Sad week for Australia

[540DEGREE TorqueTurn]

crikey steve erwins DEAD

killed by a sting ray barb through the chest :uhoh:

[Pelorus Jack]

A very sad day today without a doubt.

He was the most intelligent man in Australia.

My condolences to Terri, his family and the staff at Australia Zoo.

[Whirlygig]

http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=242211

being discussed in Jet Blast where the non-aviation stuff goes.

Cheers

Whirls

[Steve76]

Yeah but he was picked up by QES 412.
This is really sad, he was the real deal and this is tragic.

[UnDies]

Damn!!! What a terrible loss - A good man.

[movin' up]

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Movin' Up


Offensive comments about Irwin's family deleted.
Heliport

[jetflite]

Movin up....thats pretty harsh...

hope when your parents died or DIE....there death is not mocked & neither are you...:ugh:
everone deserves some respect....especially family members left behind.

[movin' up]

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Movin'Up

[jetflite]

hard yakka, toyota... & i reckon alot of others will jump on the band wagon to....

He stood for a good cause and put alot of effort and money into animal preservation, education and made his mark world wide...certainly boosting Australian tourism...

I guess it's only a matter of time before the footage is leaked.. as he was filming a documentry....

[NickLappos]

I love the pontifical judgements passed on here when someone bites the dust. Irwin was bright, funny, a great showman, a truly enthusiastic person who taught us all about the wonder of nature. His stunts were part danger and part showmanship, and he lived a life most of us would gladly swap 10 years of our lives for.
Regarding those who think that he caused his own demise, remember, "An optimist is a helicopter pilot who quits smoking."

[movin' up]

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Movin' Up



Offensive comments about Irwin's family deleted.
Heliport

[B Sousa]

"and he lived a life most of us would gladly swap 10 years of our lives for"

Nick, hold on there, the guy was Unique for sure but I dont think I would want to go around grabbing some deadly snake by the ass end...... Takes someone real special.
Im sure many more folks than we can imagine will miss him and his enthusiasim......

[Flying Lawyer]

movin' up

I agree David Attenborough is undoubtedly the finest maker of wildlife documentaries ever, but Steve Irwin aimed for and reached a wider audience.
It may say a lot (to you) about "the intellect of those watching", but millions of people who wouldn't think of watching an Attenborough documentary nonetheless learned a great deal about the wonders of wildlife from Irwin.


I agree with Nick and jetflite about the comments you've made.

[jetflite]

Movin' up - it seems you didn't understand my point after all....why lie? it's something so small!!!

Before judgeing someone you don't know...try getting to know there history,
Irritated animals....far from it...

Steve Irwin's history for those to read before blasting him Movin' up this is for you,Just incase you still don't understand...:ugh:

His exuberant and enthusiastic presenting style, broad Australian accent, constant wearing of khakis and catch-phrase "Crikey!" became known worldwide: The Crocodile Hunter aired in over 122 countries worldwide.

Under Irwin's expansive leadership, the operations grew to include the zoo, the television series, The Steve Irwin Conservation Foundation, and International Crocodile Rescue. Improvements to his Australia Zoo include the Animal Planet Crocoseum, the rainforest aviary, and Tiger Temple

In 2001 Irwin was awarded the Centenary Medal for his "service to global conservation and to Australian tourism". In 2004 he was nominated for Australian of the Year.

Irwin believed in promoting environmentalism by sharing his excitement about the natural world rather than preaching to people. He was concerned with conservation of endangered animals and land clearing leading to loss of habitat. He urged people to take part in considerate tourism and not support illegal poaching through the purchase of items such as turtle shells. He considered conservation to be the most important part of his work: "I consider myself a wild-life warrior. My mission is to save the world's endangered species."

He founded the Steve Irwin Conservation Foundation, which was later renamed Wildlife Warriors Worldwide, and became an independent charity

[movin' up]

Message removed

Movin' Up

[topendtorque]

At the end of the day - wild animals in the wild - are -wild animals in the wild - unpredictable.

That is why he had it hanging on the wall, no surprises across north oz.

No i'll not speak ill of the passed on, however he was far more revered over there than here Nick, especially up north where many of us deal with these creatures now and then and respect them for what they are.

I do think the role model status was very questionable, showing kids how to grab hold of a king brown and making fun of it was well beyond the pale.

As a role model he may have been on a par with another bloke - helicopter pilot - alby someone? as a man steve was way above him for sure and a true blue there was no doubt.

Attenborough gets my best vote.

[OneManBand]

At the risk of a sound Pruners bashing, may I start by saying I admired Steve's balls and his untimely demise at the "sharp end" of a potentially dangerous animal must be hard to bear for family, friends and fans alike. My sympathies to all affected by his passing.

However, given his zest for life (lets face it most of us have a pretty dangerous job also !) I would like to think he'd have laughed also...

http://i113.photobucket.com/albums/n202/OneManBand_2006/d57737cc.jpg

I mean no disrespect to anyone, but was amazed with the speed of this release, and must confess to laughing !

OMB.

[SASless]

I don't know about some of you but I learned more about Australian wildlife than I ever expected by watching Irwin's TV programs. He was fun to watch and made light of himself while passing a good message about wildlife issues.

I can assure you he did things I would never dream of.....the one scene during the "Ten Most Poisonous Snakes" program where he was laying on the ground near a hole and the number one fella crawled out and licked him on the nose was a stunner and definitely not planned. The look on Irwin's face when that happened confirmed it (as probably the undie change afterwards too).

