# (RO) Jerk killed himself by jumping in front of train **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 17, 2008, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650 "2008-12-17T23:04:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mr.Excellent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f19dbf/32.png) [@Mr.Excellent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Excellent)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2008, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/1 "2008-12-17T23:04:00Z")
From here: [http://www.wtopnews.com/?nid=25&sid=1552152](http://www.wtopnews.com/?nid=25&sid=1552152) > [@](#): > > SHADY GROVE, Md. - A man was struck and killed by a Metro train Wednesday morning at the Shady Grove station. > > The train was headed to Glenmont when it hit the 50-year-old man at around 9:50 a.m. Witnesses say he intentionally put himself on the tracks. What an ass. If you want to kill yourself - fine, that’s your problem. But for the love of Pete, what right did this guy have to make an innocent Metro driver a part of his death? I can’t imagine what it feels like to be at the controls when some idiot jumps in front of your train, but it can’t be good, even if you know there’s nothing you can do. I imagine the poor operator will likely need therapy. What an utterly selfish, asinine way to go. Fuck you, suicidal guy. ---
**Author:** ![catsix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e19b73/32.png) [@catsix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/catsix)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2008, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/2 "2008-12-17T23:18:56Z")
Some people just have to do things in the way that gets them the absolute maximum possible attention. They tend to do everything this way, for their entire lives. It does completely suck and is selfish as all hell, but do you really expect them to change their ways just to commit suicide? ---
**Author:** ![MoodIndigo1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e8c25b/32.png) [@MoodIndigo1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoodIndigo1)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/3 "2008-12-18T00:07:43Z")
I dunno. My nephew was a pretty sweet, unassuming guy, and I don’t think he was in his normal state when he threw himself in front of the subway. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/4 "2008-12-18T00:14:16Z")
> [@Mr.Excellent](#): > > But for the love of Pete, what right did this guy have to make an innocent Metro driver a part of his death? I can’t imagine what it feels like to be at the controls when some idiot jumps in front of your train, but it can’t be good, even if you know there’s nothing you can do. I imagine the poor operator will likely need therapy. Do you guys still have drivers on your metro trains ? ---
**Author:** ![Tabby\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Tabby\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tabby_Cat)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/5 "2008-12-18T00:15:26Z")
I think the thought process goes something like “well, they never noticed me in life, but they’ll sure notice me in death”. Not that I have ever, you know, thought about it. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/6 "2008-12-18T00:16:23Z")
This is why we need Futurama-style suicide booths. ---
**Author:** ![seodoa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@seodoa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seodoa)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/7 "2008-12-18T00:48:11Z")
I understand that most people are not in a right state of mind before hurling themselves in front of a train, (that much should be obvious, I think), but seriously. It is a huge inconvenience to everyone. Thankfully, I am not as dependant on trains anymore, as most of my commuting for work is intracity, but when I did have to rely on trains, these incidents were killer. When I was at uni in the Tokyo suburbs, there were more than a few cases where I missed classes or important meetings because somebody decided to end it all on the tracks. Nearly as obnoxious are accidents caused by drivers at railroad crossings. The vast majority of these accidents are easily preventable and are a result of impatient dickweeds who choose to ignore signals and basic safety precautions. Is it a pity that they died or are seriously injured? Yes. Is it also an r-tard move on their part? Super yes. Could their impatience have just as easily cost the passengers of the train their own safety? Super duper yes. Luckily, people are pretty understanding about such things, and I could easily make up classes or reschedule meetings around those instances. But that doesn’t make things any less convenient (or dangerous) for everybody involved, not least of all the train company and its employees. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/8 "2008-12-18T01:17:42Z")
> [@Tabby\_Cat](#): > > I think the thought process goes something like “well, they never noticed me in life, but they’ll sure notice me in death”. > Not that I have ever, you know, thought about it. I’ll admit to having thought about it. My thought process was “That would be quick and pretty sure to work.” We don’t have all that many guns here, though. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/9 "2008-12-18T01:25:57Z")
I’m dreading hearing from people ranting about that ‘selfish bastard that made me late’. Missed a meeting or a class because of a suicide or other public death? What kind of damaged misanthrope holds easily verifiable public tragedies against their people…? _'You should know that people often kill themselves and leave home earlier to anticipate this! Dick, I’m Very disappointed in you…!"_ Worse are those who traded in their humanity for 3 extra minutes of walking time. Sure, you’re late. They’re only fookin’ dead. Too bad you got the worst of it, eh? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/10 "2008-12-18T01:31:17Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > This is why we need Futurama-style suicide booths. Yeah, 2008’s almost up, what’s the deal? I remember a while back seeing two kids sitting on a subway platform with their legs hanging over the side and thinking _I don’t care if their little “dare” game gets them killed, but if they make me late, I’m gonna be pissed_. Anyway, at least the guy in the OP didn’t park his SUV on the tracks. ---
**Author:** ![Vox\_Imperatoris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Vox\_Imperatoris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vox_Imperatoris)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/11 "2008-12-18T01:33:14Z")
> [@Count\_Blucher](#): > > I’m dreading hearing from people ranting about that ‘selfish bastard that made me late’. Missed a meeting or a class because of a suicide or other public death? What kind of damaged misanthrope holds easily verifiable public tragedies against their people..? > > _'You should know that people often kill themselves and leave home earlier to anticipate this! > Dick, I’m Very disappointed in you..!"_ > > Worse are those who traded in their humanity for 3 extra minutes of walking time. Sure, you’re late. They’re only fookin’ dead. Too bad you got the worst of it, eh? This post is totally incomprehensible. Traded in their humanity for 3 extra minutes of walking time? What? If you’re saying people don’t have the right to get angry at suicides delaying their travel time, why do suicides have any more right to delay public transport than, say, practical jokers? It’s not as if the guy would be any less dead if we got all angsty about it than if we reacted with anger. Valete, Vox Imperatoris ---
