Steve Irwin's freak death filmed

[Herman Munster]

I bet some greedy individuals at his production company are going to sell the tape and get millions.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,20355112-601,00.html

FOOTAGE of Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin being fatally attacked by a stingray on the Great Barrier Reef has been handed to Queensland police as fans worldwide come to grips with the "freak" death.
Irwin, 44, was killed almost instantly when the stingray stabbed him in the heart with its poisonous 20cm barb as he snorkelled off Port Douglas, in north Queensland, yesterday morning.

His American-born wife, Terri, was trekking in Tasmania's Cradle Mountain and Lake St Clair National Park when the news broke of her husband's death and was last night being raced back to Queensland with her two children Bindi, 8, and Bob, 2.

"The footage shows him swimming in the water, the ray stopped and turned and that was it," said boatowner Peter West, who viewed the footage afterwards.

[Bunny]

1. Oh dear god, I hope this footage never sees the light of day.

I hate that our society has come to this, but I suppose it's inevitable. Sigh.

[Kajsa]

10. Ditto on that.

I hope the footage is kept in the police files
or destroyed.

[salin]

2. ghastly nt

[Radioactive]

3. Hopefully the tape hasn't been copied

and the production team or the police destroy it or keep it from being distributed on the net in respect of the family.

[swimmernsecretsea]

4. I hope it gets destroyed.

Nobody should see that. How awful.

[Ksec]

5. Id bet he was riding it.

Ive seen others latch on to the backs of rays and take rides.

[Radioactive]

8. They said he was swimming over the top of it

the camerman didn't say anything about him riding it.

[Zodiak]

9. He wasn't riding it

Get the facts before you let fly with the snark.

[moobu2]

14. He made millions of dollars

harassing and terrorizing wild animals for film footage, so the thought that he may have been riding or screwing around with this Sting Ray in some way isn’t outrageous. I wouldn’t be surprised if he wasn’t handling it or that he had been poking it with something earlier in an attempt to get some dramatic footage, that's what he did professionally.

[OzarkDem]

15. What garbage

I'm reporting you to the mods. This crap is getting ridiculous.

[moobu2]

18. Report anything you want.

I told the truth

[OzarkDem]

23. You posted an opinion

which was presented in an incredibly rude and insulting manner.

[WinkyDink]

37. No, you made up something and then agreed with yourself.

[LostinVA]

55. No, you didn't

You gave an your opinion, you did not preses nt the actual facts.

I honestly don't understand you posters that are literally making stuff up... does it make you feel good to act like this? I'm serious. I want to know. It's such a weird way to act, making up stuff just to be nasty about a man who was HUGE PROTECTOR AND ADVOCATE of animals.

[Mythsaje]

27. He made millions

showing the world that nature (even the scary bits) was something to admire and take joy in, not something to fear. He rescued animals in trouble, and did one hell of a lot for conservation efforts world-wide.

Harassed and terrorized indeed.

Whatever.

[Andrushka]

50. I agree

Rays don't just pop up and start lashing out at you unless you do something to provoke them in close proximity. He may not have been riding it or touching it, but he did something close to it to harrass it. My 2 cents, anyway.

[LostinVA]

56. No, they do

Ask Forrest Gump about it -- he's a Marine Biologist. Look at stuff on line. I've almost stepped on rays -- you startle them, they pop up, and swim away. That's what happened. Just like flushing out a pheasant. No different. He was looking for coral, not rays. From everything I've read and heard, the videotape bears this out.

[LostinVA]

52. He never terrorized ANY wild animals

If anything, he did the opposite -- he was a HUGE environmentalist and conservationist. He did huge amount of pro bono work helping to rescue animals, educating people, doing PR, etc. He handled animals, he didn't hurt them.

Dislike him all you want, but get you damned facts straight concerning the reason you hate him.

