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Subscribe to RSSHours before unemployment officials were to determine whether he was physically fit for work, an Austrian man sawed off his left foot with an electric saw, Austrian broadcaster ORF reported.
The 56-year-old man had just learned that his benefits could be slashed if he did not accept work found for him, the Daily Mail reported.
He reportedly placed the severed foot in a wood stove to make sure doctors could not reattach it to his leg.
On Monday, after his wife and son had left the house, Hans Url, positioned his left leg against an electric saw in the boiler room and severed his foot above the ankle. Images from the scene show an electric table saw – apparently wiped clean – surrounded by shallow pools of blood. On the stove were a lighter and ashtray filled with cigarette butts.
Bleeding profusely and on the verge of death, Url called an ambulance. Emergency staff found him covered in blood, and they retrieved the foot from the fire.
Url was airlifted to a hospital in Graz. Hospital officials said he nearly died from loss of blood, according to the Daily Mail. Url is now out of danger, but doctors were not able to reattach his foot because it was too badly burned.
"He wants to work, but gets nothing suitable," Monika, Url's wife of 36 years, told the Kronen Zeitung. "My husband felt so worthless."
On Tuesday, Url was transferred to the psychiatric ward of the Graz regional hospital. "He apologized to me and told me how sorry he was," Monika told the Austrian newspaper. "He did it deliberately at the time when we -- my son and I -- were out of the house."
The rescue helicopter was waiting in front of the house when Monika returned. "Now I know that my husband was very scared of this health examination," she told the Krone. "He wants to work. But the job he imagines for himself doesn't exist."
Url's daughter Petra said her father once worked on a golf course, and he was happiest when working outdoors, according to the Austrian paper. She said he had received a number of such jobs in the past, but they only lasted several months at a time.
Police spokesman Franz Fasching said police were investigating the case as an attempted suicide. “The planning was meticulous," Fasching said.
Meticulous, perhaps, but possibly not a success. Url may still qualify for work despite the amputation, the Daily Mail reported.
The Daily Mail quoted Hermann Gössinger, spokesman for the unemployment center where Url was supposed to have been examined, as saying that “this is a tragic case but it will not help the man. He will be assessed once he is out of hospital and we will see what work we can find for him.”
Url has been unemployed -- with brief interruptions -- since 2003. The Kronen Zeitung reported he suffers from depression. In 2010, he spent 11 days in a psychiatric clinic in Graz.
"The family is at least firmly behind him," Monika told the paper. "Together we can get over this."
Reuters contributed to this report.
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It is a sad story, Yes it's easy to point finger and blame the mental health of the person but only when someone goes through that themselves, rejection and loss of respect can they truly understand the desperation that creeps in and pushes someone to take such extreme steps
So you begin by saying don't blame his mental health, then go on to say his actions were justified based on his mental health condition.. what?
That's dedication to laziness!!!!
If jobs have Republican type of management in Austria, I understand his plight. The ones here are like Rick Santorum followers: Archie Bunkers not too sure why they're so angry.
Yes, it is sad. He was happiest when working outdoors, and now he has compromised his ability to do that. This will be one more problem on top of those he already has.
"He wants to work. But the job he imagines for himself doesn't exist."
Mine does, but women just won't pay enough.
I'll give him a an A+ for making a stand, at least he did not go postal and kill 10 people over the job.Technically this was legal and they can't jail him for anything, but the janitor is probably pissed.
Enough already! This guy will end up dead if they ignore what is obviously mental illness. Yes, it is something of a bad example to put him on disability, but seriously, how many people would go to that length to avoid work? There is a bigger problem at work here. Let the media storm play itself out and give this guy the help he obviously needs.
So what if he ends up dead? One less parasite to drain the resources of the Austrian government. He's already proven that he's useless. He should just go ahead and make it official.
LOL now that's what I call entitlement attitude.
fetus, plenty of yard work in America..the illegals would Love yaa to help them........
You've got to be kidding, this guy gets Money for staying at home, we are going to hear more and more of these stories after July when the entire Social system through out Europe will stop payments to the unwilling to work group and thats basically everybody.
@ Jillyjill: Real "Milk o' Human Kindness" type, aren't you?
REALLY????? This is news worthy?
