The Crocodile Hunter isn’t even in the ground yet and already the pundits are taking shots at his legacy. Witness Germaine Greer’s toxic evaluation of Steve Irwin, published in the September 5 online edition of The Guardian:
Every creature he brandished at the camera was in distress. Every snake badgered by Irwin was at a huge disadvantage, with only a single possible reaction to its terrifying situation, which was to strike. Easy enough to avoid, if you know what’s coming. Even my cat knew that much. Those of us who live with snakes, as I do with no fewer than 12 front-fanged venomous snake species in my bit of Queensland rainforest, know that they will get out of our way if we leave them a choice.
…
The only time Irwin ever seemed less than entirely lovable to his fans (as distinct from zoologists) was when he went into the Australia Zoo crocodile enclosure with his month-old baby son in one hand and a dead chicken in the other. For a second you didn’t know which one he meant to feed to the crocodile. If the crocodile had been less depressed it might have made the decision for him. As the catatonic beast obediently downed its tiny snack, Irwin walked his baby on the grass, not something that paediatricians recommend for rubbery baby legs even when there isn’t a stir-crazy carnivore a few feet away
It really shouldn’t be so surprising that memory of a larger-than-life character like The Crocodile hunter would eventually be ripped to shreds in the media … but could the commercial trolls not wait at least a week before doing so posthumously?
To be honest, I didn’t know who Germaine Greer was before reading her odious commentary, but based on some quick reading she sounds like a bitter holdover from the bra-burning era who has to resort to shock-factor in a vain attempt to remain relevant. Thus, she offered little more than the usual condescension of the far left without realizing that by causing animals minor discomfort for the purpose of show, Steve Irwin was bringing awareness to the much larger discomfort caused by industrialization and civilization. Educating millions of humans on how changes in our ecosystem can affect snakes is just a bit more helpful than bragging about snakes on your property or demonstrating your “superior†knowledge in the handling of animals (or children for that matter). True, Greer can’t be faulted concerning the Crocodile Hunter’s lapse in judgment by bringing his son so close to a crocodile, but as said before there’s a time and a place for snooty critiques.
I look forward to the abuse my blogosphere peers will heap on this testosterone-a-phobic relic Greer.
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Sir, I’ve got to tell you I agree with greer! Whilst granting my sympathies to the Irwin Family I believe several usefull points need to be taken into acount for reasonable belance purposes. Which are…..
1. The reason why you havn’t heard of Greer before is because like so many other mindless people you are ignorent and uneducated.
2. With respect, Steve Irwin made millions off the backs off crocs and other animals through at times acts of provocation for our own twisted emusement.
3. With respect, Steve Irwin was quoted as stating that Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, was “The greatest leader in the world.
4. With respect, Steve Irwin had ‘Apparently’ placed all his Australia Zoo Employees on Individual Australian Workplace Agreements(AWAs), which is on record as being one of the most reched, dracronion and horrific initiatives of the present Australian Governent lead by the greatest Prime Minister in the world. According to Irwin.
5. If we were all serious about real conversation then we’d actually VOTE for it. Fact is that one person simply entertaining us on TV won’t make the slightest diffeence Nationally or even Globally for that matter without our collective actions through political participation and lobbying. For its our Parliaments and through them our elected Governments that can dramatically change the way we care for wildlife and the preservation of their habbitats by enacting enviromentally and ecologically sound legislation that echo our common sentiment. And,
6. With respect, Steve Irwin’s Australia Zoo and Tevevision enterprises racked in tourism dollars and royalties to him and his Family every financial year. Money he chose to spend on buying up surrounding land around his Zoo so as to place more indangered wildlife in captivaty, again for our own sick emusment, instead of using his status and wealth to advocate for public preservatioon of their exsisting habbitats.
I would suggest that those like you who are so quick to hail him a national/global hero might like to temper your remarks by some rational and seasable exsamination of some of the facts in his life always remembering the story and motives that lie behind all the initial whisals and fan fair.
All this said, we can agree on one thing at least which is.. May he rest in peace. David.