Aquiana

All the talk about driving made me think of a conversation a friend and I had last night. We were talking about about how my brother got into a car accident last week on the highway. He wasn't hurt but his car ended up in the ditch and having forgotten his cell phone at home the day, he had no choice but to start walking. Luckily after a short walk, a gentleman stopped and picked him up. I was telling my friend that he really was lucky since alot of people don't stop to help anymore. We had a good discussion about it and felt it would be hard for us to do. Most people are probably just good people who got stranded but there are those out there that do prey on people who stop to help. On the one hand it would be hard to pick up a strange person, and yup I'll be sexist here and say for me it would be harder with a male, if I was alone and probably even harder with my son. On the other hand, we are from a very cold climate sometimes so whether or not we stopped could be a life or death situation for another person. Neither one of us could really decide 100% what we would do.

So what would you do?
Pick them up?
Pick them up under certain circumstances?
Not pick them up and hope someone else does?

equus

Mostly unless something gave me the wobbles!! After having broke horses for a living for several years I don't feel like an easy victim - also there's less guns here in the UK.

I once stopped because a guy was walking a VERY lame doberman, I asked if I could help and he said he was trying to get the dog to the vets. He looked like a real bruiser but I figured 'what the hell?' I tied my JR terrier in the front and loaded him plus his dog in the back - I drove for all of 5 mins with the dog breathing in my ear and slobbering on my shoulder and a tattoed bruiser thanking me!!

equus

Oh god!!

Sorry I forgot there was one other occasion when I became the angel from hell!!

I passed this old guy thumbing a lift mid winter - he was very old and looked desperate so I stopped. (please stop reading if you have any illusions I'm a goody!). Anyway it turned out he was trying to get to the local SHEEP MARKET!! He was on the right day and knew all about sheep so I figured he was or had been a farmer. I drove about 30 miles out my way to deliver him (thinking other farmers would know him and look after him).

I let him out my car in the carpark - then reversed into him!!!! He swore he was fine and just wanted to get away (actually he moved quite quickly). OH THE GUILT!!!!

StandingStrong

I hate to admit it as it sounds so callous, but I would not stop. I'd hope that someone else would. I do not have a cell phone or I'd call someone to help them though I am not stopping myself.
I have heard of (and maybe even saw it in a movie sometime??? as it sticks in my head) but I know that there have been incidents where it was a "set up". A well meaning person stops to help and is attacked by the people that were hiding there and whatnot - all a set up to get you to stop. I fear that - and will not stop whether I am by myself or not.
I remember many many years ago - about 17 years ago - my car had broken down. My son was an infant. I took the entire car seat out of the car and was carrying him down the road to the nearest house in the cold windy rainy atmosphere and not one car stopped to help or ask me if I needed help. I will tell you that I would not have taken the help offered at that point anyways as I'd have feared it.
Sad that the world has come to a point where we do not feel safe in helping others. Sad that so many bad things happen that affect the ones that aren't bad or wrong.

Kellye C

Having been the victim of an early morning carjacking about 10 years ago and just recently foiling a set up by two cars in a mall parking lot I am very leery of people coming up to me. I was raised my whole life with horror stories about picking up hitchhikers and living in a high crime area like Houston you have to constantly watch your back.

What I would possibly do if I didn't get a bad gut feeling about the situation is roll down my window part way and offer to call someone for them. I hate it that things have to be this way these days. Also, like the poster above said, if the roles were reversed no way would I get in with a stranger and be at their mercy. I would take the proferred cell phone but that's it.

Interesting question and pretty sad responses.
Kellye

ICU

No, I wouldn't pick them up. It's doubtful I would even stop. Instead, I would use my cell phone and call the police and let them deal with the situation. Is that a perfect solution? Probably not! But you just hear too many stories of good people trying to help out others, being set-up, and end up getting murdered.

I would however, stop if I saw a dog or a cat wondering close to the road and try and locate their owner. I've done that many times.

miss communicat

this recently happened...I called 911 and described the location that someone was walking (a lone guy) at night, after his car had apparently broken down. the cops said that that was the thing to do...not to stop as a single woman for a stranger on a lonely road at night

although i remember as a achild how great it waS to give lifts to hitchhikers, which was our family tradition. even my grandmothers always stopped and picked guys up. heck, i even hitchhiked as a teen. would i do that nowadays? never!