Oh, poor guy, gonna have to work for his living! GIVE ME A BREAK!!!!
What this guy illustrates is the extreme problem with socialism, period!
Better recheck those Occupy Wall Street tents. Obama Bucks are about to run dry.
My question is what was the job they were going to give him? News articles always leave out key details.
They should cut his unemployment off entirely. What a moron. I have no sympathy for him, but do for his poor wife and children being related to an idiot. Now he will be a burden on society.
The Austrian should have worked on his language kills
"Arbeit Macht Frei" does not mean "chainsaw"
Workers comp insurance companies are in a better position to challenge an injured workers claim than an injured worker is to defend himself. They generally have more resources and no soul or conscience.
At 56 I would just keep giving him the payments. If he was 26 then yeah slash his fund. As a worker in the Health industry people suffering from mental problems are very common. So consider your self lucky if you don't have any.
They should call this MSN mean people newsvine..
Kevin in Texas,
Did you actually read the article ? He cut off his foot because socialist Austria wanted to force him out of social assistance.
Anyway, the guy is obviously mentally ill.
Uh, not any more.
Tragic story about someone with a mental problem. I learned once that the janitor at my grade school hung himself because his new job was at another school. Obviously some people (especially simpletons)are very much set in their ways and FRIGHTENED of any change.
Just like some comments on Newsvine in comments #1.11 and comment #1.13 are 'set in their belligerent prejudices and ignorance' and feel the need to make inappropriate and completely OFF comments about misidentified European 'SOCIALISM' and their crude dibs at any German or Austrian for the rest of times with Nazi camps slogans...
A pretty (ugly) face of curmudgeon America is evolving in a part of the world that has positive trade balances (Germany has a positive one even with China), a vibrant industry with internationally competitive quality goods, lower unemployment, plenty wealth and billionaires but none of the widespread squalor and poverty that we have in America... if that is socialist sloth, what do we have?? Bible-thumping oligarchy? It doesn't look like (misidentified) 'socialism' should be your whipping boy... but short-sighted human fear of the UNKNOWN, like your own!!!!
Crazy or not, that's some dedication. Way to stand your ground :D
I would have to think that somewhere along the line, those close to this man would have seen something tragic coming, that there were warning signs. True, he could've simply 'lost it' but it seems that his family noted his depression and other psychological problems worsening over time. It's not always easy with those you love, those in your home however....
I'm not sure all work this way, but I find it easier to listen to co-workers, friends in the neighborhood's problems and offer advice than it is to do similarly here at home, even take the same advice myself. When working in hospitals, I'd listen to patients and offer solutions to problems or explain what may help various conditions yet when it came to me I did not walk the talk.
I'm thinking it's much easier to be objective with others and see from the outside in as well as not have to worry about repercussions from change or honest, forthright logical thinking than it is to 'start something' at home. Odd; many times it's easier to find the answers when there's no personal investment, yet the ones we're personally invested in are the most important and should be answered first.....just doesn't seem to work that way.
This is a sad case of mental distress combined with an overly generous government welfare program. To think that a government welfare system could be so generous as to incentivized someone to cripple themself in order NOT to work and continue receiving government assistance is unimaginable. Surely this demonstrates a social welfare system out of control.
One thing I'd add is that while the title of the article worked to garner our attention (obviously) this is not about politics, socialism or any thing other than an obviously mentally sick individual; I mean come on.... cutting off your own foot, cleaning the saw, small pools of blood? Not everything on Earth is about what's become of politics.
Can you possibly imagine our Federal or any State governments going to people on welfare or unemployment and telling them, we found a job you can do, now get to work.
Crazy stuff like this will continue ot happen, and those at the top always find new ways to exploit those in the middle and bottom for more profits for themselves to disperse between a few leaving the majority in the poor house while telling the majority they are worthless
in other words a republican Utopia
Smeagol is correct...his/her post sums up what is wrong with the GOP, and those who vote for them. Wake up! The world is changing, and we must change faster to retain a competitive edge and maintain/improve our quality of life. This is not "conservative," it is "progressive."
I wish the guvmint would find me a job!
He didn't think about this before going through such a stupid act???
What a moron. Slap a wooden foot on him and put him back to work. What an idiot this man is.