The Man lived life and died doing what he loved...he leaves a lovely family and a lot of friends behind. Seems like quite a good legacy to me.

[bellfest]

The development of this thread is unbelievable. I have on more than one occasion taken the piss on pprune but this is over the top. If I manage to achieve 1/10 of what this man has for environmental awareness and preservation in my life and show even a glimmer of his passion and dedication to our planet I will die a very satisfied man.
Movin up, other than saying you're a :mad: wit, I want to ask you, do you think those brown snakes are mentally scarred from Steve's hands?
Love his way or hate it, you can't deny what he stood for and what he achieved and for that he should be commended. The man was a legend.
What have you done to better the world?

[LOOPYGIRL]

And 2004 must have been a poor year for role models.......did he win?


Is your life so sad that you have to mock the dead,
anybody loosing alife is sad (unless your a lowlife child abuser ect), whether you like there chosen way off life or not , this man done no harm to anybody , proberbly saved lives by teaching people whats what in the wildlife world, lets hope his wife mother young children will only read the good about this man and not the attitudes of people who no nothing about what there talking about, movin' up your a sad lonley man. Ifeel sorry for you for being so lame.

[Whirlygig]

anybody loosing alife is sad (unless your a lowlife child abuser ect),

So you can sit in judgment but no-one else can? Don't forget, this guy DID dangle his month-old baby over a crocodile.

Cheers

Whirls

[Efirmovich]

Could some one give me a link to the Rotorhead forum ? ? I think i have got on to a wild life site ? ! ! :bored:

E

[Bronx]

Could some one give me a link to the Rotorhead forum ? ? I think i have got on to a wild life site ? ! ! :bored:
E
Movin up made some uncivilized comments but it don't help to call him wildlife. :=


B.

[LOOPYGIRL]

So you can sit in judgment but no-one else can? Don't forget, this guy DID dangle his month-old baby over a crocodile.

Cheers

Whirls

yeah that was stupid ,wasnt quite what i was thinking, but im big enough to say when maybe i did go on to far, but it still remains the man is dead not even 24hrs. i for one hopes he R.I.P

[bellfest]

So you can sit in judgment but no-one else can? Don't forget, this guy DID dangle his month-old baby over a crocodile.
Um, negative. He was holding his baby while he fed a crocodile. He was no idiot, he was no Michael Jackson and his child was safe as houses. In the extremely unlikely case that that episode did go pear shaped, the croc would not have got past Steve and taken his child.
He had more to give than he had already given and I for one hope his legacy lives on for a bloody long time.
Comparing Steve Irwin with Dave Ettinburough is like comparing rum with milk. They are both bloody good for you but they are a completely diffferent kettle of fish
Efirmovich,
I got it and I see what you mean.

[SASless]

Where I live if someone gives you a hug it's from the heart.

Steve Irwin

Not a bad concept.

[Barndweller]

Very Sad... That he was a showman there is no doubt, but it seems obvious that alongside that he had a deep concern and passion for animals and nature. He also had an instinctive and vast knowledge of their behavior, for if he had not then he would never have survived as long as he did. It's very unfortunate and a little ironic that to have spent all the years he did getting down and dirty with some of the most dangerous creatures on the planet he was then killed by one that has virtually no track record of attacks on humans. Who said the world had to make sense. I respected the guy and will miss his enthusiasm and good humor on the box.

[B Sousa]

"may I start by saying I admired Steve's balls "

One Man Band, I think you could have worded that a bit differently, but I think he would have laughed at the humor in it.....
I can certainly say if I ever hear anyone again say Crikey, I will automatically remember Steve Irwin.

[Steve76]

Good call Bellfest.
Movin' up - you are a nob and for the rest of the planet what you are seeing here is a classic case of tall poppy syndrome. Cut the head off the highest one 'cause it is standing out.
Why are we debating the death of a great Australian? He died doing what he loved and while it was too soon to go, at least he succeeded beyond his wildest dreams.
There are plenty of wannabe Steve Erwins out there now, I remember Milton jumping on the croc for Troy Dann - a genuine Territorian and genuine poser. Now why was a real 'northerner' like Troy even try to imitate Steve Erwin if he was such a fool as you would suggest? Steve was first and all the rest a distinct second.

[heliduck]

MOVIN UP - Steve irwin will be remembered by his world wide audience by the persona he portrayed to the public. He will be remembered by his family by the persona he portrayed in private.


I hope you portay a better persona to your family than you have portrayed to the helicopter industry via this forum.

[540DEGREE TorqueTurn]

http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=242211

being discussed in Jet Blast where the non-aviation stuff goes.

Cheers

Whirls
hey wirly cant accept this comment ......you didn't know that he was setting up helicopter joyflights out of his joint and was inviting quotes to supply a/c
1800 views and 30 replies ..........cheers:oh:

[GTNav]

http://www.apple.com/trailers/lions_gate/grizzly_man/

For more conservation info check out this recently released movie.

It makes Steve look very sensible and cautious.

Incase you have not heard about this Grizzly Man, he ends up as bear bait but the bear filming is amazing and I am glad to enjoy it from the comfort and safety of the armchair.

[Fun Police]

the grizzlyman did indeed make steve erwin appear to be the model of caution when he was handling and interacting with deadly animals. having heard some first hand stories about the GM and watched mr. erwin on tv i can say that he treated the subjects respectfully and obviously new what he was doing without placing himself in unnecessary danger.
he and his family can take pride in his accomplishments in furthering the conservation cause. RIP.

