The little guy was a cute living thing, and I saw no reason to kill it just because it wanted a warm place to live and some food.

As if to corroborate your opening statement, for a split second I thought you were referring to the homeless guy in the second statement.

The little guy was a cute living thing, and I saw no reason to kill it just because it wanted a warm place to live and some food.

As for homeless people being happier on the streets–perhaps some of them are. I have lived here long enough to see some seemingly pretty well-adjusted homeless folks, and even what appear to be communities of homeless people. But if this man is covered in his own feces, he is a danger to himself and to others. The issue is not that he’s homeless, but that he’s maybe not entirely stable and possibly physically ill. My thought re: calling someone, though, is that if there has been police tape around where this guy stations himself, the powers that be are already aware of him and presumably of his situation. It wouldn’t kill anyone to receive another call about him, though. It might solve the mystery for you, at least, Ez.

Similarly, heard report of an experiment where you’re asked to take a test with a couple of other people, instructions given that you shouldn’t disturb the other test takers, and if you get up from your seat, you fail the test. Psych experiment rules mean that the other test takers are actors. Experimenters start to pump smoke in through the ventilation system, actors stay at their seat, and some big ole’ percentage of subjects sit there too, presumably taking social signals that it’s OK.

Now, I’m passing over the validity of the experiment, how correctly I’m reporting this, and a whole host of other trash. I’m asking, “Would you get up and say something?” And think hard - everyone says that they would, but have you got a history of doing stuff like this.

I think I would. I’m first through the buffet, ask the question at the company meeting, and am the combination of narcissistic enough and social dumb enough to miss the cues others provide. In this, I am quite like some significant portion of the trained behavior you can learn on the internet.

Which is awesome! This means that not only do we get all the neatness that the tubes provide, we also get fewer Kitty Genovese-style syndromes. And Kitty Genovese debunking! Far more cool than we simple people deserve.

Oh, and for the mice? Garbage bag, and a hammer. Or you can go Infinite Jest style if that’s how you roll.

If I felt guilty about anything it’s knowing that my life would be made more pleasant by the absence of a large percentage of the population. Notice how the homeless magically disappear whenever a city hosts the Olympics or some visiting head of state. While there are a few people who are outraged on their behalf, the fact is, the overwhelming majority of people are glad to be able to walk around without having to deal with panhandlers, the stench of human filth, and the daily visual reminder that we and the system we benefit from has failed a large number of our fellow citizens.

By the way, years ago I bought 5 white mice for a show. I kept the little buggers fed but they kept preying on the weakest member of the group. Each day, I’d wake up to find a mouse with it’s head missing and the others looking well fed and licking flecks of blood off their snouts until, at last, only one remained. I pretty much lost all sympathy for mice after that. I took the last remaining cannibal and tossed him into the yard across the street and decided to use artificial mice instead.

Press the pen down and away from you firmly on the mouse’s neck. You should not be choking it between whatever it’s grabbing onto and the pen, just applying enough pressure to keep the head from moving. Add more pressure down and away on the neck while suddenly pulling on the tail towards you. You are trying to pull the spinal cord away from the base of the brain. This will quickly stop all of the necessary signals to the rest of the body and the heart will quickly stop, killing the mouse.

Other than using carbon dioxide or another more involved euthanasia method, this is the most humane way to kill a mouse and is relatively quick and painless for them. You can read about the procedure here: http://labanimals.stanford.edu/guidelines/cerv_dislocate.html

Obviously this doesn’t apply to someone who’s just been hit by a car or had a heart attack. Most people don’t hesitate to call 911 in that circumstance.

I have no hesitation about flushing mice, whether dead or alive. Make sure to wrap the mouse in toilet paper first.

The other day I encountered a woman who was driving an electric wheelchair the wrong way down Prospect street. She had one bare foot. I rationalized not doing anything in all kinds of ways — I was on a bike, I was in a hurry, it was far from clear that she would agree she needed any assistance, my phone will invoke emergency services in Maryland — and did nothing and have felt somewhat guilty since.