This one leaves me "Stumped" !!!
Some people will do anything to avoid a little work.....
.
...and to think...I thought I had him pegged
sonarguy- Sweet!
donkeehaawtee- Sweet!
I've know some lazy people, some in my own family, but none with such passion for doing nothing.
I heard he also sawed off his pecker and changed his name to Eileen.
It's good the helicopter was able to hotfoot him out of there.
I'm just waiting for the other shoe to drop.
At least he didn't put his foot in his mouth.
How is he going to get a job now if he can't put his best foot forward?
I'll stop now.
He couldn't get his foot in the door any other way.
Good thing help got there while he had one foot in the grave.
You guys are frikin hilarious. Thanks for the laughs! Maybe he should saw off his pecker so he will not reproduce anymore.
Alan - All you can do is laugh when you hear @!$%# like this. Glad you got it.
Lets hope he heels so he can be a toe truck driver.
He'll just have to pull himself up by his bootstrap and get to work.
From my own experiences, I can tell you that being unemployed can make you feel defeeted at times.
Its like a bad SAW movie, loose pieces of your body or do this job. Man chooses to mutilate his body.
Nope!...You're all wrong.
He desperately wanted that job he's always talked about but could never get.
He wanted to be that "One Legged Man at the Ass Kicking Contest."
Instead of leaning towards work, he decided to take a stand. It'll be hard to get him to toe the line now.
look someone just needs to help the guy, i mean its a rough world, just need to help him put one foot in front of the other, and take it 1 step at a time.
We've got millions of people in this country just like him. They feel entitled to government support forever and will do almost anything not to have to give it up and earn an honest living.
After the amputation he went for breakfast down at the local IHOP. His waitress was named "Eileen". He ordered a short stack.
That's the thing with some people, you give them an inch................................
sonar guy
lol, you're so bad, your good. <thumbs-up> Sonar
He can still work. There are plenty of call center jobs available that do not require the use of your feet.
Of course... I would rather saw my own leg off and throw it in the fireplace than work in a call center again...
Bad.
.
But You just said that loss of feet wouldn't disqualify someone from a call center job. Isn't that the same boat this fella's in?
Call center work isn't so bad. They uncuff you from the desk to make 2.1 urine calls and .8 bowel movements per day. Twice a day, you're released for official break. And you get a chow break too.
The beatings weren't so bad at the call center I used to work at, but then there was the mandatory blood letting...
Wait till he finds out that the call center is in India.
He'll just have to hop to it.
He can still work on the golf course, he can punch the flag holes on the greens each morning with his club leg.
Call center work does suck! Never again!
You are all disgusting. I wonder if you'd be joking if you had been driven to desperation. I'll bet you would all whine and cry.
Desparation? He would rather cut off a foot than actually work to earn his money. That's pathetic!
crazy and sad
he may never need to buy socks again
At any rate he should only have to buy 1/2 the socks he used to....
some people will do anything not to work!
Look at the bright side. Now he can get pedicures for half price! Heh! =:D
Psychiatric lock-up sounds like the best solution ... indefinitely.
Will he have to "re-boot" his resume'?
He needs to stick one foot in front of the other and pull himself up by his boot strap. He'll get off on the right foot.
His name is "Url". I'd bet he'd be a great web site designer.
What a lazy-ass.
Do you think maybe someone is a little bit more than just lazy if they cut off their own foot and are minutes away from death? That's not lazy, that's mentally unstable.
No, he's not crazy. Just lazy.
Clazy?
jillyjill, if he were lazy, he could have faked an injury or condition, or worked for a little bit and quit/get fired, not cut off his foot. He had been treated before for mental problems.
I, too, was thinking of chopping some things off so I could take a nice, long vacation at the expense of those who are working hard for their keep and still struggling to get by. I make OK money, but it's not what I'd call "suitable" - so what kind of saw should I buy?