[The Hustler]

As he was always saying how dangerous ceretain animals were (occasionally whilst getting bit), and as he was filming a documentary when he got killed, his family have expressed their wish that the footage of the incident be shown as part of the documentary itself, or at the very least that it should be released to the news networks for broadcast as an object lesson that even the experts can get caught out.

Crikey!

[cl12pv2s]

OK, none of us here (heli-pilots) can say that we are above taking risks. Right, we try to minimise the risks by flying safely, adhereing to rules etc..etc.. but at the end of the day, our profession includes embedded risk. And with that risk, we must accept the consequences.

Yes, it is very sad when things go wrong. Yes, the loss of anyone is sad, and sadder still is the plight of those loved ones he left behind. Here is where my sympathy ends.

Our man in question was a person who took (and accepted) risks in his field. It got him a name and a reputation...he did a lot of good for conservation and wildlife. He lived a fruitful life. It is sad to see it ended. No one can argue those points.

However, anyone persuing high-risk interests has to be accountable for their own success or demise. Do they deserve praise for taking those risks, or sympathy when things go badly...no neither really. It's their choice.
A couple of other points:

Selfish or not?- Those involved in high-risk sports / pastimes have to consider others, as well as themselves. Steve leaves behind a family, who will be suffering at this moment. My thoughts are with them.

Attenborough vs Erwin?: Is this serious? This is like comparing the Apollo astronauts with the shuttle guys! No, not even worth comparing. Let it be said though, that like Cousteau and Gagarin, Attenborough will always be considered the pioneer in this field. An accolade no one can take away from him.

Taking baby to meet Mr. Croc? Who are we to say that this was wrong. It was his baby, and I dare say that he was way more qualified to make a judgement on that than you or I.

Stingray's fault or Irwin's? - Well, stingrays are well known to be pretty passive if not aggrevated. As a diver instructor, I tell students not to touch the wildlife...to give them their space and you'll generally be OK. I would say this has got to be 'pilot induced error' through and through.

So, let's be mindful and respectful to those who are mourning their loss. That's where the real sadness is...where our thoughts should go. Some of the previous comments on this thread have been totally unnecessary.

However, let's not make this man out to be anything more than a very good performer, but one who took risks, knew the risks, and if asked now, would admit and accept the risks. He wasn't the 'most intelligent man alive'. He was an performer with a passion.

cl12pv2s

[NickLappos]

Helicopter, rotorcraft, chopper, whirlybird


There, now the thread belongs on rotorheads.

[Heliport]

And an EMS helicopter was scrambled.
(But called back when it was learnt Irwin was already dead.)

[heliduck]

Something which isn't show-boated in Steve Irwins documentaries is that he spent a lot of money purchasing private land in critical habitats & locking it up to conserve endangered species, cassowary habitats in FNQ for example. This didn't bring him any accolades or tv ratings so I assume he did it because he was passionate about it & genuinely believed in it.
I am passionate about flying helicopters so why aren't I famous? Because millions of people don't share my passion, & it was this mans ability to connect with millions which allowed him to champion the cause of endangered wildlife.

cl12pv2s - "He was an actor with a passion" - General consensus would agree that he was passionate but I don't believe he was acting. His display of enthusiasm was more than most of us would display but from accounts I have had it was definitely genuine. In saying that he knew how to use his enthusiasm to work a crowd.


NickLappos - Thanks for clearing that up. I saw a Heliwork WA Jetranger on one his shows so that backs up your statement!

[Flying Lawyer]

I see that hasbeen old hag Germaine Greer, master (mistress?) of self-publicity, has used Irwin's death to get her name back into the newspapers.

In a rant in the Guardian (UK) she declares that "The animal world has finally taken its revenge on Irwin."
I'm sure his grieving wife and family will derive great comfort from reading that about a husband and father who's not even buried yet.

She claims he's set a bad example to "a whole generation of kids in shorts seven sizes too small", and claims "every creature he brandished at the camera was in distress."

Irwin was lauded as a fine conservationist because he deplored the slaughter of crocodiles and had purchased large tracts of land to keep their habitat alive. He was the face of a quarantine campaign, designed to keep foreign pests out of Australia. But that doesn't stop Greer dismissing him as "an entertainer, a 21st-century version of a lion tamer, with crocodiles instead of lions".

Predictably, she drags up the controversial incident when Irwin held his baby in one arm while feeding a croc with the other, and reminds readers that Irwin was accused of "illegally encroaching on the space of penguins, seals and humpback whales in Antarctica, where he was filming a documentary called Ice Breaker" - even though an investigation by the Australian environmental department cleared him.

"A parrot once did its best to rip his nose off his face. Parrots are a lot smarter than crocodiles."
That vile comment about a man who's just been killed says more about her than him.

"There was no habitat, no matter how fragile or finely balanced, that Irwin hesitated to barge into, trumpeting his wonder and amazement to the skies. "
And there's no depths to which some people won't stoop to trumpet their name to the world.

It only confirms what I've always thought about the woman. It must have been very irritating that another Australian was on television much more often than her.

She made a successful media/tv career out of being a professional Ozzy in England and saying things to shock, and now attacks Australia and Australians in her efforts to stay in the media.
A recent example:
"If your ambition is to live where nobody has ever been heard to discuss a book or a movie, let alone an international event, then Australia may be the place for you."


She says she has 12 venomous snakes on her property in Queensland.
Wouldn't it be a terrible shame if one of them bit her. ;)

[Nigel Osborn]

Dear Poms
Could you please keep her over there, we don't want her back.:ugh:

[helmet fire]

Wow.
Movin up, you are the complete tossbag. And so say all of us :D
I say we should declare a jihad on you. And perhaps that noise bag in England too. Perhaps she just ran out of bras to burn.

