Just have to vent

[-Matt-]

Everyone has now heard about the burmese python that killed the little girl. Well today I bought my local paper in Port Macquarie, and in the letters to the editor/your opinion section they have asked the question "Do you think snakes should be kept as pets?"
Well these are just some of the responses from the people they have asked...

"I hate snakes and anyone that keeps them has serious problems"

"I would never keep snakes, there is too much of a chance that they would kill my kids"

"I have no problem with snakes being kept as pets, but Id be too scared that they'd kill children"

This really made me furious, obviously these people have no idea and actually believe that snakes are out there to kill us and the paper is portraying the idea of snakes being out there just to kill humans. What a joke!

 

[Chris1]

hehe, what about those killer cats that kill more babies than snakes do by sitting on their faces,..any one who keeps a cat must also be a moron,..lol,..! ;P

 

[aoife]

yes, its so frustrating, to say the least.

 

[ezzy-eades]

yea mate i agree the media have the power to hype any issue up more then what it really is, in this case it was a freak accident, very sad tho

 

[grannieannie]

Yep, know how you feel, I feel the same way, but it's up to us to educate people write an alternative letter to the paper. In our....Perth Now....internet section of our paper, someone who called themselves an .... expert...said that snakes crush every bone in the body then eat them head first. I wrote and told the...expert....that snakes are constrictors, not crushers and if they couldn't get their facts right, to shut up. I used to think it was wrong to keep reptiles, I thought they should be left in the wild as nature intended them to be. But I have a lovely little stimmie who I'm sure gets a better life with me than he ever would in the wild. For thousands of years snakes have been seen as nasties in our culture...whereas in eastern cultures snakes are often seen as gods. We have a long road ahead of us to educate people, but we must try at every opportunity to teach the public that these are beautiful animals. Let's keep fighting the good fight.

 

[cracksinthepitch]

I wonder if one of our more literate members could write a response to the editor for this paper and possibly educate the masses with some correct information. Or maybe it will fall on deaf ears as usual as it wont sell more papers.

 

[stretch101]

and the sad part about all of this is ppl are so ready to believe everything they here on the news or read in the paper... does it distract them from there own lives? i really do feel for the parents and i certainly feel for that poor little girl.... but honestly like chris 1 has said, what about the cats that suffocate children in their sleep? and dont get me wrong, i LOVE dogs but i am constantly hearing about dog attacks, even when they are not fatal, they still make headlines (even when its not always the dogs fault). *sigh* i think this is just another perfect example of how biased our society is, and its sad to see that ppl who really have no idea what they are talking about get their opinions published.

 

[Col J]

I have been a paramedic for more years than I want to remember & have twice had the experience of trying to save a small child which had been mauled by dog(s). Both these little girls expired later in hospital, due to their injuries & most people seemed to have their rage quenched when the offending dog(s) were destroyed. Very unfortunate & avoidable incidents, just like the Burmese Python incident. Can't remember anyone trying to ban the keeping of dogs though!

Just my TCW,

Col J.

 

[Colin]

yeah but what sort of person actually wastes their time writing letters to newspapers?
whingers and people with too much time on their hands..
who cares what those bleeding hearts say?

parents kill more kids than snakes.
cars kill more children than snakes.
diseases kills more children than snakes.
drugs kill more children than snakes.
etc

 

[grannieannie]

Colin....very good points there.....

 

[cracksinthepitch]

yeah but what sort of person actually wastes their time writing letters to newspapers?
whingers and people with too much time on their hands..
who cares what those bleeding hearts say?

parents kill more kids than snakes.
cars kill more children than snakes.
diseases kills more children than snakes.
drugs kill more children than snakes.
etc

Very true Colin.
Im turning into my dad for saying this though, but they are only getting one side of the debate and the idiots out there that read it with a closed mind will believe this. Also depends on the quality of the newspaper and i dont know this one as im south of south.

 

[mysnakesau]

"I hate snakes and anyone that keeps them has serious problems"

That means me. I have serious problems. I have 11 snakes and 4 more arriving anytime soon.

"I would never keep snakes, there is too much of a chance that they would kill my kids"

What about any other pet - dogs, cats, even rabbits can inflict nasty bites and scratches. Kids can fall of their bike and be killed. Better keep them locked up, might be safer.

"I have no problem with snakes being kept as pets, but Id be too scared that they'd kill children"

As above..what about the pet dog or the mechanical animal parked in the driveway. They're bigger than snakes

This really made me furious, obviously these people have no idea and actually believe that snakes are out there to kill us and the paper is portraying the idea of snakes being out there just to kill humans. What a joke!

And sadly this probably will never change. Un-educated and don't want to be.

 

[Beardieboy]

This is why I don't like people. Give me an animal for company over a human any day.

 

[moosenoose]

We're the serious minority of people who like snakes. 95% of the population would undoubtably believe we're all better off without them. Such a typical ape-like mentality! Primitive & uneducated. It's pretty much equivalent to children being afraid of the dark with the main difference being that most people will never see a snake other than inside a glass box at a zoo.

 

[Lovemydragons]

As much as I hate to say it, there are a lot of people out there with these thoughts and ideas about snakes, and there's probably not much we can do to change that. I have two snakes plus other critters at home including to medium to large dogs. But my fiance who is not a fan of my unusual pets is more worried about the snakes hurting or killing our future kids that anything else.

As much as i try to educate him he's not a fan and I accept that, but if I can't change the perception of snakes to someone I live with, there's not much hope of changing the minds of total strangers. I just hope that with time he will eventually understand them better and not be so affraid of them.

 

[kandi]

the snake haters should take an interest of the basic education and understanding of individual species , to back there reasoning on why snakes are all dangerous. these ignorant narrow minded tunnel vision individuals are backward in there way of thinking and are making an impact on the lively hood of out beloved scaley friends.

 

[Jungletrans]

your kids are much more likely to get killed in a car accident on the way to get the snake .

 

[wranga]

i have serious issues owning over 20 snakes. but hey snakes allways get a bad rap, after all their killers arent they. im guessing the media want all the hype about this tragic death to sell their papers. its not worth the coments as their stories are allways one sided. its just a shame there isnt more educated people that understand that the owner of this snake stuffed up in not being sure his snake was kept in a secure enclosure. had this been done we wouldnt be talking about this tragic death of this young child

 

[Freeloader]

Man it's nice to know i have serious problems. At least i know what it is now.

 

[webcol]

Get over it! no matter what you are into there is always morons out there who have no idea what they are talking about, who cares what a few people think, its not going to change anything.