To All Scambusters and Do-gooders

[countrytec]

Just a note to point out how you/we will all be remembered.

When the rubber hits the road...nobody gives a rats arse.

From The New York Times:
Worker Dead At Desk For Five Days

Bosses of a publishing firm are trying to work out why no one noticed that one of their employees had been sitting dead at his deak for five days before anyone asked if he was feeling okay. George Turklebraum, 51, who had been employed as a proof-reader at a New York firm for 30 years, had a heart attack in the open-plan office he shared with 23 other workers.

He quietly passed away on Monday, but nobody noticed until Saturday morning when an office cleaner asked why he was working during thie weekend.

His boss, Elliot Wachiaski, said: "George was always the first guy in each morning and the last to leave at night, so on one found it unusual that he was in the same position all that time and didn't say anything. He was always absorbed in his work and kept much to himself.

A post mortem examination revealed that he had been dead for five days after suffering a coronary. George was proofreading manuscripts of medical textbooks when he died.

You may want to give your co-workers a nudge occasionally. The moral of the story. Don't work too hard. Nobody notices anyway.

[geoff01]

A second moral to this story - Don`t work in New York.

[saxifrage]

Originally Posted by geoff01

A second moral to this story - Don`t work in New York.

Could be worse. He could have lived in Britain. It would have taken them 8 years to realise the poor bugger was dead then.

Council tenant shared flat with dead lodger for eight years

This article appeared in the Guardian on Saturday February 09 2008 on p12 of the UK news section. It was last updated at 08:51 on February 11 2008.

An inquiry was under way last night to discover how the body of a dead man lay on a sofa for at least eight years while an elderly tenant continued to live in the same warden-controlled council flat.

The corpse of a former lodger was discovered on January 30 by council workers after neighbours reported a bad smell emanating from the Bristol flat.

It is believed the remaining occupant is the official tenant of the property, but failed to report the death due to serious mental health issues.

The coroner has been informed. Coroner's officer Mike Whitcombe said yesterday that the body had been formally identified and an inquest would be opened on Monday.

Members of the community said they were shocked by the news and upset by the lack of community spirit in the area.

Albert Townsend, a resident of Mawdeley House, said: "I only just found out today ... I did used to see him day by day, but had no idea what happened." Peter Crispin, a former Labour councillor for the area, said the incident reflected the "lack of community spirit" he had experienced in high-rise flats. He demanded a "vigorous" investigation by authorities.

Crispin said: "There are many matters which remain unresolved, but I do think these tragic events reflect the lack of community spirit we see in some high rise flat blocks."

Bristol city council, which runs the warden-controlled complex of flats, has launched an internal inquiry to establish how the body lay undetected for so long.

The council said it would investigate the health of the remaining tenant and try to determine why he did not alert authorities earlier. It will also look into the work of wardens who visit the site.

A spokesman for the council said: "We are shocked and concerned by this discovery and are carrying out an urgent internal review of the circumstances of the tenant.

"A police investigation is ongoing, and it would be inappropriate to comment further while this is taking place."

Police sealed off the flat and initially arrested the remaining occupant on suspicion of murder, but are no longer treating the death as suspicious.

A spokesman for Help The Aged said: "This was an older person, and the local authority, who have a duty of care, should have responded to concerns from neighbours. The council has some difficult questions to answer."

Bristol South MP Dawn Primarolo yesterday called for answers from the council about why the corpse had lain undiscovered so long. The public health minister said: "I was very shocked and saddened to hear about this incident.

"As soon as I was informed, I contacted the local authority to ask for an explanation and an assurance that everything possible is being done to support all the tenants of Mawdeley House at this time.

"Until I am in possession of all the facts from Bristol city council it would not be appropriate for me to comment further."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/fe...nities.housing

If New York is bad for the first article, what kind of sh*t hole must Bristol be?

Moral of this story: socialism makes everything someone else's responsibility.

[geoff01]

True, it`s a wonder the council didn`t knock on his door after a couple of weeks demanding their unpaid rent.

Having said that, how anyone can work in the same office and not realise someone`s no longer in the land of the living takes some beating.

[saxifrage]

Originally Posted by geoff01

Having said that, how anyone can work in the same office and not realise someone`s no longer in the land of the living takes some beating.

Yeah, that's the real mystery here. How someone couldnt tell a proofreader was dead. lol.

How someone could not notice they are living with a corpse for 8 years isnt even worth worrying about.

[momascopbuddy]

Originally Posted by saxifrage

Yeah, that's the real mystery here. How someone couldnt tell a proofreader was dead. lol.

How someone could not notice they are living with a corpse for 8 years isnt even worth worrying about.

How could someone fail to read this bit or worse, choose to ignore it?

It is believed the remaining occupant is the official tenant of the property, but failed to report the death due to serious mental health issues.

[Tdinoz]

amazing tales from some urban wood or office

[blink0]

oh man...nearly crapped my pants laughing. Sad, but funny. Always be aware of your surroundings. That company must not have any designated nosey people or gossip(ers). There is always one in the company that notices everything about everything and 'body.

[JessChekkin]

I'm having a very hard time believing either of these stories are legit.

For one, having worked several years as a textbook editor/proofreader myself, I know the job is one of deadlines and frequent interaction with others. It's just nearly impossible for me to believe the first person didn't have any completed work that was due within those 5 days.

As far as the second story goes, believing that it took 8 years for anyone to notice a bad smell is stretching the limits too.

I suppose anything is possible, but personally I don't think either story is true.

[Abrasax]

Originally Posted by JessChekkin

I'm having a very hard time believing either of these stories are legit.

For one, having worked several years as a textbook editor/proofreader myself, I know the job is one of deadlines and frequent interaction with others. It's just nearly impossible for me to believe the first person didn't have any completed work that was due within those 5 days.

As far as the second story goes, believing that it took 8 years for anyone to notice a bad smell is stretching the limits too.

I suppose anything is possible, but personally I don't think either story is true.

The story from The Guardian might as well be true. Hopefully newspapers check facts before publishing them.

The story about "George" is indeed an urban legend that has been going around since 2001
http://urbanlegends.about.com/librar...turklebaum.htm