Do you ever pull over and help strangers?

[In The Ten Ring]

I do and do it as often as I can/feel it's safe to do so.

It's 19 degrees out tonight. Driving home I see a truck pulled over on the wrong side of the road. "Very odd" I thought "what is he doing over there?" I wanted to stop and check but there isn't much place to pull over. No lights on the truck.

As I drove past I noticed an interior light on. Hmm....someone is in that pickup. I had to drive a mile up the road before I could turn around. I went back.

Guy is a coal miner headed to his first night with this company. He's had a blow out (and yes, he had, it was shredded). "Only safe place to pull over" and he was right, that is the only space to get off the road on that particular stretch.

My dad's truck was loaded down inside but I made room. Guy was a "country boy"---the kind liberals love to hate---but he was classy. I had to "get a safety certification" to be on mine property (read and sign a safety sheet) but it was pretty neat seeing the tipple up close. Great to see at least some coal mines up and running. Guy offered me $8.00 but I only took $5.00 as dad's truck is hard on gas and it was a decent drive to his job site.

So, do you ever give rides to strangers? Do you ever pull over and help those in need?

Was I armed? Of course. Would I have given him a ride if I hadn't of been?
Good question. I'm not sure.

[lefteye]

Good for you (and him).

[Scoits]

Did, many times in the past, but in today very very seldom and Probabely not ever again.
World has changed and not for the better.
Do not leave my doors unlocked any more either. Sad

[Lohman446]

Around where I live there are a lot of areas that do not have cell phone coverage. If I do not have my children with me I will pull over and render aide / give a ride into town. If I have my children with me I tend not to.

[Don P]

In the past, yes I would stop and help folks. In today's times no I don't stop. Last thing I need is trouble for trying to help someone out. Its a different world than it was some 50 years ago, sadly I must add.

[Wag]

Almost never. I've heard too many bad stories.

Many years ago, I used to give rides but in hindsight, I really believe I was setting myself up for a lot of trouble.

The most significant one I remember was about 25 years ago. I was coming home, early dusk and the weather was very cold, at or near freezing and getting colder. The road I was on was in the middle of nowhere, high-desert territory and there wasn't a building for several miles in either direction.

The kid I saw had obviously been on the road a while and I figured that no criminal was going to subject himself to that torture for anything less than hijacking a truckload of money. I stopped an picked him up and sure enough, he was a 19-year old kid, hitchhiking about 200 more miles. His story wasn't bad, he didn't appear drunk or tweaking. His clothing was horrible but completely insufficient for walking down the freeway in that cold weather.

I had more pity on him than I should have but I ended up taking him to the house (my wife was REALLY not happy about that!) and let him sleep in the guest room. Made dang sure we knew where the pistol was on the nightstand, to be sure.

Next morning, the kid was still there. Made him shower, gave him some old clothes and and old jacket. Drove him to the nearest truck stop and fed him breakfast and suggested he find a trucker to take him where he needed to go. The kid wanted my address so he could pay me for my effort on his behalf but I told him to help the next guy who needed it and I'd be good with that.

To this day, I'm hoping he got to his destination. But at least for one night, he was warm and fed and safe, all of which would have been questionable otherwise.

-----------------

That story is just an example of my own stupidity. There isn't a chance in hell I'd do that again.

Also, when people are broken down on the side of the road these days, nearly everyone has a cell phone and can call family or friends for help.

--Wag--

[Pahoo]

In the past, yes I would stop and help folks. In today's times no I don't stop. Last thing I need is trouble for trying to help someone out. Its a different world than it was some 50 years ago, sadly I must add.

I have, in the past and not always with good results, such as you. Lately I just stay in the car, keep the engine running and talk to the person through a lowered window. I then measure the attitude and respond accordingly. Lately, It's rare for me to stop unless it's a real emergency. .....

Be Safe !!!

[Onward Allusion]

I guess I'm a selfish p***k, but I don't ever stop and have never stopped. If it is a bad situation (car accident, fire, body in middle of road, body in middle of road on fire...) I'd just keep driving and call 911.

