The Good, The Bad or The Dumb?
My "Only Human'' column in today's paper, "Not-so-brief-encounter," caused a bit of a stir in the newsroom.
Take a gander at it. Go ahead, I'll wait.
There. The question seemed to be whether my actions on that Sunday morning indicated that I had done a good thing, a bad thing or an out-and-out stupid thing.
Let me tell you - most people definitely came down on the bad/stupid side of the moonshiner's fence.
But I'd be interested in what you think.
Take a gander at it. Go ahead, I'll wait.
There. The question seemed to be whether my actions on that Sunday morning indicated that I had done a good thing, a bad thing or an out-and-out stupid thing.
Let me tell you - most people definitely came down on the bad/stupid side of the moonshiner's fence.
But I'd be interested in what you think.
posted by Michael Riley at 11:14 AM
44 Comments:
Lots of questions here...was your youngest son with you? I dunno if I would have done the things you did, but I sense the man of the cloth/good samaritan part of you took over.
I don't think I'd buy an an alcoholic beer. I might have bought him a cup of coffee. Might have even tried to find out his phone number to call his wife (well, maybe that's not a good idea either...this is a tough one) Being a woman I probably would not have driven him home, for safety reasons.
I don't know what the answer is here. These days one has to be so cautious...I think you followed your gut, and I think you had an advantage being a man, in this scenario.
you are an enabler not good samaritan.
I think you ran out of ideas and invented this story.no one believes it happened, Jack Kerouac, you ain't.
You are two of the three adjectives in your title.
Sorry Mike. You've lost some credibility with me too. Anyone who portrayed Bob Collins as a humanitarian can create the impression a story is being stretched way to far from reality. Same
here. Nice story, but unbelievable now that I’ve seen you can misrepresent factual information in the interest of a good sounding story.
Here is one thing that I never understood about people.
These things happen to you. All of you. They happen even more when you welcome them. I don't know if some people put out a certain vibe, or, like me, allow how good a story can be made out of any given situation to influence whether or not to enter that situation.
I think most people just glance over these beautiful moments in their lives as they preoccupy over the office or whatever the MustSeeTV lineup is tonight.
Even then, a lot of people wouldn't be able to craft the experience into a meaningful vignette as Mr. Riley has done here.
As per the accusations of fabrication or elaboration, they probably couldn't be further from the truth. In writing non-fiction, the hardest part is what to leave out. More probably happened during this encounter, but was pared away in the writing process.
Being an enabler and not a good Samaritan is a ridiculous notion. A man of that age, especially an Irishman, has probably made any decision he's going to make in life already. While Riley would like us to believe it would have ended much much worse had he not intervened, well, that's up for debate. I tend to think he's right to an extent.
What's the point in reforming an old, comfortable drunk just trying to get home to his wife? How is there good in the condescending notion that one should intervene in an unoffensive stranger's affairs?
JDS
I'm sure most of us have done something that in retrospect we say (or someone else says) "What were you thinking?! Issues of safety aside, acting out of compassion is going to make you step out of your comfort zone and it can be good, bad and dumb all at the same time. "You takes your chances". As far as validity, I can pretty much assure you all his stories are true.
Alright, have at it.
I'm not so 'assured'.I'm willing to listen to whatever first hand factual experience anyone would have that would make this story more credible, including the writer, aside from your opinion based on what you read in the paper (which of course MUST be true, otherwise it would never get printed). My comment regarding an impression Mr. Riley created of goodness and kindness in someone I know had hurt so many people in so many ways makes his stories now much less credible. There's a big difference between true and accurate. Accurate will include all the facts, not just some of what you want someone to know, which will allow to you can get away with saying is 'true' because it contains no lies or gross embellishments. 8:59
So what's worse - your personal bias against Bob Collins, and by association, Mr. Riley, or a first-hand account no one can verify?
I guess backwards nebraska is either: a family member or riley himself posing as a blogger to say he can wholeheartedly assure us his stories are true. Still don't buy it, prob a grain of truth to story-like a drunk old man was at the store where he was and then he embellished the rest..even award winning NY tines journalists have faked or embellished true accts of stories just to further their careers. Sorry, mikey, busted!
Awww . . . come on! Where's the love guys?! You weren't convinced? Tough room. Seriously, I'll correct myself. I shouldn't go trying to assure anybody of anything. Nobody can prove anybody's credibility in the comments section of a blog. We'll all believe what we believe no matter what anybody else posts. To try to get back to the original post, what would any of you do in this situation? (hypothetical or not)?
Did you sincerely believe that you did the right thing? It seems that you thought about it, and that's good. God regards the intention more than the deed. Sin is knowing the difference between right and wrong, and choosing that which is known to be wrong.
If you're worried . . . Christianity's most prolific blogger once wrote, "God does not save those who are only imaginary sinners. Be a sinner, and let your sins be strong, but let your trust in Christ be stronger, and rejoice in Christ who is the victor over sin, death, and the world."
I woulda run him over,for the good of all mankind.
Hey Mike;
I've been a fan of yours for a long time. However, explain to your readers how a liquor store was open on a Sunday Morning, when they don't open until noon. I think your busted on this one
It must have been the bar at the church. You know the one behind that revolving wall.
Oh, and i'll put 10 to place on DogFood for You in the fifth race at Monmouth.
As a recent college graduate, I know something regarding the sale of certain alcoholic beverages on the Sabbath. To my understanding, like other blue laws, restrictions on the sale of alcohol are a municipal matter, and thus, differ from town to town in the great state of New Jersey.