**Author:** ![Kozmik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8dc957/32.png) [@Kozmik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kozmik)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/12 "2008-12-18T01:40:49Z")
They also do that in [Japan](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suicide_in_Japan). > [@](#): > > Rail companies will charge the families of those who commit suicide a fee depending on the severity of disrupted traffic. ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/13 "2008-12-18T01:46:38Z")
> [@Tabby\_Cat](#): > > I think the thought process goes something like “well, they never noticed me in life, but they’ll sure notice me in death”. Or maybe simply : “This one seems quite foolproof” Pitting people who committed suicide seems extremely pointless to me, and trying to guess their last thoughts a futile exercise. Yeah, he didn’t care about the driver. Maybe he didn’t care about anything. And maybe that’s the reason why he threw himself under a train. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/14 "2008-12-18T02:00:14Z")
> [@Vox\_Imperatoris](#): > > This post is totally incomprehensible. Traded in their humanity for 3 extra minutes of walking time? What? Incomprehensible? You can’t put your fingers on it and what, it galls you? The man is dead. I don’t expect the world to weep for him, but you expect it to weep for how that death inconveniences you. This to me is what is incomprehensible. > [@Vox\_Imperatoris](#): > > If you’re saying people don’t have the right to get angry at suicides delaying their travel time, why do suicides have any more right to delay public transport than, say, practical jokers? The suicide has a given mental defect. Self-important entitled riders can act as badly as they choose to without any excuse. Indeed, there is none. ---
**Author:** ![Gukumatz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/74df32/32.png) [@Gukumatz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gukumatz)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/15 "2008-12-18T02:00:59Z")
On behalf of one of my best friends, who’s a metro train driver, _seriously fuck that guy_. If you want to end your life, that’s your call. If you want it to affect other people, you’re an asshole. (Though I have heard - from my friend - that most of the people who _do_ commit suicide-by-railway do it in an attempt to make it look like an accident. So as not to belabour their family with the suicide survivor sticker.) ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Excellent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f19dbf/32.png) [@Mr.Excellent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Excellent)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/16 "2008-12-18T02:09:40Z")
> [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](#): > > Do you guys still have drivers on your metro trains ? Yah, and many of them are pretty cool. They like to make jokes over the PA. They most assuredly _don’t_ deserve to start their day by watching some selfish jerk die. ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/17 "2008-12-18T02:17:15Z")
> [@catsix](#): > > Some people just have to do things in the way that gets them the absolute maximum possible attention. Sometimes, that’s true. But it’s more likely this is the only way the guy knew how to effectively kill himself, in a quick and painless manner. Not everyone has access to drugs, guns, or tall buildings. > [@](#): > > They tend to do everything this way, for their entire lives. It does completely suck and is selfish as all hell, but do you really expect them to change their ways just to commit suicide? This attitude sickens me, the whole concept of calling suiciders “selfish”. Can you even imagine, what kind of life this person must have had, the abuse and neglect he was exposed to (or his untreated psychological condition, if you like) that made him not to want to live his life anymore?? People don’t throw themselves in front of trains unless they REALLY want to die – it’s not a suicidal gesture, he was in so much pain that he could see no other option. If all you care about is that your train was delayed by a few hours, that makes YOU the selfish one, not him! ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/18 "2008-12-18T02:26:27Z")
Here’s how I feel about it. Remember 9-11? How people jumped from the towers to avoid burning? Nobody called them cowards for choosing the best method they had available for ending their physical pain, and nobody said that they should have considered the feelings of the people they knew were watching on television. The people who jump in front of trains are in pain as real as those burning in the towers. If you wouldn’t mock the second, why mock the first? ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/19 "2008-12-18T02:29:34Z")
> [@KGS](#): > > Not everyone has access to drugs, guns, or tall buildings. Tall buildings would be worst, anyway. Not only it’s likely that some people will witness it, but occupationally a bystander is killed by someone jumping from a building. ---
**Author:** ![Vox\_Imperatoris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Vox\_Imperatoris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vox_Imperatoris)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2008, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650/20 "2008-12-18T02:35:12Z")
> [@Count\_Blucher](#): > > Incomprehensible? You can’t put your fingers on it and what, it galls you? The man is dead. I don’t expect the world to weep for him, but you expect it to weep for how that death inconveniences you. This to me is what is incomprehensible. > > The suicide has a given mental defect. Self-important entitled riders can act as badly as they choose to without any excuse. Indeed, there is none. What if I say self-important entitled A-holes have a mental defect? I mean, what else could explain their blatant disregard for other people. :rolleyes: At some point, you have to draw the line and say that you are either responsible for your actions or responsible for checking yourself into therapy or a mental institution. (This is a major pet peeve of mine, that every negative personality trait is now being cast as an incurable mental defect. Soulless scum with no regard for the law—sociopath, self-absorbed beauty queen—narcissistic personality disorder, hopeless romantic always running off in search of adventure—manic depressive disorder, etc. I am confident that every character flaw will eventually be ascribed to something detectable in the workings of the brain. Note that I don’t oppose research on personality disorders in itself, but the lack of accountability that it brings.) Valete, Vox Imperatoris [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ro-jerk-killed-himself-by-jumping-in-front-of-train/477650.md?page=2)