Remembering Neil Alan Smith

This is the one thing about the Interwebs that really pisses me off. That someone like that commenter can be so cruel, so unkind and disrespectful towards others under the guise of anonymity.

If you have something rude or unkind to say to someone else, be a grown up and say it to the person face. Otherwise, it just shows how much of a coward you really are.

People can be really disgusting, especially when they have the chance to hide behind an anonymous name on a computer.

There are some things, that no matter what your personal thoughts may be, you should just not say anything at all, if you don't want to be nice.

I agree with the posters...the interweb makes it too easy to hide behind your computer and be cruel.

This story makes me sad. :(

Whilst I agree that it's a loss that this man died, this is hardly neat, it's just one person/group reacting against another's reaction. That's the internet, new/neat news please.

This story actually makes me happy, since the point was to actually honor the man. I think it's a great story, that shows some of us still show compassion towards others. Especially in a time when it feels like compassion is nearly non-existent.

It's great what the St. Petersburg Times did. Kudos!

@ Ratz - I happen to think it's neat that a paper would actually give a sh!t and try to make amends for their recklessness.

Yes, the nastiest of logorrhea spews from the smug commenter. We're better off ignoring most. Troll syndrome is a growing problem.

I mourn for the loss of a soul that was finding his way within the labyrinth of modern existence. I pray for the soul of whomever took his life. The rude poster has inadvertently done more for Mr. Smith's reputation than a lifetime of good work. For that, I am thankful and say, "God works in mysterious ways."

@ Kaviani
I stand corrected; the neatness is that a newspaper actually a toss about what people say. I'm truly surprised as trolls are just part of the signal-to-noise ratio and I'd expect most geeks to ignore it as such.

I am glad that an online comment of such profound insight into the ugliness of humanity could spark something so gentle and kind as a response.

I agree that the commenter was an a**h***, but there must be some better way to honor a man who valued his privacy than to publish the details of his life in a newspaper. There are people who want to be anonymous and forgotten; honor them by forgetting.

When I die, my final instructions will include "NO OBITUARY. ANYWHERE."

It is definitely neat to be kind, especially in a world where it is so easy to be anonymously cruel. We are all intrinsically valuable. Thanks Neatorama, for posting this story.

not hating

but if people were to do this sort of thing every time somebody on the internet said something tactless, there would be nothing but internet-response-articles in every newspaper in the world

it's just something people gotta deal with

Online commenters are scum. Their leavings contribute nothing to society.

@c0ldfish...

Maybe that wouldn't be a bad thing... at least then the internet wouldn't be as bad as the evening news when it comes to reporting on things going on around us.

c0ldfish, if more kind commenters would face down the cruel commenters, then they would be driven down to a minimum. We shouldn't just shrug our shoulders and go 'oh well' because that's caving in.

We need to make it so the nasty and cruel are the ones who have to "deal".

Evil flourishes when good men do nothing. Cruelty is evil.

Who would say such a thing in the real world? Well, Fratboys and girls, Wall Street types, Jocks, politicians.

When reality hits them in the ass, and it always does,
they find Jesus. Before they'd wash dishes at 48 they'd shoot themselves. Good.

Dead is dead - no matter who you are or what you did.

It's not like he cares anymore what people are saying.

vonskippy, the people who loved and cared about him are not dead. Pay attention. Being cruel about him in front of them is evil.

I pass by the Crab Shack all the time and I also ride a bike in St Pete. I ride against traffic in the bike lane if at all. Just the other day I almost ended up on the hood of a car driven by a blue hair. She was lead footing it through a parking lot. When the snowbirds head south NEVER assume the other guy is in control of his vehicle.

This poor guy had one hell of a commute. So sad

I think this is a great story, and deserves to be on Neatorama. It is not something you hear about often, if ever.

I had to delete a comment -- I don't allow name-calling n my threads.

Ya'll may disagree with vonskippy, but be polite about it.

In this great recession, many people have taken jobs that may be below their skill level. I have to respect people like the late Mr. Smith who will take whatever job necessary to care for their families and their financial responsibilities, continue to contribute to society, and show generosity to those in greater need. He may have died as a dishwasher, but he seems to have lived as a great man. Thank you for posting this story.

Hey, great post. I think some things get so overplayed in the media, Lindsay Lohan goes to jail, she gets out of jail, etc. It's good to hear about an average joe once in a while. RIP.

Bravo to the St. Petersburg Times.

From experience, vonskippy pretty much never has anything nice to say. I sure hope you're not like that IRL. It'd be tough to hold a conversation with you if you're always such an aggressor.

i agree with matt. thank you for posting this. may he rest in peace.

@iSAWiWASi- Ditto.

vonskippy: you are a cold, heartless, person. You should have respect for people, dead or alive.

Someone wrote:: If you have something rude or unkind to say to someone else, be a grown up and say it to the person face.

I've never understood why it is considered better to say something rude or mean to someone's face rather than just keeping your mouth shut.

Not everything we think and feel HAS to be expressed. If you hate someone, why would you feel the need to say it to their face? What possible good would come of it? Just keep it to yourself and avoid the person as much as possible.

Somebody said something mean on the Internet? Wow, that's a surprise! Must have been a slow news day in St Petersburg.

This reaction is precisely what the troll wanted to do. Congratulations for feeding it.

And lay off von skippy for expressing his opinion. You live in a world where success for a man is measured by his profession and his income, and we all buy into it to some degree. If you claim not to, then you're deceiving yourself.

"This reaction is precisely what the troll wanted to do. Congratulations for feeding it."

I'm not sure what reaction you're referring to, but I prefer to think that troll changed their ways after reading that obit and realizing how cruel they had been.

I understand strangers thinking "who cares about some dead dishwasher?" But my brother was a dishwasher in a restaurant for a long time, and he rode his bike to work. I'd be devastated if some careless driver killed him. Maybe nobody else would care, but I would.

But, internet bastards are just a fact of life.

I'd like to see the St Pete's Times track this troll down and see what he's doing with his life. My guess is not much

Seriously, Design Monkey?

Let's see, who cared about this guy before somebody made the callous comment? Not you. You never heard of him. The story is about the troll, and the troll was successful. The trolling became the story. That's what trolls live for.

If you think that whoever posted the nasty comment rethought their view of life and repented their ways, then you've got a little too much pollyanna in your outlook.

Ironic statement: "I'd like to see the St Pete's Times track this troll down and see what he's doing with his life. My guess is not much"

Thanks for illustrating my other point so beautifully. People don't think much of this poor dishwasher - they're only reacting to the mean comment. Deep down, most people have no respect for those who are "unsuccessful" in life, according to society's standards. People would just as readily jump on the troll for his/her lack of success.

In my observation, 'trolls' are looking to create anger and arguments. The paper's reaction of kindness to the action of cruelty does not, to me, seem to fit that desired response.

Any media story, however it may come about, that manages to get a large group of people to celebrate the life of someone rather than tear someone down is alright by me.

Good on you, Neatorama, for passing this along. Thanks for being part of the solution.

There will always be insensitive jerks saying hateful things. They give us and awareness that helps the rest of us connect with our compassion and humanity. Also, we are all insensitive jerks sometimes. I'm glad there is so much more compassion than cruelty.