For the rest of us:
However, let's not make this man out to be anything more than a very good showman,
I disagree. It was continually noted that Steve was anything but. He did not suddenly change into this showman when the cameras rolled, he was like that 24/7. What you saw on TV was what his kids and wife got at home. There was no "showman" element.

In fact, Steve Irwin was a great Australian. He bought hundreds of millions of dollars to both the Australian economy and to wildlife protection. He prodcued employment on a massive scale, put a smile on millions of faces and has created the largest privately owned conservation areas on the planet. He was a role model father and husband to a family whose pain must be unbearable. And he loved helicopters. What other criteria could we bring to the qulaification of "Great Australian"?

I think that many snobby Aussies looked down on Steve because of his vernacular and the tall poppy culture practiced as a national sport over here. But I would much sooner have my kids saying "crikey", "streuth mate" and "beaut bum" than "yo man", "that's sick dude", and "nice butt" as regurgitated from MTV.

RIP Cobber. Your family can be bloody proud of you.

[cl12pv2s]

cl12pv2s - "He was an actor with a passion" - General consensus would agree that he was passionate but I don't believe he was acting. His display of enthusiasm was more than most of us would display but from accounts I have had it was definitely genuine. In saying that he knew how to use his enthusiasm to work a crowd.

Heliduck - I will change my original text to read, "He was a performer with a passion." That would be closer to what I meant....I did not mean that he was faking his passion, simply as you said...he knew how to deliver his passion to the masses. i.e. perform! Hell, my father is a bloody good birdwatcher - can spot a sparrow at 20 miles! - but get him on the tele, and we'd all be asleap!

HelmetFire - Similar to you as to Heliduck, concerning the word, 'showman'. It doesn't mean he was faking it just for tele. It means he was good at shows!

Flying Lawyer - This Greer person sounds like a nasty piece of work. However, I daresay that some of the animals that met Irwin were in distress because, let's face it, his shorts were too small! No seriously, some of the animals were in 'defensive' mode due to feeling threatened. I would have to agree.

Where my opinion differs from the 'Greer's' of this world, is that I don't believe that these animals were necessariliy, and long term detrimented. I would not say it was torment. You see, too many people (like Greer) try to liken animals to humans, giving them human responses and emotions. And this is where they are wrong and their arguement (in the name of animals) breaks down.

No, a crocodile doens't snap out of distress, it snaps due to prehistoric reflexes. It doens't then sulk for days on the verge of 'post-traumatic-stess' disorder! It probably doesn't even remember the incident! In short - distress is not an issue. A similar case is made for many animals.

In a rant in the Guardian (UK) she declares that "The animal world has finally taken its revenge on Irwin." The bottom line, is 'The animal world couldn't organise and seek revenge' on anyone, becuase they are animals! They don't know WTF 'revenge' is!

So being defensive, is not necessarily being in distress, when you're an animal.

Before dog-lovers get all up in arms, I concede that some animals show varying degrees of emotions. OK!

Before anyone grossly misinterprets this post, I am writing in the man's defense here!

cl12pv2s

[helmet fire]

Hi cl, I see your point. I was not concentrating so much on your use of the word "showman" as demonstrating why your assertion that he was not anything else other than a very good showman was, and is, manifestly unfair.

[cl12pv2s]

HelmetFire - Understood.

While I'm sure that he was a good family man, conservationist, lover of animals, BBQ starter etc..etc.. he was simply a man. Just like the fireman who dies in a fire, the test pilot, the rescue swimmer etc..etc, his job had risks and he got stung. Unlike the fireman, test pilot and rescue swimmer, Irwin's job got him into the limelight.

My comment was in response to the allegations that this man was 'the most intelligent man in Oz', and to the other suggestions that this man was akin to a national hero...a God!

It always amazes me in situations like this when the recently deceased is suddenly revered as something more than he was, simply because he is now deceased. It always amazes me how just because he happened to be in the media, he is afforded 'more' sympathy in his death, than the fireman, test pilot or rescue swimmer.

I don't want to take anything away from the guy, but let's not go overboard just that he's dead - that's what I'm saying!

cl12pv2s

[movin' up]

Message removed

Movin' Up

[bellfest]

Though I hold as much respect for those who have endured battle and sacrificed everything for war as anyone else, I have no respect for war itself. I have however a great deal of respect for conservationists and conservation so if being unfortunate enough to have to contribute to the blatant carnage and killing that comes with war is worthy of a state funeral than trying to preserve the country that these men fought for is just as much so.

[Twin Head]

Steve76 Before dan, there was alby mangles, he used to wresltle with the girls, with a vb in one hand and a cyclic in the other ( bell 47 3b1)

rest in peace irwan :ok:

[John Eacott]

She says she has 12 venomous snakes on her property in Queensland.
Wouldn't it be a terrible shame if one of them bit her. ;)

But then, they may catch something :rolleyes:

I guess that it takes something like the Grauniad to allow her to publish her rantings, but that one is well beyond the pale :oh:

[eagle 86]

Was, is, will continue to be, a slack bitch of the first order!
GAGS
E86

[paul 2007]

She says she has 12 venomous snakes on her property in Queensland. Well what else would you expect from MEDUSA

I think she fried her brain when she burnt her bra - what a creep

[movin' up]

Message removed

Movin' Up

[LOOPYGIRL]

Movin'up



Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain - and most fools do.

[movin' up]

Message removed

Movin' Up

[LOOPYGIRL]

It's "criticise"



The man who never makes a mistake always takes orders from one who does.

