Slog - Comments on The Death of a Bicycle Thief

Comment by SeMe

SeMe — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 13:26:00 -0800

why would u kill yourself? im guessing the doc had some slight mental illness or severe depression. the jail time for this offense would have been short. i dont even think he would have done a nickle. being a doc, his time wouldnt have been that hard on the inside.

Comment by Lloyd Clydesdale

Lloyd Clydesdale — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 13:30:39 -0800

That sucks.

Comment by Glenn Fleishman

Glenn Fleishman — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 13:40:23 -0800

Charles, your feet must be awesome and never trouble you. I have extremely minor arch problems, and I adored my podiatrist (but his practice moved into Virginia Mason proper from a satellite office, and they charge "hospital fees" now that make no sense).

This story in the Times made me rather sad. Clearly, a lovely fellow with a hidden problem. Something likely happened before adulthood that made him a high achiever and an (alleged) thief. Clearly charming and his clinic said he was very skilled. Made people happy. But also must have been desperately unhappy.

Comment by Andrew

Andrew — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 13:42:38 -0800

Nice of Charles to say he is a dishonored guest. Talk about judgemental socialism talking!

Comment by Will in Seattle

Will in Seattle — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 13:49:14 -0800

I think this had more to do with him realizing he couldn't join the thousands of people in the STP race, actually.

The guy was totally into the zone on high-performance biking ... and he knew that would be precluded for a long time, especially with all the problems with his podiatry licensing as a result of the arrest.

Comment by Dougsf

Dougsf — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 14:14:51 -0800

He may have been popular based on his personality, regardless of his professional. Profession is rarely a persons most defining role in life. Unless, of course, you're a Marxist.

Comment by Will in Seattle

Will in Seattle — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 14:24:50 -0800

Better than being a Marist.

Comment by stinkbug

stinkbug — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 14:27:03 -0800

Will, STP hasn't been a race for over 20 years now.

Comment by elswinger

elswinger — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 14:51:12 -0800

#8 It is still going strong. My friend rode it last year and here is the link to this years:

http://www.cascade.org/EandR/stp/index.cfm

Comment by CG

CG — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 15:15:56 -0800

@9: I think #8 meant that STP is not a formal, timed race and hasn't been since it's first year. It's a "recreational ride" (but don't tell that to the participants).

Comment by DOUG.

DOUG. — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 16:07:35 -0800

Some fucker stole my bike from UW on Saturday afternoon. Obviously it wasn't this guy. Still, I have very little sympathy...

Comment by Will in Seattle

Will in Seattle — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 21:39:30 -0800

Yeah, if it didn't exist it wouldn't be in the Times and PI ...

Comment by stone

stone — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 22:16:03 -0800

While predicting that this story would attract mudedian notions with the bicycle thief, cm, did I miss the equally predictable attraction that you would have re: alain robbe-grillet? Where are your posts, man? I was out of town and alas missed any computeristic opportunities. What say you man, about the arg?

Comment by Sister Y

Sister Y — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 23:50:22 -0800

How do you kill yourself in a mental hospital? Man, they even take away your belly button ring.

@3, I like your phrase, "a lovely fellow with a hidden problem" - and there is a tragedy in this situation that I don't think would be there if he were e.g. an emergency room MD or an orthopedic surgeon. His calling was so humble, but making people's feet feel better is more than most of us do to ease the suffering of the world.

Dr. Bos is my new absurd hero.

Comment by familydillon

familydillon — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 13:23:03 -0800

Dr. Bos was a friend from our past. He was a husband and a father and a great friend. Something must have been troubling him (whether mental, chemical, or some other imbalance). We were very sad to find out about this tragic story.