Forums disappoint me sometimes.

Kudos to the people who postulated the possibility of superpowers - I hadn't considered that. To those who don't think a man falling into a vat of cyanide is hilarious, shame on you.

Quote from xaotik :

Was the tank hit by lightning at the precise time to induce Superitis? Was there an immense explosion? Did his toupe float to the surface carried on a bubble of maniacal laughter? No. And to top it all off, he was found IN the tank that he fell in AND did not get washed out to sea through an intricate network of sewage pipes after travelling at extreme velocities. Therefore, I think it's safe to assume that he does not qualify.

maybe his superpower is that he doesnt suffocate while sleeping underwater
i dont really see how this is going to help him defeat spiderman but im sure one of us will come up with an intircate plan to kill all superheros and take over the world with the power of snoring

Tristan does seem to have become a rather grumpy old man of late

id guess now that hes got a house his girlfriend wants kids and a minivan instead of the mx5

Quote from Serpentine :

That post says more about your intelligence and maturity than you'll ever know.

I hope you get the life you deserve.

It doesn't reflect on his intelligence one bit. Maturity maybe, not sure. I guess maturity can mean lots of things, although IMO one facet thereof is being able to consider others.

All it really says is that his view of human life and the worth thereof is dynamic, and based on his attachment to certain people. For some reason he's just jaded beyond words I guess.

Personally, I don't like people suffering . I appreciate the humour in one sense, from a distance, but at the same time it's really not funny. Ever notice how if a friend gets hurt people (generally) only laugh once it's known that their friend is OK? Usually then they both laugh at what a dumbass the guy was or something.

Basically it proves that we really only care about ourselves, and if it doesn't affect us personally (being the centre of the universe of course) then who gives a shit.

Yup. If it was my friend, or someone I know, I'd be the first to the hospital. And I'd endanger my own life to save those I know (or a stranger that I saw in trouble). But I don't feel ANY attachment to someone in a news article I'll never meet, and can find it very funny indeed.

Yeah I know that about you, which is why it's strange to some extent. Why does not meeting them make it any different?

Dunno. Just does. Always has.

I can see his point. Some people can easily get attached and feel for others. Some people can't. Just look at Princees Diana, the massive attendance at her funeral. I didn't know her, it didn't affect me, I had no feelings on the matter. So in the truest meaning, I didn't care. That's still a very different thing for wanting somebody hurt, or taking pleasure in it, or not being able to care. Do you weep for every person you read about having died or been seriously injured?

Actually the Dianna example proves just this point, how come she got so much when the man in the street gets (comparitivly) nothing? It's because she was a public figure ane people felt like they knew her and became attached. Not so with the man on the street. You don't treat all people equally. That's what friends are, afterall.

Turned into quite a philosophical thread this.

The simple answer is you can't care about everyone to the same degree, the human heart/brain whatever can't cope with that amount of compassion/empathy. It would drive you insane even trying.

On the reverse side of that there is a psychological condition that to all intents and purposes inhibits an individual to feel any compassion for anyone but themselves, it's called narcissism (spelling ?) or egomania for us oldies. And i'm not suggesting for one second that Tristan has this, mind you, if one didn't see the humour in Tristans posts it could be quite easy to accuse him of such a thing.

Quote from Bob Smith :

I can see his point. ... Do you weep for every person you read about having died or been seriously injured?

No, but it still pulls my heart strings. And I have been brought to tears by reading certain news articles before

Quote :

Actually the Dianna example proves just this point, how come she got so much when the man in the street gets (comparitivly) nothing?

Not caring "as much" (or really at all) and thinking it's funny are two separate things though.

At the same time, it's possible psychologically to see humour but still have empathy, somehow compartmentalising the reactions for some reason. IE, Part of me thinks there's humour and some irony in falling into a vat of cyanide, but that's a different thought process than the part of me that thinks "damn, the poor guy. that sucks." I can't help but think of what it would be like to fall into a vat of cyanide, and then the empathy starts to flow from that.

If this guy had fallen into a vat of something less famous for its toxic qualities, or if it had happened in a less litigious age where most of the working day wasn't spent writing risk assessments, I might not find it funny at all. But it was a vat of cyanide, in the modern workplace, presumably with some human-carrying apparatus suspended above it. I mean, come on!

Nah, you would have laughed your tits off if it had been a vat of creosote or KY Jelly. Cyanide's kinda lame in a way, bet it's not even sticky.

Kev, it's true, it feels like the plot to a Batman script.

Well maybe if the man recovers then we will know the truth or maybe not