[Whirlygig]

Actually, criticize is a perfectly acceptable English spelling; it's not just the Americans who use it. The -ize suffix is perhaps more old-fashioned English than -ise but it's nothing that should be criticized.

If it's good enough for The Times, it's good enough for me.

If you're going to nit-pick about people's spelling, then there are plenty of more worthy targets on the internet!!

Cheers

Whirls

[LOOPYGIRL]

Actually, criticize is a perfectly acceptable English spelling; it's not just the Americans who use it. The -ize suffix is perhaps more old-fashioned English than -ise but it's nothing that should be criticized.

If it's good enough for The Times, it's good enough for me.

If you're going to nit-pick about people's spelling, then there are plenty of more worthy targets on the internet!!

Cheers

Whirls

Thank you i thought it was ok, im gonna change it back :ok:

[ShyTorque]

"She says she has 12 venomous snakes on her property in Queensland.
Wouldn't it be a terrible shame if one of them bit her. "

Make that thirteen, when she's at home..... :hmm:

She probably hates any bloke who gets in the limelight more than her sad self.

[LOOPYGIRL]

http://128.227.186.212/herpetology/brittoncrocs/images/!cbd-lor6.jpg

Someone had to love them, R.I.P Steve Erwin

[NickLappos]

Appreciations
Crikey!
By LAWRENCE DOWNES
Published: New York Times September 6, 2006

When I heard that Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter, had been killed by a stingray in Australia on Monday, my heart went out to a friend, a 6-year-old boy named Sean who considered Mr. Irwin’s the definitive example of a life well lived.

It was a life of strenuous exertion, of mud and blood and the tireless pursuit of muscular creatures with jaws, claws and the ability to eat you up. My young friend concocts his version with crayons, Legos and pointed sticks, and acts it out in the fevered jungle of his imagination. Mr. Irwin went after actual creatures, including crocodiles, vipers and, tragically, the ray that pierced his chest.

They weren’t that different. Mr. Irwin, with the thick Aussie accent and khaki outfit that mean “explorer” in any language, tromped around subduing dangerous animals and spouting exclamations like “She’s a beauty!” and “Crikey!” He was 44 going on 6, and lived, like Sean, in a world of fun and excitement that seems a lot richer than most people’s.

It was easy to parody Mr. Irwin’s boisterous shtick, and many people did. It is easy, too, to shake our heads at the relentless peddling of nature as TV entertainment, and to lament that the only animals people ever bother thinking about are either fuzzy-cute or man-eating. It is all too obvious that Mr. Irwin was no biologist, that exploring the world on cable TV is a lot different from actually plunging into it, that wild animals really are dangerous, and blah blah blah.

But there are far worse ways to view the natural world than through the eyes of a young child, and Mr. Irwin offered a far more temperate version of the classic 6-year-old-boy approach, which is to confront a wild animal, marvel at its strength and ferocity, and then try to hit it with a rock. For Mr. Irwin, wild nature was something to wonder at, and he did so with an enthusiasm indistinguishable from love. Animals — even deadly ones — are good, poachers are evil, and, crikey, that’s pretty much it.

Call that simple-minded, call it dumb, but it resonates. Future environmentalists and conservationists have to come from somewhere, and if the energetic wonderment of the Crocodile Hunter has seeped into the brains of significant numbers of children — as it did that of Sean, who went trick-or-treating as Mr. Irwin last year, who turned 6 with a crocodile cake, who wears khaki and boots and fills notebooks with meticulous drawings of reptiles — then Mr. Irwin used his 44 years remarkably well.

[N Arslow]

The Aye's have it.
Or should that be the ...ize?

[SASless]

We know the Oz brand of humor can be rough.....


You know, I'm Australian, and we have got the worst sense of humor. We are cruel to each other.













Steve Irwin

[Final 3 Greens]

I think Irwin was a great bloke, both my young kids deveoped an interest in conservation from watching his shows.

He turned monochrome subjects into technicolor experiences.

From little acorns do great oaks grow.

Good on yer, mate.

[BigMike]

...and more regarding the old hasbeen in the UK:

From news on yahoo.com.au

""Stupid" Greer should back off: Beattie

Expatriate Australian academic Germain Greer should "back off" and keep her "stupid" comments on Steve Irwin to herself, Queensland Premier Peter Beattie says.

Ms Greer told the Nine Network that the crocodile hunter, who died on Monday when a stingray barb pierced his chest while he was snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef, had embarrassed millions of Australians with his cruelty towards animals.

The comments came as she defended a column she wrote for The Guardian newspaper in Britain in which she said the animal world had taken revenge on "self-deluded animal tormentor Steve Irwin".

Mr Beattie told the Nine Network it was unbelievable Ms Greer had so publicly put her own ego first while the family of Mr Irwin struggled to cope with their loss.

"Germain Greer is just wrong and I just can't imagine anyone being more insensitive and, frankly, stupid," he said.

"This argument is just extreme radical rubbish from Germaine Greer and it couldn't come at a more insensitive time.

"Any suggestion that he (Mr Irwin) mistreated animals is just rubbish ... he educated a generation.""

Regardless of his fame, he was a husband and a dad, and for some one to come out with comments like these at this time is truely unbelieveable. She is just rubbish...



I talked to someone in Brisbane the other day and he summed it up quite well:
"Mate, we all liked to take the piss out of the Crocodile Hunter, but when you get right down to it, he was bloody good bloke..."

The praise dosn't come much higher than that in Oz...

