Cause of Death
I promise you, I try not to be one of those slaves to social media like 80% of the world, but every now and then I find myself doing a bit of browsing on some of those Web 2.0 platforms. The funny thing is, a large majority of the times the comments are what make all the doom scrolling worth it.
I came for the comments
I'm sure we have all seen that comment before. Either that or "I came here for this". I don't think it will ever stop amazing me the clever comments some people have on this story or that one. Of course, there is also a flip side of this. For every one good comment, there are likely ten bad ones trying to make a particular subject about politics or some other divisive matter.
Still, it's the comments of a recent post that led me to create this poll and share it here on HIVE. I hope you all participate.
Recently, there was a news story in Michigan about school being closed at a public school district in the central part of the state. This was quite different from the school closing we had yesterday due to snow because in the case of this district, they had found someone deceased in the building.
It was probably a good week before people outside the immediate area (or even inside the immediate area) got any more information about the incident. Which actually isn't that surprising given the fact that they have to investigate and all of that, but it still has the potential to create a lot of anxiety, especially for folks close to the event.
Anyway, I saw a news story yesterday where they finally revealed that the person who had passed away was one of the principals. It seems they may have been found dead in their office. I didn't actually read that part.
This honestly, kind of hit me a bit, because I get to work at about six thirty each morning. I sit in my office and I get ready for the day as well as typing up my post for HIVE. My worker doesn't arrive until 8:00 AM. I have always wondered what would happen if I had a medical emergency closer to 6:30 and someone didn't find me until 8 AM. I'm guessing the outcome probably wouldn't be very good for me.
But I digress.
So without fail, one of the first comments in this article was someone asking how the person passed away. Which honestly, I think is a fair question. I know, I know, I've banged the drum in the past that we don't always get to know all the answers and as casual readers we don't always have the right to all the info like we think we should, but in this case, I honestly think it was a fair question.
Of course, many were quick to scold the person (so easy to do from behind a keyboard) about how a family is grieving and that is such a horrible question to ask.
On the other hand, there were also quite a few people pointing out that first of all, it's probably just basic human nature to know how someone passed away. Additionally, I don't think it's unreasonable for people to wonder what might have happened as they weigh the potential security risk to themselves or their family.
I know if I had kids that attended that particular school I would want to know what might have happened. Is there a threat to my child either current or past? Is there a threat to the community as a whole? It could have been a toxin that would give me second thoughts about sending my kid back to school. I mean the possibilities are endless.
Then again, it could have just been one of those freak things. Sad for sure, and definitely heartbreaking for the family.
So here is the poll question:
In this particular case, is it reasonable for the public to be curious to know what the cause of death was or are they just horrible people?
I look forward to seeing the results and hearing any commentary you have on this in the comments!
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In this case I think it is at least fair to want to know if it was the result of natural causes and if not, what the specific cause was.
I totally agree! Thanks for the input!
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Well, I think it's a fair question asking how the person died, but timing and the way the question is posed might seem unreasonable to the family of the deceased.
I like to know the cause of death to warn others to avoid certain lifestyles. So it's a fair question, but others might think differently.
Yes, those are good points. In this case it was social media, so you can never really know the tone of the post.
That's right. Informations are interpreted differently on social media.
There was a time, and it wasn't too long ago, when news reports routinely included the cause of death. Now it seems none of them do. In the last five years, here in Ireland, there's been a significant increase in the number of young people dropping dead for no apparent reason and not a word in the media as to why this is suddenly a thing.
It probably has a bit to do with the fact that physical newspapers aren't as common anymore. You don't have reporters actually gathering info for a story and writing it up. You have the short blurbs that grab attention on social media.
I think it's a natural response to want to know what happened not only because it's a public school, but human nature. Maybe we think if we think we understand what happened to them we can prevent it from happening to us personally. In the end, we are mortal, and the end is coming. We just don't know if it's in five minutes or fifty years.
