A map killed his son

CAUTION: This post slams a grieving father.

I really don't like people who use a relative's death to blame people and become preachy. We're supposed to listen and accept the foolishness or we seem uncaring. Well, that idea can vanish, for all I care.

The father of James Kim -- the man who died of exposure in Oregon a few weeks ago -- has penned his own blame-game, published in the Washington Post.

Spencer Kim, the father, had this to say:

First, it is crucial that measures be adopted to ensure against mistaken access to potentially hazardous logging and private roads. Those responsible for the maintenance of such roads must be required to post clear signs warning against access.

Lack of proper signage killed his boy, we are being asked to believe.

Such measures might not have stopped James and his family from being misled by a map that depicted the road they chose through the Coast Range as a major thoroughfare, but they would have prevented the ill-fated turn that led them into a maze of logging roads and across treacherous terrain that travelers never should have had access to in the first place.

A map is being accused of murder. A map.

Second, Congress should change the law so that most recent credit card and phone-use records can be immediately released to the next of kin in the event of an emergency.

New laws, at once. Can Nancy Pelosi squeeze this into "the first 100 hours"?

Third, steps should be taken to ensure that authorities are adequately trained for search-and-rescue operations, have a clear sense of their available resources and fully understand the procedures necessary to conduct an effective, well-coordinated search-and-rescue operation.

Surely someone has thought of this.

Unfortunately for James, aviation authorities acquiesced to media requests to relax restrictions and allowed low-altitude media flights in the area while the aerial search was still underway. This untimely and irrational decision caused many rescue helicopters to abandon their operations for one full afternoon due to dangerous conditions created by media airplanes.

The media were complicit in his son's death.

Who is going to tell Mr. Kim that his son got lost and is now dead because of it? Signs didn't kill the guy, neither did a map, and neither did media helicopters.

The finale:

With his last heroic determination to rescue his family, James proved himself to be a man of action. My son deserves a legacy worthy of that man. As a tribute to him, I am determined to follow his lead and do all I can to prevent another senseless tragedy.

Absolutely. "Heroic determination to rescue his family" is accurate. I feel for Spencer Kim. But he's now going to take up the call to stop people from getting lost and dying in extreme weather? Does he actually think that's a worthwhile endeavor?

Other recent examples of this soapboxism include the 9/11 families, who Ann Coulter critized. And Cindy Sheehan is the most famous of all. She lost a son, and therefore we should feel forever pitying. The worst part is that she and the others believe they're safe from criticism because they've lost a loved one. They are wrong.

Via NewsBusters.