Jay, Pete, and I have discussed this, and we agree to the following statement.
We do not feel it is at all appropriate for Lord Galva to be publicly vilified for the horrible tragedy resulting from the accident in which he was seriously injured. He totaled his car, will spend months in therapy, and most tragically will suffer the rest of his life with the knowledge that he lost his passenger.
I have met the man, and he says he does not remember the incident. As those of you who have been in similar crashes can attest, this is a common result. I cannot remember the details of my accident either. It was sheer luck that I did not kill my passenger. I was young and foolish, and made a bad choice. It could easily have gone the other way.
It is wholly inappropriate for anybody to pass judgment on the man, without the benefit of having met him or having the details. To date, there are not sufficient details for any conclusions as to what happened, let alone any evidence as to his level of responsibility. The idea that he is somehow diminished in character because he chose not to disclose the detail of the death, or agreeing, at our urging, to meet with us and support his recovery, is preposterous. He would have been foolish to say anything, given today’s litigious society, and frankly I feel he should not have disclosed anything at all at the gathering. I am certain that his attorney feels the same way. There is a time and place where he will have to take any appropriate responsibility for his actions, and a chat board or a gathering of fellow car enthusiasts is not it. If and when that time comes, I feel confident that he will do the right thing.
Until then, it was an accident. It could have happened to any of us. There is currently no indication that it was anything more.
Those on Rennlist who are passing such judgment should be ashamed. We all did something stupid when we were his age. Many continue to do so even as they get older. Some of us were lucky. Some were not. We should all remember that before we start spouting off moral indignations and judgments. Further, it is completely inappropriate for a Moderator to take any position whatsoever. It is directly opposed to the definition of a Moderator.
Fortunately, we here are a more enlightened crowd, and do not pass such judgments on a person. Rest assured that this kind of thing will never happen here. We have a system of checks and balances in place to protect against anyone leading a charge like this, and imposing his own unfounded ideals and postures on the community.
We feel for the death of the passenger, and the loss to his family. It is a huge tragedy. We wish the best for Lord Galva, and trust that in the end, what is right and just will prevail. No matter which way this goes, and no matter what the cause, he will have to live with this for the rest of his life. Unless you have been in such a situation, you have no idea how daunting that can be. Nevertheless, until anybody knows better, they should shut up and let him deal with the mess.
This thread has been closed. We will not have the kind of short sighted and narrow-minded nonsense that is going on over there.
