this broke my heart.

**McD** · 01-26-2009, 03:26 PM

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28858971

What does this say about our society, as a whole, when we are worried more about the money owed than the safety of the person?

**Parksfamily5** · 01-26-2009, 03:30 PM

That is horrible. That poor man.

**Teresa T** · 01-26-2009, 03:35 PM

It sounds like this man was still independently living at home.

This may sound cold but what really upsets me is that we have money to send people with advanced dementia to acute care hospitals at the end of life and put feeding tubes into people who are at the end of their natural life because the family cannot let go. We have money for that but we can't help someone who is still living in their own home.

A nursing assistant where I work, who's sister died around the age of 20, stated "we all want our loved ones to keep living but it doesn't work that way"

Part of this problem is everyone is afraid of being sued so tens and hundreds of thousands get spent on people in there last days, weeks or months of life. Last days of pain with poor quality.

We have money for that but we won't help a person heat there home who needs it.

And yes, this is our society people.

**khjmom** · 01-26-2009, 03:37 PM

How horrible.....how can something like this happen in this day and time?

**annymoll** · 01-26-2009, 04:03 PM

It is a sad state of affairs when able bodied people with a passel of children can get housing, medical assistance, food stamps,Wic, energy assistance and a Welfare check, but a little 93 year old man gets no help and freezes to death. Sick.

**Teresa T** · 01-26-2009, 04:11 PM

Originally Posted by annymoll

It is a sad state of affairs when able bodied people with a passel of children can get housing, medical assistance, food stamps,Wic, energy assistance and a Welfare check, but a little 93 year old man gets no help and freezes to death. Sick.

I can't argue with that statement. Had they found this poor soul almost frozen to death but alive, saved him and shipped him to a nursing home, they would spend a ton of money on him. But to help heat his home. To help elderly people with some care. That is absolutely not possible.

**Spikey1341** · 01-26-2009, 04:19 PM

That is outrageous, and then for the guy from the city to blame it on his neighbors not looking out for him. I wonder how he would like to live in a house with no heat!

**Sassyclass** · 01-26-2009, 04:20 PM

It is against the law here(Ohio) to shut off utilities in the winter. This is so sad all I can do is shake my head. Shame on them.

Cat

**ktsmama** · 01-26-2009, 04:26 PM

It makes me sick to my stomach to think that man died such a painful death.

**celina** · 01-26-2009, 04:39 PM

illegal here too (ontario, all of canada I THINK< but ontario for sure) you cannot turn off utilites from oct to march...

**Nishu** · 01-26-2009, 04:50 PM

They didn't turn his power off though. They put a limiter on it and he apparently exceeded his limit. They would have to have notified him and they probably put a limiter on it because it was illegal to cut off the power due to the time of year. He should have been able to run his furnace had he kept it under the limit. That makes me think that this man wasn't really competent to be living by himself. It's sad but I don't think they did anything wrong. It's really not their responsibility to check on every resident.

**hwmabire3** · 01-26-2009, 05:08 PM

That is so sad...I hope he has relatives somewhere who will go after that power company for all they've got.

When I was in my teens and living with my Dad, an insulin dependent type 1 diabetic, our power was cut off a couple of times. He said they didn't give him any notice. He relies on refrigerated insulin, if he doesn't get it when he needs it, he'll slip into a coma and die.

Something is very wrong with people indeed.

**Nana2two** · 01-26-2009, 06:19 PM

Thats just sad. Its murder in my opinion.

**zakity** · 01-26-2009, 06:25 PM

I hope the electric company gets in trouble. That is horrid that they did that.

**KKCondrey** · 01-26-2009, 06:30 PM

Originally Posted by Nishu

They didn't turn his power off though. They put a limiter on it and he apparently exceeded his limit. They would have to have notified him and they probably put a limiter on it because it was illegal to cut off the power due to the time of year. He should have been able to run his furnace had he kept it under the limit. That makes me think that this man wasn't really competent to be living by himself. It's sad but I don't think they did anything wrong. It's really not their responsibility to check on every resident.

It is sad, but I don't blame the power company either. We had that happen around here about 2-3 years ago. The woman was in her
70s and had the money to pay the bills. When they found her all the shut off & past due notices were on her kitchen table so because of that they knew that she had known it was months past due and the family couldn't touch the power company.