Stunned

"Steve Irwin, the daredevil wildlife documentarian, was killed in a stingray attack while filming on the Great Barrier Reef."
I don't really have any commentary on this. Just count me in among the millions who were surprised and saddened to hear this news.   Very sad. :(
And all I can think of is. a stingray???
We'll miss him, that's for sure.

Comments

[Janet]

That's what I thought, too. I mean...while taking a cruise, that's one of the most popular excursions...

[kenju]

I was saddened by it too, Laura, but others, judging by a comment I received on it, see him differently. I am so sorry for his pretty wife and cute kids.

[Nils]

After I came here this morning and read this, I went back in and told the rest of the family. General dismay was the reaction, but then Allie said "You know, I feel sorry for his wife and kids and everything ... but isn't it better that he goes like this - doing what he loves and is known for - than if he caught pneumonia or appendicitis or something?"

Had to agree with her, by crikey.

[MrsJoseGoldbloom]

Another wierd sidenote: Filming the stingrays wasn't even on the agenda. He saw a big group of them go by and just decided to do the filming.

[Old Horsetail Snake]

Truly, truly, we will.

[Terri]

I was as shocked and saddened as you when I read about it this morning.
I just commented on Kenju's blog...You must be familiar with ALL the stingray attacks on Clearwater beach every year in Aug, aren't you? My poor hubby got a barb about 15 years ago there...I remember the Tampa News telling people to do the "stingray shuffle" when walking into the Gulf in Aug. Stingrays are VERY unpleasant and that barb is horribly painful.

[Jeff]

Am I the only one to think that Steve had a greater reponsbility to his two children than to chasing dangerous critters? It's not like his reputation was at stake.

I hate to harsh your wildlife adrenaline buzz, buddy, but stingrays and crocs and snakes and sharks are a dime a dozen. So are nature hosts on TV. Fathers aren't.

[Nils]

You know what's not a dime a dozen? People who spend their lives drawing attention to the plight of wildlife and educating the public about the beauty to be found even in the most dangerous corners of nature.

Many endangered species are better off today because Steve Irwin had the gift of demystifying nature red in tooth and claw and helping a generation of viewers better understand some of the creatures we share this world with.

His style was unorthodox, and easily lent itself to parody. But every action we take in life boils down to "acceptable risk", and given his knowledge of the natural world, we can assume that what he was doing constituted "acceptable risk" and that what happened was a freak accident.

Yes, he leaves behind a wife and two children. But had he died in a plane crash or a car accident (both of which we - who know far less about planes or cars than Steve Irwin knew about dangerous species - would call "acceptable risks"), nobody would be cynically chuckling over his death.

People like Irwin, who work tirelessly (whether paid handsomely or not) to educate and inform us about the world we live in are not a dime a dozen. Nobody could watch him and say he was foolhardy - in fact, he was forever taking exceptional precautions before handling dangerous critters. And still, some people will write his death off as some sort of quirky irony or glib one-liner. Too easy, and wrong to boot.

People who do THAT are a dime a dozen, and you've overpaid.

[InterstellarLass]

I was so sad about this too. I think his passion about life in general made him a standout man.

[Seamus]

It is a sad loss, but he did go out doing what he loved best! We should be so lucky, hmmm?

[tony]

Very well said, Nils.

I was a big "Steve" fan. He made me laugh with his craziness. He was fearless. Too bad he wasn't on that damn plane with Samuel L. Jackson. Maybe some innocent lives could have been saved.

[Katherine]

I know, very sad! I've heard all these people on TV saying, very self-importantly, "Well, you know, he died doing what he loved." blah blah blah. That's just a stupid comment and certainly no comfort to his family. He could have continued to do what he loved and died doing it 20 years from now.

[floridacracker]

Stingrays have only one active defense against the sharks who prey on them and that is the barb in their tail. It's never an "attack". It's an instinctive defensive reaction to a perceived threat.
It is incredibly painful. I rank my stingray stings just a little more painful than amputating my left ring finger. Neither was much fun, but the stingray was more intense.
I'll miss Steve.

[thingfish23]

I'm with FC, and I'm glad he said it. A stingray "attack" is somewhat misleading, but please don't think I'm commenting here to cast stones, Laura. I'm not.

I just hate to see what really is a neat fish get a bum rap over this, and I'm pretty sure Mr. Irwin wouldn't have wanted that either. Yet, in the news over this event, I heard the word "attack" used over and over again.

It's not like people aren't already scared or "in the dark" enough about wildlife... They don't need misinformation on the "News" contributing to the problem...

Okay - I'm done. Like I said, please don't take this "chiming in" the wrong way.

RIP Steve. You had huge brass you-know-whats, and I love ya, baby. Good on ya, mate.

[Laura]

Thingfish: Whining? Absolutely not. I agree with you 100%. I was going to do a followup post to this particular post, but the entire week has been so busy, I've just been too tired to think about it. I also thought I'd just wait to see what type of spin the media puts on it.

For the most part, I've been glad to see the positive outpouring of support for his family. The man had an incredible career and he died too young, much too young.

There will never be another Steve Irwin. Even if we come across another nature show with a imitation host that says "CRIKEY!" it won't be the same.