It's so easy to die.
I'm sure most of the replies in this thread will typically consist of 'OMG HE R SO STUPID THNX FOR DARWINSIM THO LOL', just like it would anywhere else, but they miss a central point. That is: these accidents don't just happen to the perpetually hapless, borderline retarded or the willfully self-destructive. They happen to ordinary people who just didn't think things through, misjudged a situation, thought themselves more able than they actually were or just plain forwent common sense in the way perfectly normal people just do from time to time.
Usually, they're lucky. Not always, though.
In any case, I'm in no position to berate people. I've done silly things that have put me at risk. A few months ago, for example, I nearly got run over at a crossing. The red man was showing, but the cars stopped. One driver looked at me expectedly. I felt embarrassed, with him waiting there and me not doing anything. The traffic was static and I was in a rush anyway. So I hastily crossed. What I didn't know was that whilst the main column had stopped, there was a motorbike filtering through. I was very nearly killed.
Why did I do that? Why was I so stupid? Because I was embarrassed, thought things quite safe, and totally misjudged the situation. Since then, mind, I've made a point of always waiting on the crossing, even if I do feel like a... plank for standing still whilst there's a clearing on the road. But the point still stands: in the heat of the moment, people I totally misread the risks. All I can do is be mindful of it in future and stop letting embarrassment or social pressure cloud basic common sense.