I suggest a bow saw. Let me know how that works out.
how bout we trade jobs then hmm. ill take your job and pay, home and standard of living heck thrown in the debt. you can have my $8 an hour job with no benefits and never ending stress from a boss who expects miracles but gives you dried turds for tools, ill even let you have my 1 bedroom aprtment i pay too much for - its ghetto and busline adjecent and my 17 year old car. can't give you my debt though, i dont have any becasue i live below my means, spend my weekend gardening and canning food to save a few pennies oh and no cable or tv even or gaming system. no home phone either or iphone. but im lazy and being unreasonable. even though i have a college degree, a technical certification and have ran 4 business' . all of which i paid for myself with no loans or aid. ill trade ya your mommy dearest paid for degree for the spinal injury i have which i got working my way through college on a ranch. it hurts like hell but without health care you learn to make do - hell maybe you'll develop pain seizures and get disability in 10 years.
Gone - Have some real fun and go with a plasma cutter. Cordorizes and you won't bleed out so fast.
aggrevated, anyone ever tell you your name is redundant? And you're not by chance my teammate, are you? Can't be, I have a pretty decent boss. Thanks for the life-trade offer and all, but you should have saved it for someone who'd actually be a good step up for you.
Anyway, my sarcasm doesn't really apply to a person in your position - I have no problem helping anyone who honestly tries to help themselves (unless by "helping" they mean anything involving saws and/or fraud).
I'd have to go with the plasma cutter. Bow saw is all psycho (you psycho)
Reciprocating saw with a pruning blade.
I'm not a wealthy man, but if I was doing something as important as cutting off my own foot, here is my list of tools that I would invest in when premeditating my insanity:
Plasma cutter is till number 1 for the obvious reasons.
2. Radial arm saw
3. Chop saw
4. 7 1/4 inch circular saw
5. chain saw
6. Hack saw.
I think I read that a transgender guy cut off both his legs above the knee a couple years back with a circular saw.
Sometimes I get the sudden inspiration to cut off one of my limbs, but haven't followed through so far.
You people need serious help.
@Sick of the Situation You can find the transgendered guy on youtube, I think he's on the Jerry Springer show.
I don't even know what to say about this. Clearly the guy is not all there in the head....
I'd say he put his foot in it this time.
It reminds me of when Roman conscripts would cut off their own thumbs to avoid military service. This was during the waning days of the Roman Empire, when they had to fight the likes of the Huns, for less than worthy leaders.
In a way, I can understand how this man is feeling. When it comes to hiring, sometimes the only jobs available are far from ideal. Of course we don't know the whole story, but when your mind is already unstable, and more is thrown at it, then something will snap. Cutting off your own limb is quite drastic. Then to throw it into the furnace so that there's no hope in reattachment...Words fail me.
DUDES GOT MAJOR ISSUES!!!! Or he's just an insanely lazy bum whom wants to just live off of the public dole. Shooting yourself in the foot to get out of combat is one thing, but Christ Almighty! Cutting off your foot so you don't have to work!?!?!?
This guy is a definite candidate for the slacker's hall of fame.
Or maybe Hall Of Shame.
... or Hall of Maim
Don't think anyone in their right mind could carry this out just to avoid work.
It just occurred to me that many of the jerks who have posted jokes about and criticisms of this poor man either did so during working hours or in the middle of the night, when an employed person would have been sleeping.
He couldn't do pizzas, truck driving, open a sailing school, taxi, walmart?
Stupid.
I'm gonna bet the demand for sailing school in a land-locked country is a bit low. You got yer lakes, but still...
....open a sailing school.....lol
Goldfish- You didn't read where he was from...did you.
He can't even deliver for Papa John's now.
@ John - Jimmy John's delivery is out of the question too.
I'll bet there are more than a few people here in the states that would do the same to get out of a hard days work.
Only if they knew it would cause you to grind your teeth to stumps in rage. Deal?
What?
Dwayne Allman shot his big toe off the night before he showed up for military service. They sent him home too.
Didn't he die of a drug overdose anyway? But his conscience was clear
@ John-2032532,
Yeah, all those people that love their freedoms that the Constitution of the United States affords them, but don't want to or are too afraid to help defend it. Those rights are only guaranteed so long as people believe that they are worth defending and possibly dying for. Hope his big toe was worth it. My opinion is he's just a slacked jawed loser no better then this guy that cut his foot off.
