Posted November 14, 200618 yr http://www.utu.org/worksite/detail_news.cfm?ArticleID=31664 Obsessed railfan in trouble again NEW YORK -- For years, Darius McCollum's obsession with New York's transit system has landed him in trouble. He has been arrested nearly two dozen times for offenses like impersonating transit workers, taking a subway train and buses for joyrides and trying to steal a locomotive, according to this report by Cara Buckley published by The New York Times. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
November 14, 200618 yr I've read about this guy before. To call him a railfan does an injustice to railfans and even to rabid foamers. He's just a nutcase whose obsession happens to be transit. It's probably fortunate that he's not obsessed with aviation, or he'd be trying (possibly successfully) to steal airplanes. Edit: ... sort of like the guy a few years ago who stole a tank from a National Guard armory and drove it around for some time running over cars before they finally got him stopped.
November 16, 200618 yr I thought this was going to be about someone who loves trains and was arrested for trespassing when trying to photograph them. God, was I wrong....
November 16, 200618 yr this is interesting, this guy is loved in NYC. NYers love an underdog! Anyway, TIME or CNN and NBC collaborated in a story about Asperger's and they had all these people who are stimulated by trains. An executive at TW has a sun who has Asperbers and she says that her sun asks to see trains and is infatuated with them. She went on to say that if they rode the subway it was hell to get him off. Bob (CEO of NBC/Universal) & Susan Wright Grand son is autistic as well. Seeing this in person....you don't realize how powerful autism is and at the same time extremely crippling.
November 16, 200618 yr ... Anyway, TIME or CNN and NBC collaborated in a story about Asperger's and they had all these people who are stimulated by trains ... You may be right about this. Asperger's seems to occur in varying degrees of severity, though, and I've read that there's some controversy as to whether it's a manifestation of autism, or a distinct developmental disorder. Although there have been no clinical diagnoses in my Dad's family, I suspect that something like Asperger's shows up with some frequency across at least a couple of generations. I know that it was very hard for me to learn the protocols for social interaction (I still mess up when I fail to proofread what's in my head before it comes out of my mouth), and it's been mostly impossible for both of my younger brothers. Dad always had difficulty with it and his sister and one of her sons have even more problems. ADHD and dyslexia run rampant throughout the family. I don't think it's just trains that have strong appeal; there are people who show the same obsessive passion for various forms of technology; aviation, electronics, computers, auto mechanics ... People living with Asperger's often don't deal well with ambiguity, upredictability, or disruption of established routines. Trains are operated over railroads according to fairly consistent and logical rules, and machines and technical devices are very predictable; if they don't produce the designed response to a given input, then there's something wrong with them that can be diagnosed and fixed. People, unfortunately, don't conform very well to that paradigm, and can be just too confusing and troublesome to bother with. Some tend not to know when to shut up, too. </ :yap: >
November 16, 200618 yr rob. You're so right. I think my nephew has "a touch" of ADHD. He is 10. But he has trouble concentrating one thing at a time, except when he is painting. My brother thinks he just need to be a man :? and he just needs some structure and focus. I trying to convince my brother and sister-in-law to get him tested, cause video games and painting are all he concentrates on.
October 5, 200816 yr www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-train-hobbyists_slider_10-2oct05,0,3316264.story chicagotribune.com Crash shines rare light on 'railfans' Train hobbyists fervent, obscure By Scott Gold Tribune Newspapers October 5, 2008 FULLERTON, Calif. — It's another Friday night at the Fullerton train station, which is full of the usual types: commuters with briefcases, families struggling with suitcases. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-train-hobbyists_slider_10-2oct05,0,3316264.story
October 6, 200816 yr I'm all in favor of good relationships between professional railroaders and serious enthusiasts. Showing common sense, respect and safety-consciousness has from time to time gotten me invited into the cab for a look-around, and even a couple of cab rides on tourist roads and short lines. Rather than a security risk, responsible, observant railfans can be an extra set of eyes and ears. There shouldn't have to be a law about on-duty use of cell phones and text messaging; that's just plain common sense, and an operating crew member with any sense of professionalism should know when to cut off the outside interference and which foamers to avoid because they're likely to be obsessive nuisances. Thirty years ago or so, there was an engineer on the Conrail Fort Wayne Division who enthusiastically encouraged young railfans' interest. He got caught inspecting a restroom with a fifteen-year-old and arrested and subsequently fired.
October 6, 200816 yr I'm a recovering railfan. I've redirected the interest resulting from my disease in more productive, positive activities, like writing, advocacy, fundraising, etc. But I'm still tempted to slip back into my old lifestyle every so often. Only a strong willpower keeps me from doing so. Serenity Now! :-P "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 6, 200816 yr I'm a recovering railfan. I've redirected the interest resulting from my disease in more productive, positive activities, like writing, advocacy, fundraising, etc. But I'm still tempted to slip back into my old lifestyle every so often. Only a strong willpower keeps me from doing so. Serenity Now! :-P I still like to go trackside with my camera, as evidenced in many of my UO posts. I've had to master the art of being very off-putting for occasions when I'm approached by a no-life foamer, eyes bugging out with excitement at the thought seeing a train and entertaining the fantasy of becoming friends with me because we both "just love trains." :roll:
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