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I keep thinking about the woman from last week. I kept wondering if there are other people in the world like her, then I thought "with over seven billion people there has to be others like her". It should have stopped there, but I felt compelled to compile a list in my head of other such people. Ones who do nice things for others just to be nice and help another person out.

First, I thought of family. Family members are supposedly the closest people to any individual and are usually the ones who are looked toward first when someone is in need. The main reasoning I can see most people using for helping out their family members is because they are family (or "love" but that is another topic altogether). I can understand this somewhat. The obligation seems to be there because "family knows a person best and they are related by blood", however that reasoning doesn't stand up if the family is distant and just don't care about each other. I think society and genetics play a larger role. Society pushes the "blood is thicker than water" mentality and people want their genes to be carried on (with some exceptions of course). Is there a cut off point? I have yet to find it, though I suspect there is one. Then again, some might feel so obligated to help their family member(s) that their lives fall appart trying to do so.
Example:
"Can I borrow a few bucks?"
"Sure."
"I'll pay you back later."
"Don't worry about it." or "Okay".
The response may be determined by how much money is involved in this senerio and the finacial situation of the people involved.

The second group I looked at was friends. Friends can be become close enough to someone for that person to consider them family and such individuals would probably be included in a family group in a disaster situation. However, there is the fact that friends will never become family unless they get involved with a family member of their friend, in which case they then become family. So friends are considered to be a lower rank than family. Okay, fine, but they are also still expected to help eachother out if such a need arises. At least to some extent. There is a cut off point, though that is determined by the friends themselves, and usually it is left unsaid.
Example:
"Can I borrow a few bucks?"
"Sure."
"I'll pay you back later."
"Okay." or "Don't worry about it."
The response may be determined by how good the friendship is in this senerio and how much money "a few bucks" might mean.

The third group I have looked at are strangers. Strangers have no obligation what so ever to help another person out unless that person seems to be hurt or if they are doing something illegal.There are those people who help others simply because they want to (like the woman who helped me) and there are several ways to do that, usually through organizations. And there are people who help others because they are forced to like those who do it so they have something to put on their collage application or those forced to do charity work as a punishment. The first type of stranger is good because it helps society continue to be reletivly safe and stable. The second and third types also do this, however they do it by helping those who aren't so well off. The last two can also do actions that fall in the first example, but the first might not take actions that fall into the second and third example. Although I think the last two are good because they help out fellow human beings and relieve suffering of others, I also see them both as not quite normal. In the second example, people take time out of their lives simply to assist others for no gain on their part. Maybe they have reasons for doing so, but as far as the scope of what I am looking at, they have almost no reason to take such actions. I don't fully understand it neutral Then there is the third example. I actually dislike this one most. Though they help others out like people do in the second example, they do it for some sort of gain. So they really aren't there to help anyone but themselves. I suppose if they were assigned something as punishment to get into a better light in society it makes sense, however unless they are a celebrity or the society is small, hardly anyone knows about it, and it defeats its own purpose. And if society says doing one action is good, why would taking that same action be considered a punishment? Maybe it is to offset what ever action the person took that was considered bad? I think it is better than simply paying a fine, but it still doesn't seem correct. Perhaps I'm biased about it. I don't know.
Examples:
#1
"Can I borrow a few bucks?"
"What? No. Go away."
#2
"Can I borrow a few bucks?"
"What is it for?"
"Food."
"Okay."
or
"Booze." or "Illegal drugs."
"No. Go away."
#3
"Can i borrow a few bucks?"
"Why should I?" or "No. Go away"
The response may be determined by several things, none of which I know well enough to even guess at.

The last group I can think of is one that would probably relish someone owing them money or a favor or whatever else can be imagined, I'm not entirely sure what exactly to call them either. They would be someone that a person would not want to go to because they simply don't get along. Maybe they hate eachother, maybe they have a rivalry, whichever the case it would probably be a bad idea to take help form them or ask for help form them. The only reasons I can see for such a person to help someone they do not like would be to either torture that person or because they want that person to be indebted to them. I could see a person asking for and accepting help from someone like that if they were very desperate for the help.
Examples:
"Can I borrow a few bucks?"
"Sure."
"I'll pay you back."
"You damn well better!" or "Yes you will. It will not be pleasant."
or
"Can I borrow a few bucks?"
"Sure... Polly want some money? Jump Polly! Jump!!"
The response may be determined by the personality of the one lending the money and how much they think they can push the one asking for it.


I don't really know where I was going with this, but at least I got to type out what I was thinking.