Of course I recognize how precious life is, and I, too, learned it the hard way. I imagine his story struck you the same way it did me...you felt sorry for him and at the same time relieved that it didn't happen to you. No?

In the end, what did it cost you? How does one "waste" sympathy? As I said, it's not like we're born with a limited supply.

Gregor hit on it: None of us really knew Adam, so how was it so very different from a movie or play or other piece of fiction that elicits an emotion?