I'm just catching up on the wrap up to this story since I was kind of off the grid while it was developing.  There are two things that really confuse me about the situation.  (1)  How the hell did he move such large distances in the Q without a canoe, especially barefoot?  The land between the lakes is tough traveling.  (2) Why did they close the lakes when he wasn't suspected of being dangerous?  I can understand trying to find him, and he definitely committed a border violation so there is even a reason to take him into custody (though I hope they don't charge him with anything), but the reaction did seem like overkill.

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As a fellow "beggar", I think your selling yourself way to short with that statement. I see your pics with those great looking kids of yours as testament that you've done something good, whether your realize it or not.
“Loving your neighbor” isn't something to downplay either.

Me wanting to know the “why’ isn't out of morbid curiosity or wanting to feel superior to someone.
I don’t see how you can help someone that obviously needs some kind of assistance, other than short term unless you know how they got to that place in their life?

From an elder brother, well said YB.

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How to anyone determine if someone is just a "prodigal" or has mental health or substance abuse issues, maybe both?
Wouldn’t it be a shame if someone had serious issues and didn’t at least get some professional counseling because people thought he was just a “prodigal/Black Sheep”?

The guy allegedly" told that father and son team that he had brought in a big bag of pot with him? As a child of the 60"s, I can tell you from experience that the pot we smoked back then compared to the potent stuff you see now is like comparing 3.2 beer to Malt Liquor.
I have guys/gals like that in my family/social circle.
Some were just prodigals/Black Sheep that were trying to find their own way; others were lost because they had mental health/substance abuse issues.
Once most of them dealt with that, they might still have been prodigals but their minds were not clouded by illness/drugs.

The fact as it was related that he had a large bag of pot with him is why I believe from my personal experience that it could be more than just a young person finding himself.

I did some crazy things when I was younger, but I never got to the point I was depending on others for subsistence. That doesn't sound like someone who has a clear/healthy mind to me.

I any case I wish the guy well and hope MY concerns are just that, my views from my own experience with family/friends that did stuff like that and had issues that needed professional treatment to overcome.

PhantomJug wrote on Aug 14^th, 2015 at 5:01pm:


I don’t think I’m categorizing the guy at all other than that I would think most people would consider that behavior “suspect” at the very least. I can “identify” with him, because like many people I did somethings that others thought weird at the time, the difference being I didn't need others to help me take care of myself and wasn't under the influence of ANY substance.

Forget the different/strange/wrong/ weirdness issues OR the he's okay those are purely speculative on everyone part.

Look at the facts. He did break the law as trivial as that may or may not be depending on your viewpoint? He either knowingly did it, or he didn't realize he did it? Both could be signs of issues that MIGHT need addressing? He got in way over his head in the woods, that may or may not be a sign of more serious issues?.

I look at  these type situations this way. Let’s say MY concerns are valid and the guy gets persuaded to at least talk to a professional who deals with issues like this all the time. Best case scenario he gets a clean bill of “health” and that entire helping neighbor/ brother’s keeper thing is helping him cope and find his way.

Worst case scenario, he has mental health issues/substance abuse problems and they never get properly addressed and fixed.  That means that all his well-meaning friends/brother keepers end up being part of the problem and not the solution.

By helping him out of the goodness of their hearts without ruling out those issues I mentioned, they end up in the long run being enablers who allow him to survive but not really prosper.

It’s obvious we see this much differently. I really hope I’m all wrong on this and would be more than glad if that proved to be the case.