[Flying Lawyer]

Good article in the Daily Telegraph (Australia) -

GERMAINE Greer, the sniping harridan whose credibility in this country ran out years ago, has done it again.

As the world mourns the loss of Steve Irwin, the lovable larrikin who made a greater contribution to conservation than any other Australian, Greer saw a chance to kick him in the guts.
"The animal world has finally taken its revenge on Irwin,'' she howled in her UK paper column the day after Irwin's death.

Greer's conclusion about the manner of Irwin's death was as vicious as it was stupid. With her usual disregard for the facts, she dreamed up a scenario in which Irwin leapt on to the huge stingray and screamed: "Crikey! With those barbs a stingray can kill a horse.''

This idiot savant then decided to give sneering readers of The Guardian a lecture on the lethal nature of stingrays, based on her experience at Melbourne's Brighton Baths as a schoolgirl in the late 1940s.
"As a Melbourne boy, Irwin should have had a healthy respect for stingrays, which are actually commoner, and bigger, in southern waters than they are near Port Douglas,'' she wrote.
Talk about scientific. Germaine, Steve Irwin specialised in getting up close to dangerous animals. The point of his work was to show the world these creatures in their own habitat.

This week his luck ran out - trust Greer to be the first to tread his memory into the dirt.
Irwin's wife Terri and two children Bindi and Bob have enough to deal with at this difficult time.
But Greer, who has only ever lived for herself, wouldn't understand that.


http://www.news.com.au/common/imagedata/0,,5237296,00.jpg
Poisonous preacher ... Germaine Greer is as tired as she is tasteless


We have come to expect this ludicrous logic from a woman who has done nothing for Australia, the country which raised her but which she has embarrassed on the world stage for the best part of 40 years.

Since fleeing this country in the 1960s in pursuit of something less suburban, Greer has not made a single constructive statement about anyone or anything in Australia.
"I was 12 years old when I decided that I had to get out of Australia if my life was to begin. I had been bored ever since I could remember,'' she wrote in 2004.
"If your ambition is to live on Ramsay St, where nobody has ever been heard to discuss a book or a movie, let alone an international event, then Australia may be the place for you.''

Greer's greatest contribution to the world was her attempt - through The Female Eunuch - to make a whole generation of women feel ashamed for getting married and having children.
Thankfully, most women learned to ignore the shrill bore and made up their own minds about whether to have a family, career, neither or both.

Steve Irwin devoted his life to promoting his country. He didn't need a Cambridge degree to show millions how to interact with the natural environment.
I suspect what irks Greer is Irwin was an Aussie who conquered the world but never forgot where he came from.

Australians loved him. Who will mourn Germaine Greer when she keels over and dies in her mud-brick cottage in West Buggeryshire?

:ok::ok::ok:


Jonathan Wilcken, executive director of the Australasian Regional Association of Zoological Parks and Aquaria: "I'm not aware of anyone who would seriously regard Dr Greer as having any expertise in the fields of animal welfare or conservation.
Unsurprisingly, Dr Greer is mistaken in many of the views she has so casually expressed in this highly insensitive article.

Steve Irwin is rightly regarded around the world as having been an outstanding ambassador for wildlife conservation.
He was widely respected as an animal handler of great expertise."

[The Juggler]

Channel Nine have just announced the racing legend Peter Brock has been killed in a car accident whilst competing in the Targa Rally in Western Australia.:(

[Hughesy]

OMG
RIP Peter, may the "05" legend live on in our memories.
Such another sad loss

Hughesy

[Makiwa]

This and the Steve Irwin thread may not be Rotorcraft related, but there are some of us who work in remote areas, (myself being one of them and I have another Aussie here with me) and news is not always forthcoming here. So being able to read this sort of news and discuss it with like minded individuals is what makes working in a remote site a little less arduous.

For those individuals who are not bothered or don't have the time to go cruising around the other blog sites to hear the opinions of people we have little in common with in regard to certain major events in the news, the oppertunity to read about these subjects and as stated discuss the subject matter with like minded individuals is a breath of fresh air.

If you don't wish to read these "unrelated" threads, then don't click on them. Read the stuff that interests you. I know I do!

[eagle 86]

JP,
You are a twit - both Irwin and Brock used helicopters extensively in their work, I think perhaps you should move in with that slut in the UK!
GAGS
E86

[John Eacott]

And....the rotorheads connection is...........????

I'll chip in, having flown him a few times, and known him for 20 years or so.

The King of the Mountain, shame to see him go :(

[Twin Head]

nice one john:ok:

he will be missed

[Ned-Air2Air]

Still remember when I met him on his first trip to Pukekohe in the Marlboro Holden. Was an awesome spokesman for the sport and after winning Bathurst 9 times, 6 in a row, doubt we will ever see someone that good again.

:( :( :( :(

[bellfest]

I think perhaps you should move in with that slut in the UK!
eagle,
That was beautiful mate, my sentiments exactly.

Gayrow pilot,
Why don't you leave the moderating to the moderators.
I have been busy all day, missed the news and this is where I heard this terrible news so for that I thank Juggler. The man was a champion ambassador for a lot of good causes and deserves a spot on any forum.

[Hiro Protagonist]

And....the rotorheads connection is...........????
Yes, its sad but some people seem to post for the sake of it.

As someone has said before, this is NOT a general blog and news site.

I think for many regulars here, the forum feels like a group of friends that are grabin' a cold one together at the end of the shift (often true in a way), arguing about helicopters, girls (in the UK, and elsewhere;) ) etc..., and "Oh, did you hear about ...?" is just a natural comment.

