…and they won’t invite him!
Since he’s a Sr, he’s disqualified from the Darwin Award.
No condolences for the snake? I wouldn’t want to bite that guy.
The existence of offspring, though potentially deleterious to the gene pool, does not disqualify a nominee. Children inherit only half of each parent’s genetic material and thus have their own chance to survive or snuff themselves. If, for instance, the offspring has inherited the “Play With Combustibles” gene, but also has inherited the “Use Caution When…” gene, then she is a potential innovator and asset to the human race. Therefore, each nominee is judged based on whether or not she has removed her own genes, without consideration to the number of offspring or, in the case of an elderly winner, the likelihood of producing more offspring.
It’s kind of surprising he died, actually. Only 1 in 600 rattlesnake bites are fatal on average and being it was a Rattlesnake Roundup they presumably had antivenom and medical care standing by. Maybe because the bite was on his shoulder instead of a limb it went right to his heart.
Here’s a story about the event. He shows up several times in the attached video.
I don’t think this guy is any more deserving of mockery than anybody who works with dangerous animals and is injured (e.g. Roy Horn, Steve Irwin).
I’d agree. At first I thought he was handling snakes as part of a religious ritual (which would be mock-worthy) but simple bad luck is different.
Upon reflection, I think you’re correct, or at least more in tune with the situation than my rush to judgement.
If you handle poisonous snakes for a living though, that 600th rattlesnake is a doozy.
The problem with handling rattlesnakes regularly is that you can potentially develop or just have a sensitivity to BOTH venom (very rare, but has happened) and antivenom (a little less rare). In that case the anaphylaxis is what can kill you. I know someone who was had been bitten three times and the last time spent a couple weeks in the hospital and he could not be given any antivenom for fear of killing him as he is just flat out allergic to the stuff.
Beyond that there are certain rattlesnakes that are just a lot worse than average. Specifically the type A population of the Mojave rattlesnake are critters you really do not want to get bitten by. They bite very few people and there is a good antivenom available - but yeah, odds get dicier with those.
I have actually touched a Mojave green that someone else had a firm grip on. But I won’t handle rattlesnakes myself, despite not being scared of them and kinda knowing what I’m doing. Because I am well aware how clumsy I can occasionally be 
. Also I’m not a thrill seeker - I don’t like roller coasters or driving at 125 mph and I won’t ever try to climb Everest. Sadly I’ve known more than one person that got too casual and fucked up handling a venomous snake. It isn’t worth it for me.
The only Mojave green I’ve seen was in a glass enclosure at the survival school at Edwards AFB.
Smoked some a couple months back.
6.3
Nutty coincidence, but no, not avatar related.
I saw one in the wild in the Mojave. It was a young one, and we kept our distance.
I stumbled upon an old link in my bookmarks, and, given the recent passing of Naomi Judd, it seems to be tangentially relevant. But it strikes me as being somewhat satirical. Can anyone tell me if The Effect of Country Music on Suicide Rates (small pdf) is meant to be a serious (perhaps Ignobel) study?
NFTs just remind me of getting a star named after you on the Star Registry, or paying for a copy of the “Who’s Who” book you are included in.
There was a writing prompt I saw the other day: Humanity has accomplished safe, easy space travel. And suddenly all of those “Star Registry” lists are being enforced as legal ownership…
Good riddance! Now that Tomb Raider and Deus Ex are free from SE’s crappy management, maybe we’ll get some good TR/DX games again!
And your millage will be…
I’ve been watching this (particularly long) Legal Eagle explanation of the legal issues with NFTs. If I wasn’t already skeptical of them before, I sure would be after watching this.
I had virtually no trouble flying with a Swiss Army knife in my carryon but that was before 9/11. I simply forgot the thing was there when I was flying out of DCA.
Who tries to fly with an entire collection? This stupid MF:
An Alexandria, Va., man was cited by police after Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers unloaded a stash of 23 prohibited items from the man’s carry-on bag at one of the security checkpoints at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) yesterday, Wednesday, May 4. Twenty-three items were knives including scalpels and martial arts throwing knives.
Among the items that were pulled from the carry-on bag were:
- Nine disposable scalpels
- Eight folding locking-blade knives
- Three martial arts throwing knives
- One dagger
- One switchblade
- One pair of brass knuckles