Crikey!

[pat]

Steve Irwin died, from a stingray barb to the heart. Damn, he must have been trying to pick the sucker up or something. A simple stingray barb's gonna be bad news, but generally not fatal. It's not like it was a snake, or something where the venom is going to kill you where ever it strikes.

I find myself really pissed off by this. The man leaves behind two young children because he went around harassing wildlife. And the news media reports that police haven't been able to contact his wife, who is in a remote area of Tasmania. I hope she hears about it from family, not from a newspaper reporter.

Remember kids, don't try this at home.

Comments

[klwalton.livejournal.com]

I'm pissed. It's one thing when you haven't got children to consider. It's another thing once you've committed yourself to children.

Going to take a few deep breaths and go to sleep and look at this with fresher eyes in the morning. But I don't think my feelings will change too much.

[patgreene.livejournal.com]

Especially when those children are young, as Irwin's are -- 8 and 5. Sheesh.

[juliansinger.livejournal.com]

I'm with you there.

(I mean, I'm not pissed, since I didn't know him personally, but I'm disappointed.)

[griffen.livejournal.com]

I never thought he was any great shakes, but then again, I didn't follow his work. And I'm annoyed about this, too.

On the other hand, many men are in dangerous jobs (like firemen, police, military -- hell, even delivery drivers, these days) and have children. I just wish that Irwin had taken, you know, precautions.

[datagoddess.livejournal.com]

So because he became a parent he should have given up his profession?

People die all the time and leave kids behind. Does that mean that anyone who is in a risky profession should stop doing it as soon as they have children?

[patgreene.livejournal.com]

I'm the last person to argue that people should not take risks in their professional lives. But it always seemed to me that what Irwin did was irresponsible to begin with -- I can remember on more than on thinking "I wouldn't really blame that rattlesnake if he bit him, I would too" -- and that he now leaves behind small children because of it seems a waste to me.

There are naturalists who approach their wildlife with much less of a gung-ho attitude, even ones that do things like pick up snakes (Jeff Corwin comes to mind). Some of what Irwin did, and I confess I used to what his show for the same reason that some people watch NASCAR -- for the potential crashes, was harassment of wildlife, pure and simple.

[tshuma]

Other news reports are less sensationalist. She's been contacted and she and the children are already on their way. The film shows him swimming above it, without contacting it, and it turned and spiked him.

I never liked the man's shows or his methods, and I'm not surprised he died from his work, but it's still a tragedy.

[patgreene.livejournal.com]

It is still a tragedy, and my heart goes out to her and her kids.