My poor neighbor

[wdfifteen]

He's not really competent at anything, and I can't count the times I've thought, "How can you be so stupid?"
But he's a nice guy who means well, just naive and, well, inept at about everything.
He was out of the country last winter when his favorite dog died. He caught the last plane out of Sydney to come home before Australia locked down due to the virus. He wasn't home a month before he had to have his other dog put down. A couple of months after that his wife passed away. Then his cat died. Something happened to one of his eyes and now he has to have an injection into his eyeball every month. A couple of weeks ago some drunk rear ended his beloved 1981 Chevy pickup and totaled it. He loved that truck, even though it was a rusted out, worn out (350k miles!) POS. I put a starter in it for him a couple of years ago and marveled at how a truck can leak so much oil and still be a rust bucket. But I digress.
This morning he went to his floor "safe" (just a box built into the floor and covered by rugs and furniture) to get out some of his wife's jewelry that he was planning to give away as Christmas gifts.
It was empty. The hinges had been removed.
We all know the lowlife POS who did it. It was someone he trusted and he had let them stay overnight at the house a few times recently. Lots of stuff with sentimental value, some good jewelry, and 2 guns gone.
I feel so bad for him. The robbery brought back memories of the time an employee I trusted went on a shopping spree through my house and shop. The feeling of being violated is devastating. I wish there was something I could do for him.

[LEAKYSEALS951]

Never underestimate the power of a good bluff. You know who did it, and he has 24 hours to return the stuff, no questions asked, or you turn the hidden video over to police.

[GH85Carrera]

That is horrible string of bad luck.

It is tough sometimes watching stupid people struggle through life. No one deserves to be robbed, and that really sucks.

[vash]

OMG.

what a crap string of luck.

i have a buddy that had worst luck.

i hope it all turns around for him.

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by LEAKYSEALS951

Never underestimate the power of a good bluff. You know who did it, and he has 24 hours to return the stuff, no questions asked, or you turn the hidden video over to police.

Depends on how long ago it happened...probably all gone to pawn shops or ebay by now.

As a fellow AMD (age related macular degeneration) sufferer also getting those shots, and having suffered 3 pet losses in the past year...I really feel for the guy. Thank God I didn't suffer his other losses. If nothing else, he has a high tolerance for bad things happening. Can't imagine how he must feel.

DO support him all you can. If a guy ever needed a friend, he sure as hell does...

[LEAKYSEALS951]

^I'm hoping on the "recently"

-and, sorry to hear about the overall year.

If there is an opportunity to checkmate the offender into returning at least some of it(perhaps there is, perhaps not), then all the better. You will at least have some proof. If not, I'm assuming the guns will have to be reported as stolen anyway (assuming they are legit) ?

"We don't want trouble. We just want it fixed by Christmas"

[craigster59]

Might be a good time to remind the perpetrator that Ohio has passed the "stand your ground" law. Do it while holding a shovel and a bag of lime.

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by craigster59

Might be a good time to remind the perpetrator that Ohio has passed the "stand your ground" law. Do it while holding a shovel and a bag of lime.

Also tell him you have a backhoe...

I've often wondered how many deep and unmarked graves are located in midwest corn fields. Maybe the same number as in the desert surrounding Vegas.

[wdfifteen]

Well, the sheriff was over to take the complaint a couple of hours ago. Turns out the couple who stayed overnight have outstanding warrants. The deputy took DNA samples off of the safe instead of finger prints (I've never hear of that ) and samples of things left in the bathroom they used. They both have been in prison and have DNA on file. If there is any good news it is that his wife was the county prosecutor for 25 years and was apparently loved by all. One of the guns stolen was the gun provided to her by the county when she was prosecutor, so they have the serial #. Everybody in the sheriff's office knows him and he will get the best efforts the county can muster.

[MRM]

The simple fact is that IQ is distributed on a bell curve. For every person in the top 2% there is someone in the bottom 2%. Fully 8% of the US population has an IQ of 70 or lower. That's about 28 million people. People with low IQs are usually able to present themselves in a (mostly) socially appropriate way, which masks their true abilities. But the fact of the matter is that large segments of our population simply do not have the cognitive ability to make good decisions.

