| Author | Message | ||
| Sundowner (Sundowner)
New member Username: Sundowner Post Number: 879 Registered: 6-2003 |
Following the recent spirit of stealing puzzle statements I will add one more. (but your puzzles are so inspiring when it comes to alternative solutions ..) A man attempts suicide in order to avoid being killed. Because he failed, he survived. True story. | ||
| Balin (Balin)
New member Username: Balin Post Number: 14464 Registered: 4-2010 |
Attempted suicide: by poison? Hanging? Drowning? Jumping off a tall object/building? Gunshot? Stabbing? Slashing? Asphyxiation? Being killed: by one person? Many? By an animal? Potential killer: H? A? M? Someone the man knew? Knew of? Did the killer think he'd succeeded in his suicide attempt? | ||
| Sundowner (Sundowner)
New member Username: Sundowner Post Number: 881 Registered: 6-2003 |
Balin Attempted suicide: by poison? Hanging? Drowning? Jumping off a tall object/building? Gunshot? This one. Stabbing? Slashing? Asphyxiation? Being killed: by one person? Many? This one, but needs exploring. By an animal? Potential killer: H? A? M? The involved people are very likely all H/A/M. Someone the man knew? Knew of? No, or irrelevant. Did the killer think he'd succeeded in his suicide attempt? No. | ||
| Ciaobella (Ciaobella)
New member Username: Ciaobella Post Number: 16 Registered: 8-2011 |
Gunshot- to head? chest? other? relevant? Were the killers present when he shot himself? Is the era relevant? Are gangs involved? | ||
| Sundowner (Sundowner)
New member Username: Sundowner Post Number: 882 Registered: 6-2003 |
Ciaobella Gunshot- to head? chest? This one. other? relevant? Were the killers present when he shot himself? No. (ish) Is the era relevant? Yes. Are gangs involved? No. | ||
| Yatin509 (Yatin509)
New member Username: Yatin509 Post Number: 238 Registered: 6-2011 |
The bullet didn't hit him or he survived afterwards(at hospital or something)? Noise of the bullet relevant? And they ran away due to the fear that someone may see them? Would he have survived if he didn't tried to shoot himself and done something else to make noise? | ||
| Sundowner (Sundowner)
New member Username: Sundowner Post Number: 885 Registered: 6-2003 |
Yatin509 The bullet didn't hit him or he survived afterwards(at hospital or something)? Yes. Noise of the bullet relevant? No. And they ran away due to the fear that someone may see them? I'm not sure whom you have in mind with "them" but those who were around when he shot did not run away. Would he have survived if he didn't tried to shoot himself and done something else to make noise? No, he would very likely have died in that case. | ||
| Shez (Shez)
New member Username: Shez Post Number: 1671 Registered: 2-2011 |
is this a wartime situation? did the potential killers arrive and think he was already dead? | ||
| Yatin509 (Yatin509)
New member Username: Yatin509 Post Number: 241 Registered: 6-2011 |
yes to which one The bullet didn't hit him? or he survived afterwards(at hospital or something)? | ||
| Sundowner (Sundowner)
New member Username: Sundowner Post Number: 887 Registered: 6-2003 |
Shez is this a wartime situation? Yes. did the potential killers arrive and think he was already dead? Somebody arrived, was present during the attempted suicide and saw also that the man was not dead. Yatin509 yes to which one : ) The bullet didn't hit him? It hit him. or he survived afterwards(at hospital or something)? He recovered from the shot in a hospital. | ||
| Balin (Balin)
New member Username: Balin Post Number: 14484 Registered: 4-2010 |
Is it relevant the type of gun that he shot himself with? The other person present during the suicide attempt: H? A? M? Friend? Enemy? Neutral party? Did the man actually attempt suicide? Or did he want to shoot himself in a non-lethal spot? | ||
| Ciaobella (Ciaobella)
New member Username: Ciaobella Post Number: 25 Registered: 8-2011 |
Wartime era: 21st century? 20th? 19th? 18th? 17th? Before that? | ||
| Sundowner (Sundowner)
New member Username: Sundowner Post Number: 888 Registered: 6-2003 |
