hansolo35 wrote:To Gene913:
Dude, just stay home and watch Sesame Street on your Lazy Boy. To even hint that the person who left the canoe at Willow LAke for all to enjoy at their own leisure is in anyway responsible for this tragic death is just plain foolishness, plain and simple. attitudes such as yours i find really disturbing. Everyone needs to take responsibility for their own actions, whether they result in unfortunate consequences or positive results, instead of always looking to pass the blame on someone or something else. This is why we pay higher lift tickets or higher medical insurance, because of ignorant people blaming someone else for tragic events ( and the ensuing lawsuits as a result). Sheesh!
Dan -
It is clear that we agree on the principle that everyone is responsible for their own actions. Each of our posts make that point.
Surely you would agree that the person who left the canoe behind is responsible for their actions also,
which included the action of leaving the canoe behind.
There are consequences from every action; some immediate, others do not manifest themselves until later.
Was Jesse responsible for making the decision to get into the canoe? Of course. My post does not suggest otherwise. My post simply suggests that the person who left it behind started a chain of events that led to tragedy. But for the canoe being left behind, Jesse does not use it. Was Jesse responsible for his decision to get into the canoe? Of course he was. And nothing in my post exonerates Jesse from being responsible for his own decisions.
Willow Lake is not a recreation park, and those who use it are not entitled to turn it into one. It is meant to be preserved for its natural beauty.
The person who left the canoe behind violated leave no trace principles and was not entitled to impose on others their judgment about how a public wilderness area is to be used. Willow Lake is there to be preserved for its natural beauty, not be turned into an amusement park.
The larger point of my post was to say here's what kind of tragedy can result when leave no trace principles are violated, and to use this tragedy as a way to convince others not to make the same mistake of leaving behind anything that they brought in with them.
I am willing to discuss the issue further, but will not engage in a public flame war or launch an ad hominem attack on you. Discussing issues is one thing. Calling each other names is another. I will not do the later. Especially in a forum thread intended to be a memorial thread to Jesse and other climbers.
Gene
"If you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, and you say to this mountain, 'move from here to there,' it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you." Matthew 17:21