[OldMarksman]

No. Don't want to fall for a well known predatory ploy.

[johnwilliamson062]

I don't give rides, but I will often stop if alone(not with wife). No one stops anymore. If you don't someone may be stranded a long time. Easy to let them make a call and get on with your day. If it looks shady I will call the non-emergency police number and let them know there is someone with car trouble.

[T. O'Heir]

Absolutely. Been helped by complete strangers myself. Guy stopped when I was starting a 7 + kilometer hike when I ran out of gas one night out in the boonies. The guy drove me to a gas station and back to my truck. It's a 'What goes around, comes around.' thing. Karma, if you will.

[joed]

Kind of depends on the situation. The last good snow storm we had I counted 5 cars in ditches on the way home. I won't stop to help these people. Most times they have passed me driving to fast for conditions only to end up in a ditch further down the road.

I was much better 20 years ago but times have changed.

[Remington74]

Did, many times in the past, but in today very very seldom and Probabely not ever again.
World has changed and not for the better.
Do not leave my doors unlocked any more either. Sad

Same here.

Love to help someone out that is in trouble, but in today's world. Never more. Most is to call 911 and say someone is in trouble as I motor down the road. Not to say that if I was to see someone getting the daylights beat out of them on the side of the road that I might try to interfere with that but otherwise.....

[Glenn E. Meyer]

If you know the altruism research, the factors that determine such are:

1. Risk to self
2. Are others around?
3. Do you think you will get praise, rewards for helping?
4. Do you identify with the person to be helped? All the social variables kick in.
5. Do you have the ability?

So there is no simple answer but it is easy to pontificate that you would and those that wouldn't are not nice or moral.

[SIGSHR]

Generally, yes, I like to think I have a pretty strong Sixth Sense and my fighting reflexes have not faded. And I can channel Charlie Askins.
One of my favorite such cases was 40 (!) years ago on a late winter afternoon. The Sun had set, saw a compact car in the ditch. A young mother with her child, on her way to the train station to pick up her husband. Loaded them in my car-my trusty old VW Bug-took them to the R/R. Came back, helped the husband push their car out of the ditch.
Fudd that I am, I do believe in the Parable of the Good Samaritan.

[Ricklin]

I drive about 55 K per year, I am a travelling salesman, unfortunately due to corporate takeover there is a serious shortage of farmers daughters.....however I digress.

I lived in SoCal for years, and part of my sales territory was Las Vegas. I was in Vegas every other week.
I rarely traveled with the crowd back to SoCal on Sunday afternoon, but in this case I was.

Outside of Vegas I-15 following a minivan doing around 75 I watched in amazement as the minivan left the highway and proceeded across the desert....still doing 75!

Apparently the drivers off road adventure woke him the heck up. No kidding he got airborne a couple of times, was surprised it did not flip.

The driver got the thing turned around and stopped on the shoulder of I-15. I pulled up behind him and got out. If any one in that van was not belted in they would have been hurt badly, it was pretty amazing it stayed on all 4 during his off road adventure.

Apparently the driver thought I was a cop, instead of rolling his window down, he took off again down I-15. There were parts hanging from and falling from his vehicle. I followed him at a safe distance while calling 911 to report this crazy person. All the while blue smoke is pouring out the back of the minivan. He had apparently holed his oil pan in the off road sojurn. He soon coasted to a stop on the side of I-15 and I continued. I will never forget that van careening across the dessert.

[FireForged]

Generally speaking... no

I wont say that I have never stopped... I have. It is a very rare thing indeed.

[Rangerrich99]

I used to stop and try to help people whenever I thought I could help. Heck, when I lived and worked near Crested Buttte, CO a couple dozen years ago it was a regular thing to see other employees hitch-hiking to and from work. Everyone just picked them up, including me.

But that's changed over the years. The last time I did it was for a young lady that was obviously having a lot of trouble with the ten or so dogs she was trying to walk. She was an average-size woman, about 5' 4", 120 lbs. or so and she was leashed to everything from a chihuahua to a couple big labs. Probably well over 200 lbs. worth of dogs attached to her hands.