Balin Is it relevant the type of gun that he shot himself with? Not really. Assume a handgun. The other person present during the suicide attempt: H? A? M? H/A/M Friend? Enemy? Neutral party? This is difficult to answer as long as only little is known about the circumstances. At any rate, they are not enemy in the military sense, and not friends in the social sense. Did the man actually attempt suicide? Or did he want to shoot himself in a non-lethal spot? This is a good point. He wanted to survive but it had to look like a real attempt to suicide. Ciaobella Wartime era: 21st century? 20th? 19th? 18th? 17th? Before that? 20th century, fifth decade. | ||
| Galfisk (Galfisk)
New member Username: Galfisk Post Number: 4235 Registered: 9-2009 |
WWII relevant? Is he a prisoner? Or about to be taken prisoner? Or about to be killed? Executed? Because he appears dead, is he: left alone? Taken somewhere? Is the other person a doctor? does the first person know exactly where to shoot himself in order to survive? Does the other person help him: before he shoots? After? | ||
| Ciaobella (Ciaobella)
New member Username: Ciaobella Post Number: 39 Registered: 8-2011 |
Other relevant person: a commanding officer? From his military? from another? a civilian? a supernatural entity? Was he at any point mistaken to be dead by anyone? Did the bullet itself save him somehow? If he had been injured in some other way (such as a fall) would he have been saved? If he had been shot by enemy fire (and the wound was the same) would he have been saved? | ||
| Sundowner (Sundowner)
New member Username: Sundowner Post Number: 896 Registered: 6-2003 |
Galfisk WWII relevant? Yes. Is he a prisoner? Not at the moment when he shot himself.. Or about to be taken prisoner? because it's this one. Or about to be killed? Executed? This would have been the final consequence if not ... Because he appears dead He did not appear dead., is he: left alone? No. Taken somewhere? Yes. Is the other person a doctor? No. does the first person know exactly where to shoot himself in order to survive? We can assume so. Does the other person help him: before he shoots? No. After? Only insofar as he was taken into a hospital. Ciaobella Other relevant person: You mean the person(s) who were present when he shot himself? a commanding officer? Likely at least one of them was an officer. From his military? This one, but needs exploration. from another? a civilian? a supernatural entity? Was he at any point mistaken to be dead by anyone? No. Did the bullet itself save him somehow? I'm not sure how to answer this ..? If he had been injured in some other way (such as a fall) would he have been saved? Good point. Probably not. If he had been shot by enemy fire (and the wound was the same) would he have been saved? But this could have been possible. | ||
| Balin (Balin)
New member Username: Balin Post Number: 14507 Registered: 4-2010 |
Did he shoot himself to avoid imprisonment/execution? Was he taken away by friendly soldiers? Did those about to take him prisoner leave him because of his wound? Did they witness the shooting? Did they hear it? | ||
| Sundowner (Sundowner)
New member Username: Sundowner Post Number: 897 Registered: 6-2003 |
Balin Did he shoot himself to avoid imprisonment/execution? Yes. Was he taken away by friendly soldiers? Yes. Did those about to take him prisoner leave him because of his wound? No, they took him to the hospital. Did they witness the shooting? Yes. Did they hear it? Yes. | ||
| Shez (Shez)
New member Username: Shez Post Number: 1681 Registered: 2-2011 |
was the man expected to commit suicide as a point of honour? did the other person in the room know he was going to try to kill himself? had he betrayed someone? deserted? | ||
| Sundowner (Sundowner)
New member Username: Sundowner Post Number: 898 Registered: 6-2003 |
Shez was the man expected Yope. to commit suicide as a point of honour? Yes. did the other person in the room know he was going to try to kill himself? He thought so (remember that the man not actually wanted to kill himself). had he betrayed someone? Yes. (although there is a legal term that describes it better) deserted? No. | ||
| Balin (Balin)
New member Username: Balin Post Number: 14513 Registered: 4-2010 |
Were the friendly soldiers the ones who were about to imprison/execute him? Had he committed treason? | ||
| Ciaobella (Ciaobella)
New member Username: Ciaobella Post Number: 45 Registered: 8-2011 |
Does this puzzle relate to a law that prohibits the execution of an injured or ill person? | ||
