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Snakes kill and injure vastly, incomprehensibly fewer people than mosquitos. I’m not clear why we would try to destroy them or why that would be remotely desira

by jmye 3y ago

Snakes kill and injure vastly, incomprehensibly fewer people than mosquitos. I’m not clear why we would try to destroy them or why that would be remotely desirable.

chasil 3y ago
Let's go over the numbers. Snakes: 50,000. Seems fair game to me. How would you feel if you had lost a loved one to a viper, even if they engaged in rock climbing or another dangerous activity? Convictions crumble before personal adversity. https://digg.com/data-viz/link/deadly-animals-kill-most-humans-ranked https://digg.com/data-viz/link/deadly-animals-kill-most-huma...
- jmye 3y ago
  To 1 million deaths by mosquito and exponentially more infected by Malaria. Again, it’s just not close, and it’s going to be vastly fewer when you think about rattlesnakes in the US or whatever in Australia. And, as above, mosquitoes are largely eco-irrelevant. Snakes are not. Anti-venom seems like the better solution.
  - chasil 3y ago
    Notice first the text from the original article: "The World Health Organization estimates that 138,000 people are killed by venomous snakes annually." While that may be irrelevant to you (even in the face of personal affliction), the cost of surviving this interaction is also high: "During that time, he was administered 28 vials of antivenom intravenously at a cost of $3,400 per vial... They are also species-specific, meaning selecting proper antivenom requires knowing which type of snake bit you... As a result, survivors of rattlesnake bites in Southern California, for instance, get a second painful surprise when presented with hospital bills totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars." I applaud you for your willingness to undertake this burden for yourself, but I am afraid that I am not.
    - lupusreal 3y ago
      Since you mention rattlesnakes, you should know that there is only an average of a single rattlesnake fatality a year in America. The issue of medical debt is a problem that should be addressed head on, not indirectly by exterminating snakes which only rarely kill anybody.
- cuonic 3y ago
  Car related deaths worldwide in 2018: 1.35 million (Source: https://www.cdc.gov/injury/features/global-road-safety/index.html https://www.cdc.gov/injury/features/global-road-safety/index...) How would you feel if you had lost a loved one to a car, even if they engaged in walking around at night or another dangerous activity ? I don't see any one rushing to eradicate cars...
  - QuarterReptile 3y ago
    I don't drive a snake to work. I don't use a snake for my livelihood. I don't take my snake down the hill for groceries. I can't load all my kids and their stuff in the snake to go see family. Your comparison is lazy and ridiculous. Nonetheless, there are people trying to get cars out of cities (and I wish them luck).
    - standardly 3y ago
      > I don't drive a snake to work. I mean, it would be cooler if you did.

by jmye 3y ago

Snakes kill and injure vastly, incomprehensibly fewer people than mosquitos. I’m not clear why we would try to destroy them or why that would be remotely desirable.

chasil 3y ago

Let's go over the numbers. Snakes: 50,000. Seems fair game to me. How would you feel if you had lost a loved one to a viper, even if they engaged in rock climbing or another dangerous activity? Convictions crumble before personal adversity. https://digg.com/data-viz/link/deadly-animals-kill-most-humans-ranked https://digg.com/data-viz/link/deadly-animals-kill-most-huma...

jmye 3y ago
To 1 million deaths by mosquito and exponentially more infected by Malaria. Again, it’s just not close, and it’s going to be vastly fewer when you think about rattlesnakes in the US or whatever in Australia. And, as above, mosquitoes are largely eco-irrelevant. Snakes are not. Anti-venom seems like the better solution.
- chasil 3y ago
  Notice first the text from the original article: "The World Health Organization estimates that 138,000 people are killed by venomous snakes annually." While that may be irrelevant to you (even in the face of personal affliction), the cost of surviving this interaction is also high: "During that time, he was administered 28 vials of antivenom intravenously at a cost of $3,400 per vial... They are also species-specific, meaning selecting proper antivenom requires knowing which type of snake bit you... As a result, survivors of rattlesnake bites in Southern California, for instance, get a second painful surprise when presented with hospital bills totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars." I applaud you for your willingness to undertake this burden for yourself, but I am afraid that I am not.
  - lupusreal 3y ago
    Since you mention rattlesnakes, you should know that there is only an average of a single rattlesnake fatality a year in America. The issue of medical debt is a problem that should be addressed head on, not indirectly by exterminating snakes which only rarely kill anybody.
cuonic 3y ago
Car related deaths worldwide in 2018: 1.35 million (Source: https://www.cdc.gov/injury/features/global-road-safety/index.html https://www.cdc.gov/injury/features/global-road-safety/index...) How would you feel if you had lost a loved one to a car, even if they engaged in walking around at night or another dangerous activity ? I don't see any one rushing to eradicate cars...
- QuarterReptile 3y ago
  I don't drive a snake to work. I don't use a snake for my livelihood. I don't take my snake down the hill for groceries. I can't load all my kids and their stuff in the snake to go see family. Your comparison is lazy and ridiculous. Nonetheless, there are people trying to get cars out of cities (and I wish them luck).
  - standardly 3y ago
    > I don't drive a snake to work. I mean, it would be cooler if you did.