WAR Ranger,
Not one single soldier has sacrificed a thing in defense of freedom in the last 50 years, as our freedom has never once been at stake in that time. Was Saddam Hussein a threat to our freedom? Nope. Were the Vietnamese a threat to our freedom? Nope. The Soviet threat was gone in the 70's. Did Osama bin Laden pose a threat to our freedom? Nope. Does the Taliban pose a threat to our freedom? Nope. Don't get me wrong, I respect those who fight and die in the military, but let's be realistic about what they fight for. They've fought to protect our country's interests and allies, not our freedom. There may come a day, when an enemy comes to our doorstep and actually threatens our freedom, and that day our brave soldiers will fight to protect our freedom, but it hasn't happened yet. I, myself, was an Army Combat Engineer, and cannot recall a time that my actions or death, or even the killing of an enemy, would have protected the freedom of anyone back home.
@ VirginaDemocrat,
Agreed, the last war that might have had anything to do with our freedom as a nation was MAYBE Vietnam. That one was, for the most part, to try and help stop the spread of Communism. Panama in 89' was because Bush senior got tired of Noriega harassing our soldiers stationed down there. Grenada was basically to rescue American students and get rid of Cuban adviser troops on the island and Somalia was an aide mission that went south quick. But that is not my point. The U.S. could at any time be attacked by some country with a case of the stupids thinking they could take us out. That is why nations have a standing peace time military. Just in case. It still takes men and women to have that. It is there if needed, ranked by those same people whom are willing to defend it or die if necessary to keep it sovereign. You still have those that say, "Give me, Give me, Give me, but don't ask anything of me in return". Those are whom I get rankled at.
I would have to disagree with you pertaining to the Taliban, Osama, Al-Queda etc. They are or were terrorist entities bringing death to the shores of this country and our allies. That is a clear and present danger to our society and way of life. Do you want to be like some of the Mideast countries populace that fear going to the market because a car you walk by might just blow up in your face? Or you may get kidnapped and videotaped having your head cut off because your mothers uncles sisters stepfather was seen in the wrong mosque 15 years ago? There are other things and people that are a detriment to our way of life than having a well recognized enemy such as WW2 Germany/Japan or the cold war USSR. For this you need Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines. As a matter of fact, you could station them along our southern border. That area is one of the greatest present threats to this countrys well being. Good day sir.
He died on his Harley in Macon, Georgia in 1971.
granted this didn't happen in USA but I found it quite Ironic that the previous story I just read was the one about 2 in 5 men are unemployed lol..well they are lazy, depend on their wives too much to make money yet these are the same ones that scream that GOP bull about "old fashion values" yet can't support their family and earn their living by the sweat of their brow so to speak. Men still want their "women" barefoot, pregnant, submissive oh and by the way did you get paid today dear I need to fix my truck..
Wow! So everybody who's out of work is lazy!? Holy sh*t! I sincerely hope that you change your mind on that without it having to be proven incorrect by your own experience.
Silver spoon or sugar daddy?
Sheila...
LOL... Does steam come out of your ears when you write this crap? ;-)
You sound too right-wing to be a lesbian, but then again the right is known for being stupid. I bet your wife feels the same way, huh?
Sheila sounds like she is relating first hand experience.
Must suck living in your house Sheila. You sound like a repressed house wife with a lazy husband.
Sheila you need to meet a better class of men! My husband works AND helps out with maintaining our home AND is involved in raising our children. My father works, my brothers work, my brother-in-laws work. As a matter of fact I only personally know of 1 man in our circle of family and friends who is unemployed and that is due to a stroke.
Women really need to be more selective in their choice of mates.
Then, after getting offered a spokesperson job, he cut off his nose to spite his face...
Wow!!!! Sometimes it amazes me how hard some people will work to get out of doing a little bit if work. Seems like it would be easier to just do it. This guy gets slacker of the century.
Slacker of the century would be if he only chopped half of it off and couldn't be bothered finishing the rest.
OOPs he cut off the wrong one!
Now he's qualified to do amputations with on the job experience!
for hire: one footed saw operator. experience required.
If indeed it was an attempt at suicide-history shows that trying to prevent him from doing it again is fruitless- In the end he will succeed
...or die trying?
[sorry]
I'm not saying this didn't happen as reported, but I can't believe MSNBC is quoting UK's tabloid Daily Mail (referred to by many as the laughable "Daily Fail") as a legit news source now...