That is a sad story though, I wouldn't want to die in my office. It would be much nicer to go in your sleep while comfortable at home in your bed. I don't know the person's age who passed away, but usually sudden death is cardiac related. Hopefully they didn't suffer much.
As far as your time alone early in the office, you're retiring soon. Plus you aren't all that old so you don't likely have much to worry about. But still, when things like that happen it makes you start to think about mortality.
I think this guy was younger than me, but he might have had an underlying condition. Last I checked they still hadn't released a cause, so who knows.
I am not sure that public needs to know the exact cause of death. But a general statement to the tune of died of natural causes and there is no threat to kids or anyone in the area is reasonable in my mind.
Yes, I think that is a fair compromise.
If the death is on social media, why shouldn't the cause of it be? Why is death so taboo? I think people ask these questions as much about curiosity about death as wanting to know the details. Humans are wired for soap opera and story as much as we are life and death. I don't know why we get so sensitive about these things. Everyone dies, after all. And I'm not sure grieving families are reading the comments - they're too busy grieving.
You would hope they are at least. I have a feeling these days that isn't necessarily the case though! I get what you are saying and I don't disagree at all!
We're all living with a death sentence :) When death arrives and we understand it--car accident, disease--we don't feel threatened by it. But when it sneaks up on someone, well, that's a little creepy. We want a reason. We want to put it somehow in our experience. I think it's quite normal to want to know how someone died. Also, it can be an expression of empathy. It's a tragedy when death comes suddenly. The family is not prepared. The deceased is not prepared.
Why are people so touchy? Chill out. It's a natural question.
Haha yeah, those are all great points. I'm guessing it's just someone feeling good about themselves putting someone else down. Way too much of that these days.
You raise an interesting question in this post. I think curiosity about the cause of death is something almost inherent in human nature.
We all know, some more consciously and openly, others subconsciously, that our time in this world is fleeting. We are all going to die. And as you said, knowing what someone died of is one of the tools that allows us to assess the degree of risk associated with a particular place, situation, etc.
Even when we know that someone has died, and that person is not so close to us, we always end up asking the second question... “But was it sudden? Were they already ill, or was it more or less expected?” And we ask these questions not only to satisfy our endless curiosity, but also to know how to react, if we have to offer our condolences to a family member or friend.
Although there is little to say to those left behind when someone dies, there is always a more appropriate way, and the cause of death can help us navigate and outline our ideas in our condolences.
Thanks for stopping by! Those are some thoughtful insights! It has to be tough knowing when and how much information to give.
These days, it seems when they don't mention the cause, it ends up being suicide. But I think people should know about that too. Awareness, right?
Yeah, you would think so.
I think it's a fair question for any parent to ask the school of any potential treat that could harm their children. We understand that management or institutions tend to go into circling the wagons mode to protect their reputations but covering it up or being silent will eventually lead to suspicion.
At another level, individual experiences and journeys often tell a story. My long time late Roommate passed away from Cancer in 2023, while the cause of death was officially Cancer, the real cause was the rigid Covid 19 rules, protocols and far over the top protections have seized up the Health system to a crawl. The result was by the time Diagnostics was finally, almost a year, was available her cancer has developed to Stage four. Too late.
This I will pin on management, our over zealous politicians forever.
I think there is certainly a need to be sure they have all the facts and everything. I think the biggest problem is just how people react to it all.
It's a fair question, sure. I don't know why they should be ashamed for being curious. Of course, even if we know how they died, that's not really useful information. But humans being humans, it does satisfy our curiosity and gives some degree of closure, so I suppose it's useful in that regard.
Yes, like I said in some of the other comments, I think it was totally out of line to shame people for being concerned.
Of course, it's a fair question. I was also curious about what happened to the principal. Just like you, if my kids are attending class at that school, I'll be more curious about what happened to the principal. It may be dangerous to my kids.
Yeah, I think that is what people were not understanding about the situation. It's less curiosity and more concern.