[seabeyond]

64. my 11 yr has been going thru the threads and notice your posts

he really thinks that you are right on your perspective and he appreciates what you are saying

so as a mom, impressed with my own boy, thank you for what you have been posting. he now wants to tell you

he has been watching the crocidile hunter for about 5 yrs, since 6. and he really really, wink, admires the man. and appreciates what he has given to his audience and taught him and his enthusiasm in what he does and for life

thanks va

[Zodiak]

67. Once again the evidence showed that he did neither

You sure are large on the vitriol and short on the facts.

[Name removed]

11. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Ksec]

20. grow up

Pretending he didnt use animals like circus sideshow freaks doesnt change it.

[OzarkDem]

24. You think its mature?

to exploit someone's tragic death as an opportunity to vent your spleen? That's pretty sick and not typical of most DU'ers. I'm surprised you post here, most of the people here probably offend you also.

[Ksec]

26. Wow, your vitriol trumps anything I could write

You need to take a break if someone disagreeing with you upsets you that much.

[OzarkDem]

29. Disgust is more like it

pardon me if I'm offended by people who are so rude and uncaring of others and who think its sport to ridicule and attack people who aren't around to defend themselves.

Pretty cowardly to engage in that sort of behavior.

[Ksec]

30. I thought this was a forum for opinions.

My bad.

[OzarkDem]

33. Yes, your bad

You're entitled to your opinion, but not entitled to insult and attack good people without justification. You're not entitled to post false and misleading information about people who can't defend themselves.

Its bad form to present opinions as fact, especially when posting insulting and inflammatory information. I wouldn't recommend it if you want to be taken seriously. What's the point in posting that way? Is it just to unburden yourself? Is there some greater lesson you seek to teach? If so, this isn't the way to get it done.

[Ksec]

39. Yes, Dr . Laura.

[WinkyDink]

40. Now we agree.

[WinkyDink]

38. Australians beg to differ. Try reading THEIR news articles and

editorials and on-line posts.

[mcscajun]

31. Why not read the article linked by the OP before you form an opinion?

Sheesh.

[WinkyDink]

36. Not Australian rays; Cayman Island rays. NOT the same.

[NOLADEM]

6. For the sake of his children, I hope this tape is destroyed

But I fear greed will win out.

[Human Torch]

12. If autopsy photos of John Lennon and Elvis Presley got out...

...which they did...this will get out too.

It's a sick world we live in.

[OzarkDem]

13. I think the poster is implying

that his relatives or company would release the film to make money. Pretty despicable insinuation, but not surprising from some of the sewage that has seeped into DU lately.

[Human Torch]

17. I just hope the man can rest in peace...

...and that someone had the good sense to destroy the film the minute they realized what happened.

:patriot:

[OzarkDem]

19. Here's hoping

the mods at DU exercise some good judgement and clean up some of these threads, too.

[Deja Q]

16. Worst of all, it's sickest when only celebrities get the treatment.

It's like nobody except celebrities are allowed to exist; and celebrities deserve a free ride, regardless of what they do.

[LostinVA]

57. His best friend is his cameraman

I expect, after the PM and inquest, it will be destroyed. This is a mate of his from way back -- they are tight.

[sandrakae]

7. Hopefully they don't have crooked cops like the US does.

[LiberalArkie]

21. I personally think that if the family wants to sell the tape, it is the

families business.

[OzarkDem]

25. Pretty despicable of you

to assume his family would want to exploit his death for money. You sound like you're in the wrong forum.

[ContraBass Black]

43. He said "if."

[boolean]

48. Exploit his death????

WTF. It's his family. If for some reason they would want people to see the tape, what business is that of anybody else?

Newsflash to all of you: He's dead. He doesn't care if people are saying bad things about him. he doesn't care if a tape of his demise is leaked to the population. He doesn't exist anymore. Get over yourselves, all of you. It sucks what happened to him, but that's no reason to get all weepy eyed unless you're directly related to him or a good friend of his. He's just another celebrity who died, just like all the other celebrities who die.

Sheesh. You people are taking this like the guy was your father or something. People die.

