsdale’s where I was constantly confronted with people who were either deliberately trying to scam the system or honestly seeking help in personal catastrophes to which we are all much more vulnerable than we’d like to think, I might find it comforting to retreat to a “they brought it on themselves, so why should I care” mindset too. Just keep in mind that lawyers, and particularly government lawyers, choose their line of work, not vice versa. I could never do **Dinsdale** ’s job. Take that as you will. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/146 "2022-10-05T02:43:44Z")
> [@Max\_S](#): > > here’s clips of Shepard Smith from just before Hurricane Matthew. The part where he goes “but, hey, ‘FREEEDUUUUM’ or something” … oh dear. 😆 ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/147 "2022-10-05T03:05:27Z")
What I got from that video is that Shepard Smith was sick of Fox News viewers. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/148 "2022-10-05T09:31:33Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > Then there are the morons in Florida who died in this most recent hurricane. Hell, I live a couple thousand mile away and I knew it was coming. Why are these presented as anything other than examples of how ridiculously stupid people can be? To be fair, I’ve been seeing a lot of interviews with survivors where they state they were idiots, stupid, and lucky to be alive, sometimes with a choked sob about how they tried to hang onto someone only to have the storm/water rip them away. So maybe some of the luckier ones have a learned a lesson about heeding warnings. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/149 "2022-10-05T13:34:21Z")
And also to be fair, I’ve heard stories of people who evacuated. Who went into debt renting hotel rooms out of state, and who could not get back to their homes for weeks. When they do get home, they find that there is no damage at all from the storm, but there is damage from looters and it being left unattended for weeks. I can see why someone who has been through that a time or two would be hesitant to leave their life behind once again. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/150 "2022-10-05T15:11:08Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > > [@digs](#): > > > > But I’m sorry if I gave the impression of a “mocking caricature of other people’s behavior”. I said “imitating”, and it has much more affection in it. We all love each other, and that shows. > > Thanks, that does sound much less adversarial than I was thinking, apologies for misinterpreting you! C’mon over to the Tip-Top Tavern, we’ll be there for Thursday night feetsball. I’ll buy you an Old Fashioned and you can “imitate” me too! ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/151 "2022-10-05T19:38:47Z")
The OP misrepresents how Hilaree Nelson died. She didn’t “ski off a mountain” - that sounds idiotic. She was _pushed_ off by a freak avalanche. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/152 "2022-10-05T19:50:16Z")
Most news stories elicit either of two responses from me: “Busy, busy, busy” (when it’s about living); “So it goes” (when it’s about dying). The opposite of love isn’t hate. It’s indifference. Hate is love that’s gotten warped by pain. By complaining about people afflicted with misfortune, **Dinsdale** is showing he cares far more than I do with my studied indifference. He just expresses it in a dickish manner. He can’t just dismiss it with a casual “So it goes” because he can’t help caring. It’s natural to care, to feel something for other human beings. It’s just warped to turn it against the victim. I’m in permanent survival mode, and most of my spoons each day have to go for things that directly affect me (LGBTQ, healthcare, voting rights). Even so, I set aside enough spoons to keep up with the struggles of Black people, American Indians, and Ukrainians against oppression. After that, I got none left. **Dinsdale** is probably in more robust health and can expend his excess mental energy on warping his caring for other people. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/153 "2022-10-05T20:26:34Z")
> [@Johanna](#): > > The OP misrepresents how Hilaree Nelson died. She didn’t “ski off a mountain” - that sounds idiotic. She was _pushed_ off by a freak avalanche. [https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/28/sport/ski-mountaineer-hilaree-nelson-death-nepal-spt-intl](https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/28/sport/ski-mountaineer-hilaree-nelson-death-nepal-spt-intl) _"…he and Nelson were skiing down from the summit of Manaslu to rejoin their sherpa team when the 49-year-old “started a small avalanche.”_ _She was swept off her feet and carried down a narrow snow slope, …"_ That is consistent with what I had heard before. The 2 reached the summit in deteriorating weather, quickly geared up, and started to ski down to their Sherpas. Nelson, skiing 2d, caused an avalanche. I think there was a different avalanche lower on the mountain that same day. “Skied off a mountain” vs “caused an avalanche that pushed her off the mountain”? I’m not sure there is a huge difference. But I apologize that I wrote my OP in a manner you find misleading. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/154 "2022-10-05T20:26:44Z")
> [@Johanna](#): > > Hate is love that’s gotten warped by pain. That is a hell of an insight. You need to write a book… _ **Love, Pain, and Spoons** _ _AND OTHER VISIONS OF JOHANNA_ ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/155 "2022-10-05T20:30:50Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > “Skied off a mountain” vs “caused an avalanche that pushed her off the mountain”? I’m not sure there is a huge difference. [Skiing off of mountains](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ski-BASE_jumping) is an actual thing. It is very different than what happened to Hilaree Nelson. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/156 "2022-10-05T21:19:18Z")
Well, OK. Apologies to everyone who thought I was referring to someone who was ski BASE jumping. I’m not sure _“While skiing, caused an avalanche that pushed them off a mountain,”_ casts her in a much different/better light than _“skied off a mountain.”_ ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/157 "2022-10-05T21:51:18Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > I’m not sure _“While skiing, caused an avalanche that pushed them off a mountain,”_ casts her in a much different/better light than _“skied off a mountain.”_ Think of it as the difference between someone who crashes their vehicle because they have poor driving skills, or are drunk, or not paying attention, etc. And someone who crashes their vehicle because a tree falls onto the road in front of them in a windstorm. While you can argue that a person should not be driving in such conditions, there is still an element of misfortune involved, rather than it being completely their fault. The same can be said of someone skiing when conditions were conducive to avalanches. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2022, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556/158 "2022-10-05T23:21:30Z")
I almost skied into a (small) crevasse once. It was flat light and hard to see until I was right on top of it. Managed to kind of ‘hop’ over it. I remember it like it was yesterday. Easter Sunday, April 15, 1984 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/more-stupid-people-die-why-are-we-supposed-to-care/972556.md?page=7)