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Daniel, do you still think that following the driver's advice to not look right was a good decision? I ask because I don't think, in the same situation, I woul

by corin_ 15y ago

Daniel, do you still think that following the driver's advice to not look right was a good decision? I ask because I don't think, in the same situation, I would have been able to resist it, and I honestly have no idea what effect that sight might have. When you do feel fear on public travel now (and I guess it was even worse in the past), what goes on in your mind? Is it one of those things where you know really that your worry is foolish but you can't help yourself, or is your entire brain telling you that you could be in trouble?

berntb 15y ago
>>Daniel, do you still think that following the driver's advice to not look right was a good decision? Advice: I know people with PTSD and believe it is a good thing if you can avoid getting it yourself. Personally, I can handle blood. But as a Scandinavian, I have a hard time seeing suffering even for a Westerner.
- iskander 15y ago
  On the other hand, seeing violence up close gives you a better understanding of experiences many people outside the affluent west have to deal with. I ran back toward my bus after it blew up in Jerusalem and I mostly don't regret it. I hav been haunted by the experience since (the smell most of all) but I also feel like I gained a lot of sympathy for people whose situations were previously totally abstract to me.
- Jach 15y ago
  It seems like iskander's account is hellbanned, I think it's one of those rare false positives. Anyway, he replied to your comment: "On the other hand, seeing violence up close gives you a better understanding of experiences many people outside the affluent west have to deal with. I ran back toward my bus after it blew up in Jerusalem and I mostly don't regret it. I hav been haunted by the experience since (the smell most of all) but I also feel like I gained a lot of sympathy for people whose situations were previously totally abstract to me." ------------------------- Not everyone's meant to be a reality junkie. A body can only handle so much (like heroin). http://unqualified-reservations.blogspot.com/2011/07/dispatches-from-real-america.html http://unqualified-reservations.blogspot.com/2011/07/dispatc...
swombat 15y ago
> Daniel, do you still think that following the driver's advice to not look right was a good decision? Yes, absolutely. Considering the impact this had even without throwing in the horror of seeing mutilated bodies, I think that was the right decision. It might have felt like I was in control and sane enough to handle it at the time, but considering how I spent the next 2 hours wandering around london zombie-like, I clearly was not. When you do feel fear on public travel now (and I guess it was even worse in the past), what goes on in your mind? Is it one of those things where you know really that your worry is foolish but you can't help yourself, or is your entire brain telling you that you could be in trouble? I know that it's foolish, I know that the chances are infinitesimal, and I know it's biased and unsubstantiated and based on racial prejudices which I abhor. And yet, I'll find myself reminded of that feeling of paralysis, and of being stuck in the tube those 45 minutes. It's not a pleasant experience, so when I change tube, you could argue I'm running away from the experience rather than the danger...
willyt 15y ago
The London Underground drivers and station staff are trained to do that. Suicides happen quite frequently on the tube and the staff are trained to distract people from what's happened and to make people quickly pass the scene and ensure they look the other way. There must be some psychology behind it.

by corin_ 15y ago

berntb 15y ago

>>Daniel, do you still think that following the driver's advice to not look right was a good decision? Advice: I know people with PTSD and believe it is a good thing if you can avoid getting it yourself. Personally, I can handle blood. But as a Scandinavian, I have a hard time seeing suffering even for a Westerner.

iskander 15y ago
On the other hand, seeing violence up close gives you a better understanding of experiences many people outside the affluent west have to deal with. I ran back toward my bus after it blew up in Jerusalem and I mostly don't regret it. I hav been haunted by the experience since (the smell most of all) but I also feel like I gained a lot of sympathy for people whose situations were previously totally abstract to me.
Jach 15y ago
It seems like iskander's account is hellbanned, I think it's one of those rare false positives. Anyway, he replied to your comment: "On the other hand, seeing violence up close gives you a better understanding of experiences many people outside the affluent west have to deal with. I ran back toward my bus after it blew up in Jerusalem and I mostly don't regret it. I hav been haunted by the experience since (the smell most of all) but I also feel like I gained a lot of sympathy for people whose situations were previously totally abstract to me." ------------------------- Not everyone's meant to be a reality junkie. A body can only handle so much (like heroin). http://unqualified-reservations.blogspot.com/2011/07/dispatches-from-real-america.html http://unqualified-reservations.blogspot.com/2011/07/dispatc...

swombat 15y ago

> Daniel, do you still think that following the driver's advice to not look right was a good decision? Yes, absolutely. Considering the impact this had even without throwing in the horror of seeing mutilated bodies, I think that was the right decision. It might have felt like I was in control and sane enough to handle it at the time, but considering how I spent the next 2 hours wandering around london zombie-like, I clearly was not. When you do feel fear on public travel now (and I guess it was even worse in the past), what goes on in your mind? Is it one of those things where you know really that your worry is foolish but you can't help yourself, or is your entire brain telling you that you could be in trouble? I know that it's foolish, I know that the chances are infinitesimal, and I know it's biased and unsubstantiated and based on racial prejudices which I abhor. And yet, I'll find myself reminded of that feeling of paralysis, and of being stuck in the tube those 45 minutes. It's not a pleasant experience, so when I change tube, you could argue I'm running away from the experience rather than the danger...

willyt 15y ago

The London Underground drivers and station staff are trained to do that. Suicides happen quite frequently on the tube and the staff are trained to distract people from what's happened and to make people quickly pass the scene and ensure they look the other way. There must be some psychology behind it.