It isn't despicable of me or anyone else to not really give a shit, really. He wasn't murdered. He wasn't sent off to war by a profit taking incompetent asshole. It was an accident.

[LostinVA]

59. What the heck is WRONG with you???

Who cares that you don't care? Not me. So why the FUCK do you acre that we care? People can have feelings for someone not their kin or friends -- it's called EMPATHY. Got that? Your not understanding this and our feelings makes me know you don't have it -- 'cause you don't get it.

People who are strangers can touch your life.

It honestly is very, very sad you can't feel this for people "not your father." Very sad and empty and lonely.

There's a "Hide Thread" feature, you know., Or are you having too much fun telling us all we're stupid?

Get a life.

[LostinVA]

58. There is NO fricking way Terri Irwin would do that

If you knew anything about her, you would know that.

Geez.

[guinivere]

22. It's probably too much to hope for that this will

never be shown.

[cornermouse]

28. No. This should never be seen.

[Withywindle]

32. Oh God, I hope this never gets out

I imagine the police and medical examiners and stuff will need to see it, but no one else should.

It reminds me of Grizzly Man - there's an audio tape that recorded the sounds of Treadwell and his girlfriend being killed by the bear. Treadwell's ex has it. There's a very moving scene in the film where Herzog listens to a minute or two of it through headphones and starts crying. He asks her if she's ever listened to it and she says no. He tells her she must NEVER listen to it, and she should destroy it.

Later on, he talks about doing Q&A's where everyone wants to know why he didn't use it in the film. He says "over my dead body" and "I didn't want to make a snuff film."

But there are always going to be the sickos who want that.

[Windy]

34. Not only for the sake of his family, which is primary...but also for the

millions of little kids who worshipped him...

[WinkyDink]

35. I bet they don't.

[mcscajun]

41. My money's with your bet.

His production company, his family, his friends, none of them will ever release this.

IF it gets out at all, and I certainly hope it does not, it will be by theft. And I hope any such thief winds up swinging by his heels over a croc pen.

[partylessinOhio]

42. This thread sounds like a dogmatic lecture on what you cannot post here!

I hope the tape is reviewed to see if Irwin provoked the attack which was my first thought. I cannot forget him dangling his infant child near a croc not so long ago.

This man seemed to be driven to get attention. He was so hyper I could not stand to watch him and always flipped the channel. Let's face it Irwin was not Marlin Perkins.

[ContraBass Black]

44. From what I've read, it sounds like he was passing by and it caught him

As it would catch its prey, by hiding in the sand and striking upward.

[partylessinOhio]

51. That link above won't load on my pc, so I don't know what was said there.

I did a search and found this:

Among the best know rays are stingrays, which have long, slim, whiplike tails armed with serrated, venomous spines. A stingray lashes its tail only as a defensive measure when it is caught, stepped on, or otherwise disturbed.

When wading in shallow waters, people should shuffle their feet to avoid stepping on a buried stingray.

Jack Hanna was just on the evening news and he said we should know what happened in a few days. He did say the Irwin was hands on while scientists usually watch animals from a distance. He also said that working with animals is like working with a loaded gun.

[LostinVA]

62. Right, disturbed

Swimming by, etc. disturbs them. It's apparent you've never done much SCUBA or snorkeling where rays are common.

[LostinVA]

61. Wrong-o, Steve was swimming, that's it -- a freak accident

And I agree: Steve wasn't Marlin Perkins: he was "better" than Marlin Perkins. I mean that.

[Bridget Burke]

73. If you could not stand to watch Steve Irwin....

How can you critique his work?

[boolean]

45. I'd want to see it

Sorry, guys, but the curiosity would just get the better of me. I'd totally want to see just how a sting ray could've stabbed him right in the heart like that.

It's truly a one in a million shot. He was unlucky, that's all.

But I'd still want to see it. Anyone here who says otherwise is lying to themselves. You'd all watch.

[cornermouse]

46. You're incredibly wrong.

I never ever want to see anyone die.

[Withywindle]

47. Speak for yourself!

No, not everyone would watch. I wouldn't.

