(no subject)

[quidditchgrrl]

I'm up early today. Damn insomnia.

For whatever reason, I tend to root for the good guy. Sure, bad boys are attractive, but they've no long term potential. Love 'em and leave 'em, I say.

I've been getting increasingly annoyed at people who've belittled and criticized Steve Irwin and the folks who are upset by his death. He should have known better, he has kids, he never should have let himself be put in danger that way, he had it coming, how irresponsible.

Would you have said that about a police officer? A firefighter? A construction worker? What about the guy who eats McDonald's every day? Who doesn't work out three times a week? Who speeds around another car and cuts them off?

Should any of them be allowed to have kids? If any of those people die prematurely, should we just shrug and say, "he had it coming"?

Steve Irwin was a good guy. He didn't get his kicks from drugs, cheating on his wife, or beating other people up. Whatever clout he did have, he used it to further the cause of conservationism; he respected the power of the animals he dealt with. Steve Irwin was NOT a thing like Timothy Treadwell (the guy from Grizzly Man). Steve did not think of animals as having human emotions. He knew the reality of what he was dealing with, understood the difference between r and K selection. This was just a freak accident, like what could happen at any point in a person's life.

His death does add another level of credence to "only the good die young". Lance Armstong, that one-balled, philandering cheater-pants, he'll live to be 90 years old. Same with Darryl Strawberry - he'll be around to accuse his grandkids of hiding drugs in his glove compartment. Heck, with those stents, Bill Clinton might make 90, too.

And, as we all know, Voldemort Dick Cheney is immortal.

Comments

[annearchy.livejournal.com]

Amen. I haven't personally seen any of the "Don't cry over Steve Irwin" wankery but it annoys me too. WTF is it anyone's business if someone else misses the guy, who was, as you say, a good person in a dangerous line of work? LJ is full of morons. Don't let the fucktards get you down. *hugs*

[angylinni.livejournal.com]

word! Far too often, society idolizes the worst of the species. I will miss Steve Irwin, and the values he stood for. My kids derived hours of enjoyment from watching him interacting with wildlife. He will be missed greatly.

[ladyaeryn.livejournal.com]

I've only seen one post of the "he deserved it" nature on my f-list, fortunately (though I found it so stupidly insensitive that I almost defriended the girl on the spot). Anyway - AMEN. You wouldn't say "he had it coming" in the death of a firefighter or a cop - and you certainly wouldn't tell his family that either. Or, if you are the kind of person that would, please kindly - and quickly - remove yourself from my vicinity.

[tinyholidays.livejournal.com]

I love that this rant about people belittling Steve Irwin includes a description of Lance Armstrong as "one-balled, philandering cheater-pants." Lol.

[evelynnash.livejournal.com]

Uhh . . . suggesting that Timothy Treadwell "had it coming"?

[quidditchgrrl.livejournal.com]

Treating a full-ton animal as if it's a human is kind of stupid...but don't we all "have it coming" in some way, shape or form?

Karma, that bitch, always ruins the fun of living.

[quidditchgrrl.livejournal.com]

But no, he didn't deserve it.

[ishie]

I had almost this exact same (internal) rant in the shower this morning. Whatever your feelings on the man or his work, the fact is that he died years before he should have and leaves behind a wife who adored him and children who have been robbed of his presence. And let's not forget all the good he'll now never have the chance to do.

If I hear or read one more statement that "he got what he deserved," I'm going to scream. Getting a little too friendly with the wildlife =/= an early death.

[ishie]

Er, that should be =/= deserving of an early death. (I think school's already melted my brain.)

[blue-eye.livejournal.com]

The quote from Braveheart comes to mind...and I hope I have this right..."Every man dies, but not not every man truly lives."

Or something like that.

[authenticjoy.livejournal.com]

So, okay, if he did everything that people say he should have done, we would have had a show entitled The Crocodile Avoider.

That would have drawn a really big audience. Gotten lots of attention for conservation too.

It blows my mind that people are describing him as if he abused animals. The dude didn't abuse animals. He annoyed the piss out of them. There is a big, big difference between animal abuse and animal annoyance. People really need to get a fucking grip. Cripes, spend time fighting real animal abuse.

I kinda disagree with you on the animals having human emotions. Some of those animals looked pretty annoyed. ;)

I didn't even think he took a huge risk when he had his son on his hip in the croc enclosure. I wasn't surprised at the uproar, but I can see where he was coming from. I bet his parents took him into croc enclosures, taught him how to handle snakes and spiders, etc.. I'll also bet that he did it with his daughter - Just not in front of cameras. He just wasn't thinking that day. He looked truly baffled at the horrified gasps from the audience.

I think that sometimes that people forget that kids haven't always lived in a safety enclosure and that they've grown up pretty well. Sometimes less fearful and smarter for it too.

The wankers will ultimately be long forgotten when his shows are still being watched as classics.

Treadwell had his Kodiak Moments with the bears and that's all there was to that. What a moron. Seriously. Animals are not humans. I can't believe people would even compare Irwin to Treadwell. They aren't even close to being the same.