If you don't wish to read these "unrelated" threads, then don't click on them. Read the stuff that interests you. I know I do!

This is a good point, and could be facilitated by a more descriptive title i.e. "Peter Brock killed in a car accident". (As it was, I thought the thread might be about MD helicopters or something :} )

Sad news, and from the looks of it, related to helicopters after all.

[The Mighty 47]

Jayrow pull your head in I was one of the pilots involved at the crash scene yesterday that should be enough to get onto the forum.

[tinyfly]

Up until Stevie passed away we hadn't heard much from good ol' germaine, it appears that she truly believes in the old saying that there is no such thing as bad publicity. In summary I think GG should get a life its really very boring.

Tiny Fly

P.S love to know who jetflite really is. Feel free to email me

[floatsarmed]

First Irwin and now Brock! Not a good week to be an Aussie Icon me thinks? Who's next Steve Waugh? Just goes to show one minute its all roses and in the blink of an eye it can all turn to ****. Condolences to all involved.:sad:

[Revolutionary]

Who is that slut in the UK? I mean, it's a pretty big country and I presume there are more than a few sluts (or slags as the case may be) who call the UK home. Specifics? Or better yet, pictures?

[Heliseka]

Sorry Jayrow Pilot

Don't mean to be rude but pull your head in ,and have some respect,yeah its not really related to this site but if you don't like it then don't post..**** two really great guys in a week,very sad for Australia losing two great ozzy icons..Being a Kiwi myself and growing up in his error,a very sad lose indeed,the 05 will never be the same i am just glad i met him and had blast in one of his old cars,he did alot for road safety as well a very sad lose.:cool:

[332mistress]

While it is always sad to hear of someone's death it would have been more helpful if the post originator had put more thought into the title. Most people have probably never heard of Peter Brock and by including his name in the post title it would have allowed only those interested to examine the thread.

332M

[helmet fire]

love to know who jetflite really is. Feel free to email me

..um Germaine Greer.
Or maybe Steve Irwin.....
I hope so for relevance.

[tomstheword]

If the title seems interesting enough to read just hold the mouse over the title and you will be able to read the first sentence or so for a few seconds. In the Peter Brock case this was more than enough to work out what it was about.

Another point, the threads tend to disappear rather quickly if nobody replys, so by whinging about it you are sending it back to the top for more people to read and reply, like this one.

Sad week for Australia.

[eagle 86]

Rev,
Checkout Steve Irwin thread - Flying Lawyer post of 7 Sep - there in all her ugly glory! I try not to look at it myself - makes me want to throw up! A true fuggly! She is living proof as to why men occasionally go out with Mrs Palmer and her five daughters!
GAGS
E86

[Delta Torque]

I see where you are coming from Jayrow pilot...Chipp and Carlton are also heroes in their own right...but their 'celebrity' status was a bit more limited than Irwin and Brock...the great unwashed tend to like sporting 'heroes'...

But I don't think its work dying in a ditch over...some of these local guys do use the forum as a chat site...

Cheers to Wally...

:)

[movin' up]

It appears that I have made some rather uncomplimentry remarks regarding the late Steve Irwin. I would like to make it clear that Movin' Up has not written these posts. I am guessing that one of a couple of my colleagues has used my access to write them.

Please accept my apologies, I'll be more careful with log in details in future.

Rest in peace Steve.

Movin' Up

Messages are now removed.

[topendtorque]

Merged and maybe the last very long word here. Two good true blue blokes laid to rest, well one so far, and congrats to movin up.

Re that Greer turnout, Jesaus for her to be making sexist comments about anyone is amazing but Irwin well, a very burnt black pot calling a new tin kettle black for sure. I thought after that the sun WILL rise in the west. I almost had cardiac arrest for a second or two the next morning when I leapt out of bed before daylight and looked to the west just as the very big moon was setting.

As far as sexism goes she would be more at home in a melon patch rather than inside the covers of a very mediocre periodical. Ahem?

Below is a poem that floated across the computer the other day, I tried to find out more of the author to no avail. Also from the ABC today enough reference data for all of your kids to play with.

My favourite recall of Brocky is when he and arch rival Alan Moffat were doing a TV interview, might have been a ‘this is your life show’ they were talking about being side by side on the grid and the starter marshal’s very good looking offsider was accidentally showing way too much cleavage. Brocky reckoned he was -“shocked” - and of course suggesting that Moff - wasn’t - , they both stuffed the start, I think Brock snapped his tail shaft.


Last Update: Sunday, September 10, 2006. 10:00am (AEST)
(http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200609/r104744_322180.jpg)
Surfers have paid tribute to Steve Irwin. (Getty Images)

Sunshine Coast surfers hold memorial for Irwin
The surfing community has held a memorial service for television
personality and naturalist Steve Irwin on Queensland's Sunshine Coast.
Hundreds of surfboard riders paddled out from Alexandra Headland this morning and cast flowers into the ocean.
The "Crocodile Hunter" died on Monday after a stingray attack.
Lifeguard Nigel Morton says the surfers conducted a moving service at sea.
"There's 200 to 300 local surfboard riders that paddled out probably about 300 metres offshore and made a very large circle and there were several surfers in the centre of the circle that conducted the service," he said.
Private funeral
It is believed Irwin's family has held a private funeral on the Sunshine Coast.
There are unconfirmed reports the funeral was held at a chapel in Caloundra yesterday afternoon, before Irwin's body was moved to Australia Zoo at Beerwah.
Police and extra security have been called in to help manage the large crowds turning up at the zoo this weekend to pay their respects.
Spokesman Michael Hornby says the turnout is amazing.
"One of the interesting things I'm seeing now is not only the flowers and khaki shirts that have been autographed with everyone's best wishes, but also the international flavour that's coming into it, the flags from around the world brought in," he said.
Wildlife Warriors
Mr Hornby says Irwin's fans have now pledged more than $750,000 to Wildlife Warriors, a nature charity he created to protect the environment.
"We have also got another about 800 pledges to go through over the weekend and we have also got to start getting onto mail that is coming from both in Australia and around the world," he said.