I can be strongly negatively affected by deaths in movies even when I know it's fake. Seeing the real thing holds no appeal whatsoever. I've seen death in front of me before; I'll face it when I have to but I'm not about to seek it out when I don't.

Maybe it's cowardice, maybe it's lack of curiosity, maybe it's empathy that's all too strong--I have enough nightmares already, thanks!--maybe it's all of the above, but if it were on the DVD player in my house, I would walk out of the room.

I'm not alone either.

[ContraBass Black]

53. I'd rather just wait for a news report.

[LostinVA]

63. I am not lying to myself, and how DARE you presume to say that

About me. Maybe YOU want to see someone die "out of curiosity." I have no desire to. Even if it wasn't Steve Irwin, I wouldn't.

Get over yourself. I mean it.

[Crunchy Frog]

65. Gosh. What a surprise.

:eyes:

[kiki]

70. God I hate it when people do that

Once, while messing about on the internet, a friend turned to me and said, "Hey, wanna see a film of a baby being hit by a train?" My instant and instinctive reaction was as if the question had been, "Hey, want me to hit you in the balls with a claw hammer?" - "No, why the fuck would I want that?"

OK, so you're the kind of person that feels the need to rubberneck at traffic accidents, to get a little voyeuristic buzz at someone else's misfortune - a "casualty vampire", as the Circle Jerks might say. As indicated above, some of my friends are the same. But none of them would use this idea that "Everyone's as bad as me", because they realise it is bullshit designed to make themselves feel better about their own proclivities, and nothing more. A shrug and an "I'm a bad widdle boy" smile are a more honest excuse than this.

From the tone of your post, you seem to feel that this desire isn't the most noble part of your personality. Perhaps, rather than taking the lazy, defeatist and utterly untrue position that this is just the way ALL human beings are, you should think about changing this aspect of yourself.

[treestar]

72. It could be useful as a scare tactic for wannabees who think they

wnat to "live life to its fullest" by doing this sort of thing. Like the drug-scare movies they showed us in junior high. They'd show these horrible, gross movies of people who had overdosed on drugs.

[judaspriestess]

49. Its gonna be fair game to alot of people

I personally was appalled having to see people jump off the world trade center buildings after the planes hit. I don't need to see that and I don't want to see this either but I'm sure its going to make its way into our view.

[Radioactive]

54. They may release video captures of Steve with the sting ray

but I cant see them releasing the video.

[FARAFIELD]

60. considering YOUTUBE

Its only a matter of time, although the DALE EARNHARDT autopsy photos never showed up and I expected that.
Id watch it, i still laugh when people call it a freak death, he is a man with a death wish, its totally expected.

[Jamastiene]

66. I'd be willing to bet they don't allow it to get out.

His children and too many of his fans are children as well would not want to see it. Many adults would not want to see it. I am included in the bunch. I'd rather remember him as he was when we was aline. RIP Steve.

[treestar]

68. It happened, it is reality, why shouldn't people see it?

People who want to protect themselves from reality have the option of not watching it. I wouldn't watch it either, just due to lack of interest, but if other people are, why shouldn't they? The motives aren't all bad. Some might learn from it. Avoid accidents in the future. Some would watch it just to get a kick, but wasn't that what he was doing his whole life?

I have sympathy for his kids, who have to pay the price for his "bravery" and his "love of life" and how he died doing "what he loved" and couldn't back off when he knew he was the father of young children. Not so much for him. After all, he "loved life" and got to live it to the "fullest." It's his wife and kids that pay the price. And the little kids who liked watching him, to whom we somehow have to explain it now.

Maybe I'm on compassion fatigue for celebrities, but to me it just pisses me off a little, at him. Even if it wasn't his fault and most stingray bites are not fatal. He could have minimized the risk, even if it made him look "cowardly."

[ReverendDeuce]

69. I also think that it SHOULD be made public... n/t

n/t

[oc2002]

71. I hope they destroy the film in respect.

nt.