20160506 (bystander ethics)

My minister announced this

Week he’ll be spending a lot

Of his time this summer writing

An article for a state law review

On the Hebrew scripture's ethics

About bystanding. The topic at

First didn’t register with me 

Until I remembered Seinfeld's

Finale in which Jerry and 

His friends are found guilty

Of doing nothing while a

Person in their view is beaten.

They are in jail because 

Massachusetts had recently

Passed a law against doing

Nothing when acting positively

Was an available choice. Of

Course their actions were worse

Than just bystanding. They 

Stood by mocking the victim in

Addition to not calling the

Police. In my youth the typical

Bystander failure was the case

Of Kitty Genovese who was 

Attacked outside her apartment

House where her screams were

Likely heard and the attack

Was witnessed by several residents

Many of whom failed to call

Police to the scene. There are 

More facts to the case which 

Indicated that it was not as gross

A failure as first portrayed. The

Scene was winter. It was 3 AM.

People who admitted hearing

Thought it a lover’s quarrel or

Drunks leaving a nearby bar.

The police did not give early

Calls priority, although half

An hour later when someone

Called to say she was again

Attacked, they were on the scene

Only minutes later. Also an

Elderly woman resident left 

The safety of the building to

Cradle the dying Ms. Genovese

In her arms unknowing whether 

The assailant was still close by.

I don’t know Hebrew scriptures

Well enough to cite bystander 

Scenarios which could be helpful

To a moral scholar, but I can see

Many instances in our world

Where we face just that kind 

Of dilemma—most notably

The Tutsis-Hutu conflict in

Rwanda where we (and many

Other nations) chose not to 

Intervene. My fear is that while

There are many such instances,

And we haven’t the resources to

End them all is not sufficient

To excuse our not acting in

Any of them. Another factor

Is the instances cited are 

Acute crises. How do we 

Regard longer term or endemic

Injustices? We effected the

End of apartheid in South

Africa after years of pressure,

But we continue financing the

Brutal elimination of Palestinians

In Israel. Are the ethical, legal

Dynamics different in local

And worldwide contexts?

Bystanders are not just the

Cleverly self-centered Seinfeld

Characters. Like Pogo said so

Wisely so long ago, he is us.

c. J.S.Manista, 2016