Were These All Accidents?

There were four events this week that inspired my column. I won’t necessarily tell about them in the order they happened, but they could all have the same outcome.

First, on July 7th, 39-year-old Shannon Stone reached over the railing at a Texas Rangers game to catch a souvenir baseball thrown into the stands by Texas outfielder Josh Hamilton, after the outfielder had retrieved the foul ball off the bat of Oakland A’s hitter Connor Jackson. Stone tumbled over the railing and fell 20 feet to his death while his 6-year-old son watched from his adjacent seat. It is truly a sad story.

Then, the very next day, Sergeant Hackemer, aged 29, who had lost both legs and suffered brain injury in an IED explosion in Iraq in 2008, was riding a roller coaster at Darien Lake Amusement Park near Buffalo, New York with his 20-year-old nephew. The Ride of Steel reached speeds of 50mph and a height of 208 feet. At the very top of the ride, Hackemer came loose from his harness and tumbled out of the front row of the car to the ground below. He died instantly. His two young daughters were in the park with him, but were not on the ride.

On Monday, July 11th, Keith Carmickle was attending the Home Run Derby at Chase Stadium in Phoenix. He, his brother and some friends were seated by a railing and were attempting to catch the home run balls. Keith, whose age was not given, stood on a narrow 18-inch-high table next to the rail to try to catch a ball. He missed the ball and tumbled over the edge with a drop of 20 feet to the ground below. Luckily, his brother and friends were able to grab his legs and shorts and pull him back from the abyss. He reported no injuries and was allowed to remain at the stadium.

All of these closely related incidents/accidents occurred in a four-day period, and all of them could and probably will result in lawsuits. Regardless of the outcome of those suits, some lawyers will make big bucks, some undeserving people will probably be awarded huge compensation, and some reputable businesses will suffer damages and or bad publicity.

I have no sympathy for any of these three people. They all knowingly took risks that come with that kind of ignorant behavior. I don’t believe any of them deserves any award for their stupidity.

In the case of the disabled soldier, he knew what he was doing, and he had a supposedly responsible adult with him who should have had better sense than to allow him to ride. There is some controversy over whether of not the attendant initially refused to allow him on the ride. Regardless, we don’t know his state of mind, but it is possible that he chose an assisted suicide with a big payoff for his heirs. Choosing the front row of the first car would support that possibility. It is likely that a jury will have to decide who is liable.

Oh yes, there was a fourth incident/accident that occurred. It was my own.

On the day after Independence Day I went into a cardio-vascular clinic for an outpatient procedure called atrial ablation. In it, a laser-tipped catheter is inserted in the saphenous vein in the upper thigh and fed up to the atrium of the heart. Then a small laser burst burns some tissue in the right atrium and forms scar tissue that interrupts an out-of-control pacemaker to bring the heartbeat back to normal sinus rhythm. The procedure was performed to stop atrial fibrillation, or atrial flutter. The procedure was successful, and I was in and back out within eight hours.

The problem occurred during the procedure, but didn’t manifest itself until several days later. I developed a leakage from the femoral artery that was apparently caused by a small nick from the catheter. My cardiologist admitted that was likely the cause and he apologized for the unintended pain and discomfort. He sent me back to the clinic for an ultrasound to determine the extent and apply remedy. The technician/nurse located the leak and attempted to seal it with heavy pressure applied directly to the site for about 25 minutes. (That is one of those cures that is almost more painful than the malady) Unfortunately, it didn’t work, but a vascular surgeon was consulted and he determined that the leak would self-seal in a few days.

I am currently waiting for that relief while doing my best Walter Brennan impression. I am scheduled to go back for ultrasound again this Monday, and if the natural seal has not occurred, I’ll get a shot of Thrombin to create a seal that will stop the bleed.

I know that I could probably get a lawyer and go to court over my pain and suffering and any added expense that the follow-up causes.

However, it is not my nature to be vindictive. I dislike our current justice system with a passion that is only surpassed by my general dislike for lawyers. I trust my cardiologist and believe he was doing his best for me when the accidental wounding occurred. And I don’t like lawsuits, mainly because most of them are frivolous and unnecessarily damaging to good people and institutions.

I will not be taking any action against the doctor or the clinic. Am I weird, warped or just plain foolish? Well, I leave that to you to judge, but I am the wounded party, and I agree with that Nietzsche saying, “Whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” Of course, I do hope that, unlike Nietzsche, who went mad shortly after he wrote that to disprove his own statement, I make a full recovery and my heart continues to function normally.