Reply to Mother and child lost in tragic Chesapeake Bay accident, possible connection to former Lt. Governor.

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]This is awful but its also completely STUPID. It enrages me that people will be so silly and careless with themselves.[/quote]

Nah, stupid is criticizing people who made a small mistake with massive awful consequences, and stupid is thinking such a thing could never happen to you.

You don’t know how close they like were, how quick and innocent this likely was. This wasn’t some KonTiki expedition. Maybe they tried reaching for the ball with an arm, a branch or a kayak paddle from the shore — but then it floated out a bit further — ok, hop in canoe to get us two or three feet closer, that’s all we need.

Then wave, current, disaster. [/quote]

Let's be fair, PP.

Suppose that the ball had been blown far down a road and that she had decided to drive the family Jeep to recover it, with her son in the front seat and both unbuckled.  Further image that their car had been struck a by a (statistically unlikely) truck that was speeding down said road, and they were both thrown from the car and killed on impact.

Would you try to justify her behavior by claiming that the rest of us just don't understand the lifestyle?  That there are almost never trucks on that road?  That everybody in that idyllic town drives with the top down and no seat belts?

That she chose to get in the canoe without a life jacket was foolish.  That she allowed her son to get in without a life jacket was criminal:

"Effective April 1, 2010, Maryland law states that all children under the age of 13 must WEAR a United States Coast Guard approved Personal Flotation Device (life jacket - Type I, II, III or V) while underway on a recreational vessel under 21 feet in length on Maryland waters."

In fact, it was probably against the law for her to be in the canoe without a life jacket for herself readily available.  (Why don't people just keep life jackets stowed in their canoes?)

Life vest laws, like seat belt laws, save lives.

At the risk of sounding terribly unsympathetic, it's hard not to see this incident as yet another in a long line of unreasonable risk taking, perhaps fueled by a sense of being above society's rules: driving under the influence is illegal and puts your passenger at risk; (not seeking help for her is unforgivable); playing football without a helmet is risky, especially on skis; taking off at 8:38 pm in bad weather when you're not an instrument-rated pilot is risky; (taking your wife and sister-in-law along is inexcusable); etc.

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