[LynnieS]

Originally Posted by Yoko Takeo

Two days ago, one of my workmates came in late because someone got run over by a train one stop before his. It's really getting popular and it's scary imho. That begs the question then. If someone falls over to the rails, would you try to save that person if there was still time before the train?

I believe that there were a few of these around Tokyo over the past few months as well, unfortunately. For your question (and around the Tokyo area only), it depends on the train line(s) for me. The problem is that it's not easy to gauge the speed on an oncoming vehicle - not to mention how hard it may be to boost someone over the edge of the platform and have the time yourself to either get back or hide under the platform. Assuming that you can actually hide, that is.

For the religious and/or do-gooder, though, if you go ahead but fail, would it be considered a good deed or a suicide attempt?

Record 49.1 million Americans faced hunger in 2008

Nov. 16 (Bloomberg) -- About one in six Americans lived in households that struggled to afford food at some point last year as tight credit and the fastest rate of food inflation since 1980 combined to strain budgets, the government said.

About 49.1 million people were “food insecure” in 2008, up 36 percent from a year earlier, the Department of Agriculture said today in a report. That’s the most since the USDA conducted its first survey on food insecurity in 1995 and 29 percent higher than the previous record in 2004.

The numbers for 2009, odds are, will be worse. Depending on whom you ask, 2010 looks bad also.