This article is a good long read that discusses the social effects of people on the low end of normal intelligence and the challenges they pose to society. There's a historically interesting discussion of the military's reduction in intelligence requirements during the Vietnam War (McNamara's Morons) and the science behind comparing their capabilities and experiences with their more fortunate counterparts. https://quillette.com/2018/08/25/the-dangers-of-ignoring-cognitive-inequality/

The takeaway is that many people who act like they don't have any common sense and don't learn from their mistakes are on low low end of the bell curve and they really don't have the capacity to know better. This understanding has shaped my view of the world and has made me more tolerant of people who I previously might have been a little mean to if I thought they were being deliberately goofy. I suspect the poor neighbor falls into that category and he is fortunate to have had a good wife and neighbors who could help him.

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

Well, the sheriff was over to take the complaint a couple of hours ago. Turns out the couple who stayed overnight have outstanding warrants. The deputy took DNA samples off of the safe instead of finger prints (I've never hear of that ) and samples of things left in the bathroom they used. They both have been in prison and have DNA on file. If there is any good news it is that his wife was the county prosecutor for 25 years and was apparently loved by all. One of the guns stolen was the gun provided to her by the county when she was prosecutor, so they have the serial #. Everybody in the sheriff's office knows him and he will get the best efforts the county can muster.

That's great news....God bless the good folks in "flyover" country.

[group911@aol.co]

Old guy? Most states have special laws on the books for taking advantage of the elderly that severely increases the punishment.
Even if he "allowed " them into his house, this might seal the deal.

[Scott Douglas]

Sounds like he'd have no luck at all if it weren't for the bad luck.

Good thing he's dialed in at the County. Hopefully they'll make it right for him.

[MBAtarga]

Sounds like an average guy - not much in the OP do I read that anything that "happened" to him is his fault - ie: him being "stupid." Sounds like a patch of some very bad luck.
I'm glad the LEO folks are helping out.

[A930Rocket]

What a story. Thanks for helping him out and let's hope the police catch the perps and he gets her/his stuff back.

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by MBAtarga

Sounds like an average guy - not much in the OP do I read that anything that "happened" to him is his fault - ie: him being "stupid." Sounds like a patch of some very bad luck.
I'm glad the LEO folks are helping out.

Couldn't agree more. Don't see how that "low IQ" post related here at all.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by pwd72s

Couldn't agree more. Don't see how that "low IQ" post related here at all.

It's not. I want to read MRM's link, maybe there is an answer there, but D. isn't stupid. He has a masters in something and taught high school and night classes at the community college. He is great at playing piano, cooks, and raises a garden, is simply inept at the most basic things most of us take for granted. I can't figure it out.

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by pwd72s

Couldn't agree more. Don't see how that "low IQ" post related here at all.

Yeah, that post is a candidate for Most inappropriate of the year. I see no one has yet quoted it giving the poster time to delete it. I'm doing the same courtesy.

[Scott Douglas]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

It's not. I want to read MRM's link, maybe there is an answer there, but D. isn't stupid. He has a masters in something and taught high school and night classes at the community college. He is great at playing piano, cooks, and raises a garden, is simply inept at the most basic things most of us take for granted. I can't figure it out.

I don't think common sense is dealt out equally with smarts.
I'll never forget my brother saying he saw a PHd grad student trying to put in a tapped hole in some aluminum. He had a tap mounted in a drill press. Mind you, this was at the Lawrence Livermore Labs up behind UCB. My brother happened to ask him what he was doing. The conversation went something like this:

Putting in a tapped hole so I can screw in a bolt

Don't you think you should drill a hole first?

I thought that's what the tap was for. What size hole should I drill?

(My brother happened to know the tap drill size for the tap he was using and told him)

How do you know that's the right size?

My brother pointed out the big chart hanging on the wall that showed all the different tap drill sizes.

Now mind you, this guy was a PHd student.

So I can easily see where D. is from that standpoint.

[KFC911]

Best of luck to your neighbor Patrick .... hopefully things will get better. As to MRM's post, I think the first sentence in this thread might have prompted it... but he's better at explaining stuff than I will ever be .