Nice work of fiction you got going on here, Riley. I particularly liked how you went out of your way to mention that the drunk was both Irish and Catholic.
Since your canard involves trotting out old stereotypes for cheap laughs, let me tell you about the black guy from Asbury Park that recently asked me for a ride. He was a Baptist and a convicted felon. He had bad credit, "six babies with four mommas," and he loved white women almost as much as he loved spareribs. When he got into my car, he was already 20 minutes late for his new job.
Maybe next week I'll go to Lakewood and find a hooked-nose Jew that is cheap, clannish and only votes the way his rabbis tell him to vote. Or maybe I'll find a Mexican driver that doesn't know what car insurance is. But then again, that would be both silly and a waste of time, wouldn't it? If I want my fill of bigotry, all I have to do is read what Michael Riley writes.
After reading this story in your column I must say that I was disappointed in you. When you help an alcoholic to drink, you are helping them ruin their lives. There is no goodness or merit in it. You should have called the police to get the man off the streets. You also put yourself in jeopardy. Just because a person is "old" it does not make them nice or good. Your sympathy was misplaced Mr. Riley. He could have harmed you and he probably would not care if he did. How do I know this? Well, life has told me that alcoholics don't care about themselves, so how can they care about a complete stanger who is fool enough to "help" them drink. Be smart next time. Say a prayer for the person and report their ass. Sorry, but you were wrong on this one. SUE
Just report their ass. Prayers don't work.
Funny how Mr Riley cowered away from defending his "truthiness" in his blog.guess his silence admits he fabricated this tall tale after all.
I doubt Riley really gives much of a damn about your criticism. It would be pretty small to stoop down to petty arguments of people who don't get to "let it out" in real life and prefer anonymity to slam someone who doesn't care enough to defend themselves.
I see some of the anonymi are riley's wife and sons (if not himself) trying to defend him.How sweet!
So it's clear we're not allowed to post unless we are complete douches.
What would Riley say that you haven't already made it overwhelmingly clear that you wouldn't believe?
YOU are allowed to post and clearly are a douche,notariley
But I'm only a douche to you.
Lovely language here.
Seriously,
Why all the negativity?
JDS
Anonymity. That's why.
Ray, you are just as anonymous by not putting your real name and/or real last name.yar
"Prayers don't work." - Ray
You know this from personal experience?
M
Yep. I see people praying all of the time yet their loved ones suffer and die anyway.
And, BTW, prayer has been tested and it always fails to produce. As the saying goes, Nothing fails like prayer.
atheists are a bundle of joy aren't they? what a ray of hope you are!
Aaaahhh, I could have fun with this...prayer has been TESTED??? Really? In a scientific lab? Or is a poll?
See, I asked if you knew from personal experience that prayer doesn't work, Ray. And you said, "yep. I see people prying all the time..." That's not personal experience.
Prayer goes beyond asking for something from God. And then getting it, or not getting it. Prayer works...if you know what it is, and how to pray.
And I've never heard the phrase "nothing fails like prayer." Who said it? Or was it someone anonymous?
Typos..."praying" not prying.
M
Peggy, atheists don't have to prove that there isn't a god, you have to prove that your god does exist. Good luck with that.
Margaret:
Aaaahhh, I could have fun with this...prayer has been TESTED??? Really? In a scientific lab? Or is a poll?"
Intercessory prayer has been tested on numerous occasions, scientifically. Experiments have been conducted in hospitals by comparing groups who are being prayed for (a prayer group) and those not prayed for (a control group). They were evaluated in terms of length of hospital stay as well as other measurable variables. And guess what the results always are? The prayer group fares no better than the control group. Go to: Intercessory Prayer
"See, I asked if you knew from personal experience that prayer doesn't work, Ray. And you said, "yep. I see people prying all the time..." That's not personal experience."
Sure it is. I personally see the lack of results when people I know pray.
"Prayer goes beyond asking for something from God. And then getting it, or not getting it. Prayer works...if you know what it is, and how to pray."
I see. And if it didn't work, you just didn't do it right, right?
"And I've never heard the phrase "nothing fails like prayer.""
Well, we don't travel in the same circles now, do we?
anonymous wrote:
"atheists are a bundle of joy aren't they? what a ray of hope you are!"
Sorry to force you to see the real world against your will.
I guess he is now a ray-pist,too.Or is that ray-pissed?
Grow up, child. Don't you realize that if all you've got to do is to hang around here without contributing to any discussions that you're calling attention to your lack of a life? And don't you realize that behaving the way you do insults your own position? You call me names because I'm a liberal and a non-believer and that only serves to highlight the bancruptcy of the conservative and theist position. Good job. You're doing my work for me.
It's not a job, it's an adventure.
pray is ray with a pee!
They keep making my point, don't they?
Blue notes to prove a point? I am surprised at you Ray. Like you used to tell Pat, you can have blue notes spin it any way you like, then I can find mine, and we can go around and around.
Margaret, sometimes you leave me shaking my head. First of all I was referring to the clowns who add nothing to this thread other than insults. That should have been clear.
Second, those "blue notes" are links to sources of information. You did challenge me on the issue of prayer, didn't you? You even tried mocking me as if such a thing as a scientific examination of prayer were not possible. I responded by giving you some information about it, that's all.
Third, if you think you can counter what I gave you (but you didn't read anything from the web site, did you?) then please point me toward something that supports the idea that prayer can be effective.
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