| Sundowner (Sundowner)
New member Username: Sundowner Post Number: 899 Registered: 6-2003 |
Balin Were the friendly soldiers the ones who were about to imprison/execute him? Yes. They were military police. Had he committed treason? Yes. (although following generations found different accounts for what he did, given the circumstances and his intentions) Ciaobella Does this puzzle relate to a law that prohibits the execution of an injured or ill person? This is somewhat relevant. He was not put on trial as long as he was in the hospital. But then .. | ||
| Galfisk (Galfisk)
New member Username: Galfisk Post Number: 4257 Registered: 9-2009 |
But then: they lost the war? They won the war? He did something relevant? Laws changed? | ||
| Sundowner (Sundowner)
New member Username: Sundowner Post Number: 904 Registered: 6-2003 |
Galfisk But then: they lost the war? Yes. They won the war? He did something relevant? No. Laws changed? Possibly, but not really relevant to this puzzle. | ||
| Balin (Balin)
New member Username: Balin Post Number: 14561 Registered: 4-2010 |
Did the enemy free him from the hospital after winning the war? Did they take control of the hospital? The area that the hospital was in? | ||
| Ciaobella (Ciaobella)
New member Username: Ciaobella Post Number: 71 Registered: 8-2011 |
Could this have happened in another era? Could it happen today? Would it help to determine: his country? the specific act of treason? what occurred after the war? Nazis relevant? Was he a spy? | ||
| Sundowner (Sundowner)
New member Username: Sundowner Post Number: 906 Registered: 6-2003 |
Balin Did the enemy free him from the hospital after winning the war? Yes. (even before the war finally was over) Did they take control of the hospital? Yes. The area that the hospital was in? And yes. Ciaobella Could this have happened in another era? Possibly. Could it happen today? Even this is possible. Would it help to determine: his country? the specific act of treason? what occurred after the war? Nazis relevant? The answers to all of these, see below. Was he a spy? No. Clever Balin has it. Possibly it was a bit straightforward in the end, but I thought that the idea of shooting oneself in order to survive has something lateral. SPOILER A man attempts suicide in order to avoid being killed. Because he failed, he survived. Carl Hans Graf von Hardenberg was one of the people involved in the failed attempt to overthrow Hitler on 20 July 1944. His role in the conspiracy was minor, it was just that the conspirators met in his house a few times and that he supported them with money. Nevertheless, the connection was found out and in August 1944 the military police came to arrest him. There was a rule in the Wehrmacht that an officer who was accused of a capital crime was given the chance to commit suicide instead of being arrested. If he did so, the case would be dropped and he would appear in the records as "died in honor" (which also would mean that his wife would receive a widow's pension). So Hardenberg asked one of the officers that came to arrest him for a gun and to be left alone for a few minutes. This was granted and he shot himself in the chest. He survived and was taken to a hospital where he recovered. Later he was moved to the concentration camp of Sachsenhausen. Due to the time he spent in hospital and the general disorganization towards the end of the war, his trial was opened only in April 1945. A few days later the camp was taken by the US Army and Hardenberg got free. If he had not shot himself, he surely would not have survived the end of the war. And as he took courses in medicine while being at the university one might conclude that he precisely knew where to shoot in order not to die from it. | ||
| Ciaobella (Ciaobella)
New member Username: Ciaobella Post Number: 75 Registered: 8-2011 |
That's amazing! Can you imagine, even knowing how to do so properly, standing there with the gun, pressing it to your body, and pulling the trigger? *shudders* Thank you for sharing such an interesting story. | ||
| Balin (Balin)
New member Username: Balin Post Number: 14589 Registered: 4-2010 |
Wow, interesting and lateral indeed! That guy must have had some guts... | ||
| Shez (Shez)
New member Username: Shez Post Number: 1712 Registered: 2-2011 |
and none of them on the floor! |