Related Links
Steve Irwin photo gallery (http://www.abc.net.au/news/indepth/featureitems/s1732560.htm)
Steve Irwin: A life in pictures.
Wikipedia: Steve Irwin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Irwin)
The Wikipedia entry detailing the life of naturalist and television star Steve Irwin.
Google Map (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=16%C2%B023%279.6%22+S+145%C2%B033%2732.4%22+E&ie=UTF8&om=1&z=12&iwloc=A)
A map of the Low Isles, near the location of Steve Irwin's fatal accident.
Australian Story (http://www.abc.net.au/austory/content/2003/s949264.htm)
The Crocodile Hunter was featured on Australian Story three years ago.
Enough Rope (http://www.abc.net.au/tv/enoughrope/transcripts/s1071026.htm)
Steve and Terri Irwin appeared on Enough Rope in March 2004.

(http://www.abc.net.au/cgi-bin/common/printfriendly.pl?http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200609/s1737296.htm)







Related Video
The body of Steve Irwin has returned to Australia Zoo on the Queensland Sunshine Coast.
[Real Broadband (http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200609/r105988_326842.ram)] [Real Dialup (http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200609/r105988_326843.ram)] [Win Broadband (http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200609/r105988_326844.asx)] [Win Dialup (http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200609/r105988_326845.asx)]
Related Stories
§ Irwin's body returns to Australia Zoo (http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200609/s1737143.htm)
§ Irwin's death leaves 'huge gap' in tourism industry (http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200609/s1736684.htm)
§ Irwin's dad speaks of losing his 'mate' (http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200609/s1734412.htm)
§ Tributes flow for Steve Irwin (http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200609/s1732641.htm)
§ Irwin footage shocking, friend says (http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200609/s1733235.htm)
§ Steve Irwin dead (http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200609/s1732439.htm)
Related Links
§ Steve Irwin photo gallery (http://www.abc.net.au/news/indepth/featureitems/s1732560.htm)
Steve Irwin: A life in pictures.
§ Wikipedia: Steve Irwin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Irwin)
The Wikipedia entry detailing the life of naturalist and television star Steve Irwin.
§ Google Map (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=16%C2%B023%279.6%22+S+145%C2%B033%2732.4%22+E&ie=UTF8&om=1&z=12&iwloc=A)
A map of the Low Isles, near the location of Steve Irwin's fatal accident.
§ Australian Story (http://www.abc.net.au/austory/content/2003/s949264.htm)
The Crocodile Hunter was featured on Australian Story three years ago.
§ Enough Rope (http://www.abc.net.au/tv/enoughrope/transcripts/s1071026.htm)
Steve and Terri Irwin appeared on Enough Rope in March 2004.
ABC Top Stories
§ Qld result highlights voters' IR concerns: Beazley (http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200609/s1737277.htm)
§
§ Rally car's data box could show cause of Brock crash (http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200609/s1737214.htm)
§
§
§ §


THE CROCODILES ARE CRYING

Endless visions fill my head – this man – as large as life
And instantly my heart mourns for his angels and his wife
Because the way I see Steve Irwin – just put everything aside
It comes back to his family – it comes back to his pride

His animals inclusive – Crikey – light the place with love!
Shine his star with everything he fought to rise above
The crazy-man of Khaki from the day he left the pouch
Living out his dream and in that classic ‘Stevo’ crouch

Exploding forth with character and redefining cheek
It’s one thing to be honoured as a champion unique
It’s one thing to have microphones and spotlight cameras shoved
It’s another to be taken in and genuinely loved

But that was where he had it right – I guess he always knew
From his fathers’ modest reptile park and then Australia Zoo
We cringed at times and shook our heads – but true to natures call
There was something very Irwin in the make up of us all

Yes the more I care to think of it – the more he had it right
If you’re going to make a difference – make it big and make it bright!
Yes - he was a lunatic! Yes - he went head first!
But he made the world feel happy with his energetic burst

A world so large and loyal that it’s hard to comprehend
I doubt we truly count the warmth until life meets an end
To count it now I say a prayer with words of inspiration
May the spotlight shine forever on his dream for conservation

…My daughter broke the news to me – my six year old in tears
It was like she’d just turned old enough to show her honest fears
I tried to make some sense of it but whilst her Dad was trying
His little girl explained it best…she said “The crocodiles are crying”

Their best mate’s up in heaven now – the crocs up there are smiling!
And as sure as flowers, poems and cards and memories are piling
As sure as we’ll continue with the trademarks of his spiel
Of all the tributes worthy – he was rough…but he was real

As sure as ‘Crikey!’ fills the sky
I think we’ll miss ya Steve…goodbye

RUPERT McCALL 2006

[Revolutionary]

E86 -Thanks. I heard about Germaine Greer's comments but didn't make the connection. When I think of a slut I think of a girl with too much make-up on who chews gum with her mouth open and has a reputation for being 'easy'. In other words, a girl I'd like to meet. Ms. Greer obviously doesn't qualify.