A while ago
coming home from
work I saw, about twenty
steps in front of me, a big
guy struggling with a woman about
five feet tall. As I got closer I
saw they were fighting over a purse,
and when I was right up next to them I
could hear her saying, very low, "Just
let me get my i.d., just let me get my
i.d." You know, this just incensed me, I
mean this huge guy, like a linebacker,
must've been 6'2" or 3", trying to wrench
this poor little woman's bag out of her
tiny hands. So I got in there and
started yanking on it too. It was
pretty comic really--none of us
saying anything, all just
yanking on this bag--but
I wasn't amused.

A few
twenty-something
suburban dudes stopped in
their tracks to watch. "Help
us!" I yelled at them, outraged. I
knew I shouldn't say that, I should
say, "This man is trying to steal this
woman's purse, please call the police," but
all I could think of in my anger at these
useless jerks was "Help us!" Each one shook
his head, backed off and walked away. The only
passerby who stopped and helped was, of course,
another woman. When she put her hands in there
with ours the big coward finally gave up and
strolled away. I shouted a few lame things
after him about calling the cops. I thanked
the woman who helped and started walking
the other way with the little one. She
was mumbling something about how it
was her fault, she shouldn't have
been wearing her purse outside
of her coat and it served
her right.