Originally published at: http://boingboing.net/2016/12/12/terminally-ill-boy-who-asked-f.html
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14 Likes
Dammit!! Who was cutting onions in here while dust was flying through the air and my allergies were kicking in?!?!
40 Likes
Not cool, making me cry like this.
12 Likes
Great. Crying at work sucks. I’ll be in the bathroom composing myself.
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How can I tell when I get to where I’m going?
Well that was hard to read.
27 Likes
Great, now I´m crying too.
At least that means that my soul crushing, lifeforce sucking job hasn´t killed off all emotions yet.
So yay for that I guess?
18 Likes
I doubt this is a true story.
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Am I wrong to think this is creepy? It’s like Julia A Moore’s maudlin 19th century poems about the deaths of children. This, just like those poems, is unhealthy and demeaning IMO.
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Aw come on this wasn’t a damn poem, it was a thing that actually happened, with video evidence.
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Still tragedy porn.
I happen to like tragedy porn. Tragedy is a fact of life, and illustrates how good we actually have it.
19 Likes
Why?
Background details check out. He does what he says he does. There’s pics of him doing the Santa gig from previous years. And the Santa visiting dying kid thing happens on a regular basis in hospitals.
About the only thing we can’t confirm is the exact details of the conversation on account of the only other witness is dead.
So, why do you think he’s lying?
29 Likes
So. News.
All a mixed bag for me. Heartfelt Heartbreak and all. Nothing like making a difference and getting destroyed by your good intentions.
I’m no rock. I cried.
6 Likes
I wouldn’t want my death exploited like this, no matter how good it makes people feel who have never experienced tragedies of their own
1 Like
I think the subtext here is more complex.
You expect parents to be tramatized by the death of a child, yes. In this case, an outsider rushed in to help, after being asked based on the expressed wishes of the child. So weaving the context between what the child wanted (death with dignity; can a child of age 5 really contextualize what death even is), what the parents wanted (against all odds, please let our child live), and the pain the outsider felt while trying selflessly contribute something meaningful to the last moments of a life – is an interesting narrative.
Also, bearing witness to tragedy is part of the human condition. It’s not like we’re mining it for personal profit.
40 Likes
Jesus H Christ there are some heartless motherfuckers posting today.
BTW, exploited by definition means benefitting from someone by treating them unfairly. Not sure how this fits that.
40 Likes
Crying like a baby over here.
11 Likes
whelp, i’m ruined now. it’s sure hard to type with eyes full of tears. i’m sure santas are called to visit sick kids a lot, but it’s gotta be the hardest thing to visit a terminally ill one and have him die while giving you a hug. : (
8 Likes
Lying to a child so he takes his last breath in the arms of an impostor is… heartful? I wonder how this man sleeps knowing he deceived a child in his last hours? The real Santa would have sucked out that boy’s soul to make another worker for his joyful arctic labor camp.
9 Likes
Who is being exploited, and who is doing the exploiting?
A child got a moment of comfort when it was needed most.
A volunteer gets to share his emotions after a tragic event, something that North American culture sneers at.
The rest of us get the tiniest bit of our faith in humanity restored.
38 Likes
