Man dies, no one notices

snubbleste

The neighbour had raised the alarm by alerting Gardaí in July. The inquest concluded that the man died between March and April. http://connachttribune.ie/suicide-man-may-have-been-dead-for-weeks-655/

This makes me angry. How can someone end up so cut-off from society as not to be noticed? Surely in a small town like Galway this is not possible?

chrysagon

very possible, communities are no where as close knit as years ago..advances in technology havent helped, the art of conversation is even disappearing, people stuck on their life support/phones!

Poxyshamrock

Very sad that this can happen in this day and age. It reminds me if the story of Joyce Vincent in London.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Vincent

nuac

snubbleste wrote: »

This makes me angry. How can someone end up so cut-off from society as not to be noticed? Surely in a small town like Galway this is not possible?

Galway is no longer small, and communities are not as cohesive as they were.

Sad event. Sympathies to his family

Dr. Kenneth Noisewater

snubbleste wrote: »

This makes me angry. How can someone end up so cut-off from society as not to be noticed? Surely in a small town like Galway this is not possible?

It's not exactly New York, but I wouldn't term Galway a small town. A small city maybe. 80,000 people is a bit big for the whole small tight-knit community thing.

Mrs OBumble

snubbleste wrote: »

This makes me angry. How can someone end up so cut-off from society as not to be noticed? Surely in a small town like Galway this is not possible?

Did you read the article? The man had such a history of violence that most of his family were not prepared to even go near his house. And some people actually prefer not to have to interact with others: this is hard to understand if you're a sociable person yourself, but not everyone is.

If he'd been forced to medicate to the point where they didn't have a concern, then your anger could have been assuaged. But he would likely have had a worse quality of life, in his eyes anyway.

Rock. Hard place.

_Whimsical_

I don't think there's much point discussing the specifics of the case, we'l never know exactly what went on and his family would probably prefer we left it be.

I think snubbleste has a point though. It's a pity that any sense of community has disappeared. If anything good might come out of this tragic case it might be that we might open our eyes. We should at least notice if the neighbour we pass on the street suddenly disappears from view and if lights never go on in their place or curtains don't open for weeks on end etc. Particularly so if they're elderly or vulnerable.
It'd still be a pretty big decision to go to the guards or make any drastic move though as they might be away or in hospital etc.

Intifada

chrysagon wrote: »

very possible, communities are no where as close knit as years ago..advances in technology havent helped, the art of conversation is even disappearing, people stuck on their life support/phones!

Aye very good Flintstone. What do you think it is people are doing on their phones? Communities are in near constant communication with each other these days, far more so than they ever were, and on a much wider scale.

If you read the article, the man was aggressive and violent which may be the reason people weren't calling around for a cup of tea every day.

snubbleste

Either way, I would like to think that this could not happen in Galway.
*adjusts rose-tinted glasses*

Mrs OBumble

chrysagon wrote: »

very possible, communities are no where as close knit as years ago..advances in technology havent helped, the art of conversation is even disappearing, people stuck on their life support/phones!

Ironically, phone companies and banks are now best placed to spot sudden death / illness: if someone used to make lots of phone calls, then suddenly stops answering the phone, or stops having any customer-initiated bank transactions, then it's a fair bet that something's happened to them.

Of course the privacy implications of doing this kind of monitoring are huge ....

Asmodean

It's just the way it is these days unfortunately. We're living in our house for close on 5 years and only know two of the neighbours to talk to.

Buddy74

I'm in the same estate for 12 years and I only chat to three or four houses, the people in the first house don't mix with anyone, sign of the times. Its also a sign that someone else will notice or pick up on it.

Redhairedguy

I always try to make an effort to get to know my immediate neighbours, even enough to say hi to. Although, the guys to the right of us have made it very clear that they have no interest in being engaged; won't say hello in the estate, or even answer their door when I try to deliver any post that accidentally comes to us.

There's a only certain amount you can do, before you have to say 'feck 'em'.

ScumLord

snubbleste wrote: »

How can someone end up so cut-off from society as not to be noticed?

It's pretty easy, stay inside and don't talk to people. Should there be a neighbourhood watch that forces people to talk to eachother?

whineflu

Buddy74 wrote: »

I'm in the same estate for 12 years and I only chat to three or four houses, the people in the first house don't mix with anyone, sign of the times. Its also a sign that someone else will notice or pick up on it.

Asmodean wrote: »

It's just the way it is these days unfortunately. We're living in our house for close on 5 years and only know two of the neighbours to talk to.

Nobody's fault but your own... Sure there's always a few weirdos but most people are nice.
A few suggestions off the top of my head...

• Send them Christmas cards.
• Invite them to your bbq/christening/whatever.
• Ask them to put your bins out when you're on holiday and reward them with a bottle of wine.
• Stop them in the street for a chat.
• Set up a neighbourhood watch.

Asmodean

whineflu wrote: »

Nobody's fault but your own..

Doesn't really bother me at all though. We're friendly with the next door neighbours but I wouldn't be interested in knowing any more neighbors than that. I guess everyone has differing opinions though. I wouldn't be overtly 'friendly' with everyone on my street just for the sake of it.