They apparently saw something in the brush (probably a rabbit) and began dragging the girl down the side of the road. I had just turned onto that street and saw that she was in imminent danger of being dragged head-first down the sidewalk so I pulled over and ran over to help her out. We got the got the dogs stopped but she was a bit shaken and asked if I could walk with her back to her nearest customer's place a few blocks away. It was mid-morning and she didn't set off any red flags so I agreed.

Obviously nothing happened and I felt good that I had kept her from a case of road rash.

Would I help someone if I wasn't armed? I don't honestly know. I guess it would depend on what my gut told me.

[In The Ten Ring]

I had this big long reply typed out this morning but my log in timed out, let me see if I can do better this go around.

If you know the altruism research, the factors that determine such are:

1. Risk to self

Completely subjective but I have some "rules" I go by when it comes to stopping. Last night I violated a couple of those and I'm glad I did.

2. Are others around?

I think I've read that if others are around, people are less likely to step up. (Kitty Genovese case). I'm aware of that and I like being different so ya, even if others are around I tend to ask if I'm needed. Last night we were alone and that's a dark and rural stretch of road. It is straight though, I wouldn't have blocked part of the lane unless the road was straight for a good ways. *Two ambulances did stop until I waved them past, I assume they figured we'd had a crash.

3. Do you think you will get praise, rewards for helping?

True rewards come from within (or from the Holy Spirit) and as we all know, the only things you can really count on by doing the right thing is more cost, more effort, and more risk. The last couple of guys I've helped out demanded to pay me.....one guy bought me an ice cream since he did need help in front of an ice cream shop. (Ice cream was great BTW ).

4. Do you identify with the person to be helped? All the social variables kick in.

I must "identify" with a lot of people as I've helped young, old, man, woman, black, white, professional, blue color, police officer, hippie, car crash, drunk, Latino (and not speaking English), etc. It was the hippie-looking guy that bought me the ice cream.

5. Do you have the ability?

My abilities are limited to flat tires, overheats, being stuck (if I have the truck although once I let another guy use my tow strap to pull a girl out of a ditch), dragging tailpipes, hitch hikers, needing rides. I carry more tools than most people you'll find, including axe, cheater bar, breaker bar, crow bar, water, extra jack, road flares, reflective triangles, first aid kit, tow strap, tire plug kit, electric tire pump. I even have a set of the 8 most common SAE and Metric lug nut sockets, all 6 point. I plan to make some heavy gauge jumper cables since the store-bought ones are too thin to carry much current.

Well the guy's truck was gone when I went by there today. I hope he's doing well. I prayed for him. We don't often see blowouts on anything other than big truck recaps, I'll bet he's pressed for cash and that's all he could afford. He did mention he bought that tire from a used tire shop. If he's got a good head on his shoulders though he can do well at that coal mine, 70K starting salary is pretty common in that industry. I encouraged him to become an electrician or welder, with those trades he could really clean house. If not for the coal dust, I'd go into the mines myself.

I think we have a duty to help others when we can and I try to live by that. The real test for me is going to do that when I'm in a state that denies the average guy his right to self defense. Since I drive across MD and NY every so often, it's probably going to be there.

*He was taking the long way to that mine, he told me he wasn't sure where he was and I wrote down on a page for him where his truck was. Had he taken the interstate (much faster route) and had that blowout at 70mph, he might well be dead now.

[tony pasley]

I have and will again, I have changed tires, took to get gas, towed a car to the next exit. Even fed a mom and 3 small children at a diner without them knowing who did it. Do I always do it no but when I see some one that I can help and my gut says do it I do. The only reason is what my grand father taught me.

[Pahoo]

There have been times when I just could not stop from helping a person who needed it.

Case in point;
Was traveling down a city street when by a tavern. I was slowing down for a turn when this "Lady" came tumbling out of the tavern with a guy behind her. She went down and the guy proceeded to kick her down some concrete steps toward the street. I stopped open the door and yelled at the guy, to stop. They were both drunker than two sailors, on liberty. He told me to mind my own business and she just sat there wobbling sideways. It was pathetic and really got me "pi**ed. I walked around my car and he went back into the tavern. Called the cops and stayed there till they came. Told them what happened and left. ......

