USA TODAY

BEIJING (AP) — Chen Fuchao, a man heavily in debt, had been contemplating suicide on a bridge in southern China for hours when a passerby came up, shook his hand — and pushed him off the ledge.
Chen fell 26 feet onto a partially inflated emergency air cushion laid out by authorities and survived, suffering spine and elbow injuries, the official Xinhua News Agency said Saturday.

The passerby, 66-year-old Lai Jiansheng, had been fed up with what he called Chen's "selfish activity," Xinhua said. Traffic around the Haizhu bridge in the city of Guangzhou had been backed up for five hours and police had cordoned off the area.

"I pushed him off because jumpers like Chen are very selfish. Their action violates a lot of public interest," Lai was quoted as saying by Xinhua. "They do not really dare to kill themselves. Instead, they just want to raise the relevant government authorities' attention to their appeals."

Xinhua said Lai was "taken away by police" but did not elaborate.

A police officer who answered the telephone Saturday at a station close to the bridge confirmed the incident and said it was under investigation. He refused to give any other details and hung up.

According to Xinhua, Chen wanted to kill himself because he had accrued 2 million yuan ($290,000) in debt from a failed construction project.

On Thursday, he made his way to the Haizhu bridge, where 11 other people have tried to take their lives since April.

Lai volunteered to talk Chen down but was turned away by police, Xinhua said. Lai then broke through the cordon, climbed to where Chen sat, greeted him with a handshake, then pushed.

Photos in the Beijing Morning Post showed Lai, shoeless and in a T-shirt, saluting after Chen fell.

The paper said Lai was released on bail Friday but did not give any details. It said he had been on medication for "a mental illness" for decades and had been on his way to a hospital for his pills.

Chen was recovering in the hospital, Xinhua said.

Hahahaha that's hilarious! XD It's crazy yes and shouldn't have been done but how often do you see a fed up passerby push a person contemplating suicide? lol

I'm glad nothing serious happened to the guy though... That would've been tragic.

As horrible is that is, it's also very funny. Remember that scene in Lethal Weapon where Riggs goes up to talk down the jumper, but instead handcuffs himself to him, and when the guy refused to come back over he said "Do you really wanna jump?" and dove off the edge into the rescue cushion? That's not to say that all suicidal people are looking for attention, because they arent. But some (like this guy) are. And you bet your a** he'll never do this again... lol

That's what you call China. Some people within China believe in the Communist ideology so deeply that they look at the good of the community so much more than the good of the individual. The CCP is truly.... different.

LOL that's great ;D

His statement about jumpers is true. I know that doesn't sound very nice to admit, but a lot of people say they are going to kill themselves; and than don't. But get a lot of media attention out of it. And also, depending on why someone is committing suicide. It can be a very selfish decision.

Suicide is selfish no matter WHAT the reason

I don't necessarily agree with this completely. I do think that suicide is a selfish act; however, sometimes people are too far gone for them to be helped. Sometimes the weight of the world is too much for someone, and sometimes that person doesn't have anyone!

I am not asking you to agree.

Suicide is selfish. I dont care how much shit you go through, someone has it worse. Period. End of story. Dont be a selfish asshole and kill yourself leaving your family and friends to clean up after you. I dont care what happened if you commit suicide and 'I' care about you in life you can bet your ass I will hate you after your death.

Period.

(I am not trying to be harsh, but I am still dealing with a suicide in my life, and I have seen a new light to it.)

I didn't say that you were asking me to agree. So lets set that straight. Forums are here for us to post our opinions on what we think on certain subjects. You posted your comment and belief on my original post and I posted my comment right back.

And if you're not trying to be harsh, than I won't either. You're not the only one dealing with suicides. I have had two family members commit suicide and also a best friend commit suicide at the age of 16. So please don't play that, "I've seen something you haven't," crap with me.

So simple said. I don't agree with your point. And you don't agree with mine. There's nothing wrong with us having two different opinions. :)

I didnt say I saw something different then you, hell I was suicidal at one point, but I didnt do it. I am saying in the past month I PERSONALLY have a different outlook on suicide. If I can live through what I did (no by any means am I saying my shit was worse) then you can do it. You need to be willing to WORK at it. Suicide is LAZY. You hit rock bottom and you dont want to dig your ass out. Thats what it is.

There is no problem that is solved by death, death creates more problems, you just took the easy way out so you didnt have to deal.

I agree with you.

That's a little bit like saying someone who has cancer is selfish for getting ill.

Mental illness is an illness just like any other, and it requires treatment. If it goes untreated, or if the treatment isn't given in time (or the wrong treatment is given) it can end in suicide.

Personally I feel sad for anyone who kills themselves - sad for their family and friends too, but sad that they couldn't get the help they needed. When someone suffers from an illness, it's always very difficult on the people around them, but that's not to say it's not difficult on the person who is ill too.

On a very different note, someone I once spoke to on this subject (when I was younger I also believed suicide was selfish) put this point of view forward: Instead of seeing suicide as selfish, they felt it would have been selfish of them to expect the person to stay when they were so miserable.

I don't agree with this myself, but I think it's interesting to come at things from a different angle.

No its like saying its selfish for someone with cancer to give up.

Mental illness sucks. I know. I am there. I have PTSD, Depression, and possible OCD. Treatment doesnt fix it. It doesnt make it better no matter what you do, but you have to fight it. You cannot give up and not climb out of the darkness. You cannot just hang yourself and allow your wife and 6 year old daughter walk in and see you dead hanging there.

Like I said mine is an opinion based on too many life expirences but its how I feel.

"Instead of seeing suicide as selfish, they felt it would have been selfish of them to expect the person to stay when they were so miserable."

That's exactly how I see it.

Having been suicidal, AND having had someone I cared very deeply about commit suicide, its very difficult for me to have a concrete stance. I DO believe however, that most people who commit suicide, thinking they'd "tried everything", really didn't.

All I'm going to say is......

>Suicide.org

You can show me that and 1,000,000 other websites that say that and I will not change my position.

Period.

Call me ignorant, stupid, whatever.

When you hang yourself without leaving a note just to have YOUR WIFE AND 6 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER FIND YOU, you are a selfish bastard.

Period. I dont care how shitty your life is. If I can go through being raped every day for a year by my step-father, miscarrying HIS child, my mom telling me it was better if I left so she could have her perfect family, being thrown into foster care, and dealing with PTSD you can deal with some depression. Maybe I am heartless in this stance. Like I said mine is an opinion and you are more than entitled to yours as well. :)

Yes, yes it can. It's just abnormal for someone to push one of them lol

Heh... I read that this morning. Amusing article.

I can see why he did it. Shouldn't laugh, but it IS funny.

hah. good work.

I think its hilarious. Ever been stuck in traffic cos a would be suicide has the bloody bridge blocked? its annoying :P

really?? seriously, really? what is happening???? if i would have been the, let's say, "pusher," i would have said something clever before i pushed him. say, for instance, i would havewalked up to him, blankly stared at him, then said geronimo and then pushed. but, i kinda do agree that a handshake was quite clever, but i dont understand why he shook his hand and then pushed..... hmmm.... makes one wonder.

Haha geronimo! I like it ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fgvw69rKoNM

I saw it on the news half an hour ago. IMO the passer-by was actually quite dumb to go up there and push the man. The passer-by would have to face a maximum jail term of 3 years if convicted.