By Walter Boomsma, MSG Communications Director
If your name is “Martha,” I did ignore your cry for help. Let me explain why.
I recently received two “blank” (no content) emails from Martha with the subject, “A Cry for Help.” I successfully ignored the first one, but the second one a few minutes later made me concerned enough that I was tempted to reply, at least to find out who Martha was and what the problem might be. I did not. That seems counter to my desire to be a helpful person.
Before you judge me, stop and think. This has all the markings of a scam. Scams often include urgency, so people do not have time to think. They also appeal to our curiosity and an instinctive desire (for many but not all) to be compassionate and caring.
I’ll admit, a day later, I’m questioning myself. But my thinking brain is saying that if Martha was in immediate danger, she probably wouldn’t have sat down and typed an email to someone she didn’t know. (The email was addressed to the webmaster, not me personally.) If it wasn’t an emergency and she wasn’t in immediate danger, a sentence or two describing the need would have made sense. She was more interested in a response, not help.
That’s why spam callers rarely leave a voicemail.
I share the story as a “public service” in the form of caution and a reminder that you shouldn’t let your emotions or instincts get ahead of your logic and self-protection. I took a first aid course many years ago. I can brag that I only got one question wrong on the final exam. It was something like, “Who are you primarily responsible for when you arrive at the scene of an accident?” I instinctively triaged and selected the most injured.
The correct answer was “Yourself.”
Shortly after, I happened on the scene of an accident and saw a good samaritan nearly get hit by a car because he threw caution to the wind and was more concerned about getting to a victim than his own safety. You aren’t putting your own safety ahead of the injured; you’re doing the right thing.
Think.