It’s Not Ballsy To Have Empathy

I work at a large supermarket. One wintry day, I’m collecting carts from the parking lot (which, in this weather, is a two-man job), and I see a particularly brazen thief steal a large, heavy purchase from another customer. The thief starts to sprint away, hits a particularly icy patch, falls over, and…

Well, let’s just say he inadvertently cushioned the object with something that should never be used as a cushion. 

The thief howls in pain. I wince. I see the man he stole from wincing, even as he reclaims his purchase. My coworker and I get the carts inside… and I’m surprised when [Coworker] turns to me.

Coworker: “What is wrong with you?!”

Me: “Huh? Where did that come from?”

Coworker: “I swear I saw you sympathizing with that jacka** in the parking lot.”

Me: “You mean the guy who got his d*** crushed? Dude, you can’t seriously be mad at me for that!”

Coworker: “That a**hole was a thief! He deserves what happened to him!”

Me: “I agree, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t HURT to see that happen to someone!”

Coworker: “F*** you, dude. I’m talking to [Manager] about this.”

He storms off, and I’m left to finish setting up the carts myself. I later heard from [Manager] that [Coworker] had indeed complained – and given an accurate description of the event, only to get mad again when [Manager] recoiled at the description. 

Sadly, he still works here, grumbling whenever he ends up on the same shift as me. I have no idea how anyone can watch that happen to another person and not wince at the sight, let alone act like it’s a problem to do so.