If and when I see something like this or worse, I get so ticked off, I don't remember all of what I said or did. ......

If I had been outside of Parkland school, I would have gone in, regardless. I really think I could have pulled it off. .....

Think and;
Be Safe !!!

[In The Ten Ring]

Tony, that's encouraging to read! Good job. Lay yourself up treasures in heaven....

There have been two people I didn't pick up, both young people, both with luggage, one was a young woman. I came back by there an hour later and she was gone but there was a heavy rain on. The other was a young man at the interstate "on" ramp, when I drove past he hung his head in sorrow. Those have been some 20 years ago. I was younger then and unarmed. I hope they are OK.

Pahoo, I did something similar, although it was probably a drug deal gone bad or hooker that ripped off a john. Rest stop, 2 AM. Man chasing woman out of the building and down the steps. I jumped into that. Man, that could have gotten ugly! Once I realized what I had stopped, I got on out of there but I'd do it again, only now we have better flashlights and I don't need both hands to draw. In other words, Mr. Chasey-Chasey might get a laser dot on his chest while police are called.....it just depends on how it works out. There are too many variables to predict exactly what we'll do.

Your story is similar to one I was told by this guy I know...only the offender you ran into left with his body intact.

[Danoobie]

Originally Posted by T. O'Heir

Absolutely. Been helped by complete strangers myself. Guy stopped when I was starting a 7 + kilometer hike when I ran out of gas one night out in the boonies. The guy drove me to a gas station and back to my truck. It's a 'What goes around, comes around.' thing. Karma, if you will.

Same thing here. Call me Satan, but when I ran out of gas I was saved a long walk by a kind stranger. I paid it forward by helping somebody with a flat the next day.

A few times in the past I've been bailed out of car trouble by complete strangers.
Are we to allow our fears to justify denying others the milk of human kindness?

[briandg]

Yes, I do. At least a few times a year. stopped to help a woman just a few weeks ago, she approached me at a gas store and asked me to take her to the hospital. Okay, she didn't look too good. She looked straight, though, I felt safe about it. I had her get in the car. she started talking and decided that she wanted to go to church before the hospital.

The holy cathedral of lazarus?

I suggested that I didn't have time to drive her to mass and then take her out of town. She started telling me her current events, questioned me a lot of times about what and who I was and if I wanted to hurt her. Then she started mumbling to her self "stop it! leave me alone!"

At this point I was beginning to wonder, the hair was standing up on my neck. I was spooked. At some point, I gave the wrong answer, and she asked me to stop for a minute. She took off running.

She was having a psychotic episode, that's why she was wanting to go to the hospital, or church, she needed help, but I scared her.

I risked my life, literally. I was driving. she could have killed me or even just jammed a dirty needle into my throat. I called the police and asked them to search for her and get her off of the public.

I took her in knowing quite well that she may have been dangerous. It's what I do. I help. I will go past other people. I'm no fool, all that I can do is hope that I never have trouble, and hope that god is truly looking out for me. I know that god doesn't care that much, so I keep a weapon handy when I do.

Maybe it's just payback for the few times that people have reached out to me in my hardest times.

I found out later that my daughter had taken out her pepper spray and had it pointed at her.

"HOLY HELLBALLS, CHILD, ARE YOU REALLY CRAZY ENOUGH TO SHOOT PEPPER SPRAY INTO THE FRONT OF A MOVING CAR!?"

I'm not entirely stupid. I've done some practice with weak side gun handling in the car.

[briandg]

five or six years ago, I was at a store on the day before thanksgiving. The woman at the cash register was an idiot and she took forever to get the old man in front of me taken care of. He remarked that he hoped he didn't miss his bus, and surely, when I got out, he had missed his bus by a minute. It was just pulling away on the street.

It was six miles away, but I took him home, he managed to have a conversation, and talked about what the holidays were like when his wife could still get around.

So I got home a little late, the apple pie was a little late, and we stayed up about a half hour longer. Big deal. the man needed what I could give him. So I gave it to him.