This situation was resolved while my partner and I (watching from a higher floor of the discount hotel we're staying at) discussed what, if anything, to do. But it raised an interesting moral question, I think.
So, a youngish couple get out of an old van that's loaded down with lots and lots of disorganized stuff and more stuff tied poorly on top of the van.
The guy throws lots and lots of stuff out onto the parking lot. The girl gets out and waves her arms around, they are fighting. They are both rummaging through all the stuff like they are looking for something.
There may have been a brief shoving match or some such, obscured partly from our nosey view. Or it could have just been that they were facing each other and both going through things, we couldn't say for sure either way. Then the guy picks something up and smashes one of the van's windows with it. He may have just been chucking things back into the van and done it accidentally, though. He was obviously angry but we still couldn't tell if he meant to smash the window or not.
The hotel manager comes out and then the guy cleans up the glass with an article of clothing.
The manager goes back in. Back and forth the couple go, towards the hotel lobby, back to arguing, rummaging through their stuff, sitting in the van. At first we thought maybe they were searching for a drug fix because the search seemed so frantic and they threw so much stuff right out onto the parking lot (they also looked pretty thin like addicts often do, but there again, maybe not). But as it went on, we thought they had probably really lost their money and were looking for it so they could get a room, I assumed.
Then the guy gets out with a gas can, stands there covering his eyes, maybe crying. Ugh. We were torn between helping them out and just staying away from them, because it doesn't seem the brightest idea to approach strangers who are acting crazy. We just couldn't tell if they were just at the end of their rope or, er, lunatics (who might also be staying right by us if we offered them any money).
While we discussed, someone else gave the guy some money. The guy walked away (to the gas station, I assume). He came back and filled the tank and they drove away.
But, what would you have done?
So, a youngish couple get out of an old van that's loaded down with lots and lots of disorganized stuff and more stuff tied poorly on top of the van.
The guy throws lots and lots of stuff out onto the parking lot. The girl gets out and waves her arms around, they are fighting. They are both rummaging through all the stuff like they are looking for something.
There may have been a brief shoving match or some such, obscured partly from our nosey view. Or it could have just been that they were facing each other and both going through things, we couldn't say for sure either way. Then the guy picks something up and smashes one of the van's windows with it. He may have just been chucking things back into the van and done it accidentally, though. He was obviously angry but we still couldn't tell if he meant to smash the window or not.
The hotel manager comes out and then the guy cleans up the glass with an article of clothing.
The manager goes back in. Back and forth the couple go, towards the hotel lobby, back to arguing, rummaging through their stuff, sitting in the van. At first we thought maybe they were searching for a drug fix because the search seemed so frantic and they threw so much stuff right out onto the parking lot (they also looked pretty thin like addicts often do, but there again, maybe not). But as it went on, we thought they had probably really lost their money and were looking for it so they could get a room, I assumed.
Then the guy gets out with a gas can, stands there covering his eyes, maybe crying. Ugh. We were torn between helping them out and just staying away from them, because it doesn't seem the brightest idea to approach strangers who are acting crazy. We just couldn't tell if they were just at the end of their rope or, er, lunatics (who might also be staying right by us if we offered them any money).
While we discussed, someone else gave the guy some money. The guy walked away (to the gas station, I assume). He came back and filled the tank and they drove away.
But, what would you have done?
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