Steve Irwin died because he made his living harrassing animals in the name of television. I have been in the water with numerous stingrays. I have no doubt that he could not have been stabbed in the heart by one unless he was on top of it, trying to ride it, or was harrassing it at close quarters. He died pushing his luck with animals one too many times.
Actually, you said it quite nicely so I won't give you too much grief. OK, so JUST A LITTLE !!!
Sure, sure, he sold the lives of animals to television and in some cases really interacted in a way most people might question. But with Steve Irwin, you saw what you got. He was never fake, never stayed in the helicopter "while Jim gets close-up shots of the lion pride," and put it all on the line. In the process, he raised the global awareness of the plight of many species of endangered animals, raised millions of dollars to help them and enthralled tens of millions of children word wide. All in all, not a bad eulogy.
I think the most telling moment with Steve Irwin that I ever saw was a piece he was doing in the rain forests of Borneo. He was sitting high in a tree, next to a large Orangutan and her baby, quietly talking about about the lives of Orangutans and their social structure. Suddenly, the mother ape reached over and handed Steve her baby to hold while he was talking - just THINK about THAT one for a second. He finished his talk, handed the little guy back and just shook his head.
So, STEVE, Buddy, swim on over to the east coast of the USA. I'll dive with ya...
![Big Grin :D :D](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)