October 03, 2003

more on the wal-mart rattlesnake

The snakebite in the shoe department is beginning to look like a scam to sue Wal-Mart. I still don't like the story because snakes make my skin crawl.

I've never understood why I have such a visceral reaction to snakes. I'm not trying to brag when I say this, but NO OTHER ANIMAL IN THE WORLD strikes pure fear in my heart when I see it. A snake DOES.

I delivered newspapers as a young man. I learned to handle mean dogs. I've backpacked and camped enough to know how to handle skunks, porcupines, wild hogs, racoons and thieving chipmunks. On the mini-farm, I shot many an armadillo and a couple of rabid possums and coons that wanted an unfair fight. None of those critters ever scared me.

But a damned snake just triggers some primordial instinct in me. I still play in the woods and the tall grass, but I know that if I ever am bitten my a poisonous snake, I'll die of a heart attack before the venom gets me. Snakes simply fuck me up. There's just something terribly wrong with a mouth on the end of a tube that slithers around biting live creatures and then swallowing them whole. I can't stand them and I have nightmares about them.

But I've read a lot about them, because I believe in knowing my enemy. From my comments:

UPDATE: Management at MY Wal-Mart claims that the snake was COLD at the scene, and was sent for an autopsy. The Official Party Line seems to be that the guy was bitten, killed the snake, brought it to Wal-Mart, killed it again, THEN went to the hospital. I don't know much about rattlesnake bites -- is this possible before the poison sets in?

Posted by Ally at October 3, 2003 02:28 AM

Ally, snakes are COLD-BLOODED reptiles, so the fact that the dead snake was "cold" doesn't mean much. I do know that four out of every ten rattlesnake bites carry little, if any venom. The stats may be even better for small snakes. If a rattler has killed prey recently, it will not have loaded venom sacs for a few days. Rattlers have to build venom up over time. That sonofabitch that's been hungry for a while is the one you don't want biting you.

I read that "treated and released" from the hospital line in the report and became suspicious right away. My boss was bitten on the finger by a small copperhead a couple of years ago. He has a built-in sprinkler system for his yard, and he reached into some bushes to turn on the water when he saw the snake. He went to snatch his hand away and the snake got him.

He had the presence of mind to kill the snake and poke it into a peanut butter jar, then tell his wife to take him to the hospital. The copperhead was no more than 10" long, a mere puppy, and my boss didn't appear to have any life-threatening reactions to the bite. His right arm swelled up to twice its normal size from the shoulder down and he couldn't make a fist for a couple of days, but that was the extent of his injury. He received no anti-venom.

But HE DID spend the night in the hospital "under observation." He was released and came to work the next day. But you can bet your sweet ass that NO hospital is going to let a snake-bite victim just walk out of there not knowing what reactions may set in later.

I believe that the story is bullshit and the guy who make it up is in big trouble.

Comments

Okay, Fucktardo. Opine on this.

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) -- A major European chip maker said this week it had discovered new ways to produce solar cells which will generate electricity twenty times cheaper than today's solar panels.

Shall we ignore R & D in this (and wind?) in favor of drilling in Anwar?

Posted by: Hopkins on October 3, 2003 05:49 PM

Snakes are adorable !

PS: Did you get my email ?

Posted by: siso on October 3, 2003 06:00 PM

Yes, Siso, I did! And directions will follow for the blogger-meet (from 3:00 PM until) at Caruso's restaurant on the square in Dahlonega.

I don't know the address of the place, but if you can't find the square in Dahonega, you don't need to come.

Posted by: Acidman on October 3, 2003 06:23 PM

Hopkins, show me one that works. Then I'll listen to your shit.

In the meantime, go fuck yourself.

Posted by: Acidman on October 3, 2003 06:25 PM

STMicroelectronics, Europe's largest semiconductor maker, said that, by the end of next year, it expected to have made the first stable prototypes of the new cells, which could then be put into production.
Most of today's solar cells, which convert sunlight into electricity, are produced with expensive silicon, the same material used in most semiconductors.
The French-Italian company expects cheaper organic materials such as plastics to bring down the price of producing energy. Over a typical 20-year life span of a solar cell, a single produced watt should cost as little as $0.20, compared with the current $4.
The new solar cells would even be able to compete with electricity generated by burning fossil fuels such as oil and gas, which costs about $0.40 per watt, said Salvo Coffa, who heads ST's research
"This would revolutionize the field of solar energy generation," he said.
ST's trick is to use materials that are less efficient in producing energy from sunlight but which are extremely cheap.
This would revolutionize the field of solar energy generation.

Coffa said the materials should be able to turn at least 10 percent of the sun's energy into power, compared with some 20 percent for today's expensive silicon-based cells.
"We believe we can demonstrate 10 percent efficiency by the end of 2004," Coffa said.
Following that, ST and others would need to develop production technologies to make solar cells and panels in large quantities to achieve the $0.20 per watt target, he said.
"Our target is fixed at $0.20," said Coffa, who expects no major technological difficulties in going from prototypes to mass-produced commercial products.
Renewable energy is an essential part of research for ST, which says its chip and material expertise can be used to develop future solar cells and fuel cells.
ST said three weeks ago it had found a new way to produce tiny yet extremely efficient fuel cells that could power a mobile phone for 20 days.

Posted by: Live and Learn on October 3, 2003 07:24 PM

As I said, SHOW ME ONE! Goddam. It's always "coming soon," then it never does. Asswipes.

Posted by: Acidman on October 3, 2003 08:06 PM

Notice: KEY WORDS: "expected." "could" "may be possible" "we believe" "should be able to" "would revolutionize."

Try BULLSHIT to sum this one up.

Posted by: Acidman on October 3, 2003 08:10 PM

I don't need to come ?

Posted by: siso on October 3, 2003 08:25 PM

And when one of these miracle-chips can power a Chevy Suburban, then we can shelve talk about ANWR.

Until such time... let the drilling commence!

And fuck the caribou.

Posted by: Kim du Toit on October 3, 2003 11:20 PM

Heather, show up!

He said if you couldn't manage to find the square......he was being facetious.

Now, go on. Put the meet up on your calendar and go have some fine conversation and food! Wish I could join you there.

Posted by: Da Goddess on October 4, 2003 12:20 AM

I realize continuing to work for Wal-Mart adds up to roughly 70 strikes against my potential for intelligence, but I believe cold and dead is a bit colder than normal reptile cool . . .

As for the highly emotional nonsense post about the thrilling new energy source -- Coming Soon! Soon! Soon! -- weren't we promised a Hilton on the moon and our own personal hover crafts by now?

Let me guess -- those will be ready by spring, too.

Face it -- drilling IS going to happen in ANWAR. There is no way to stop it. Even the Alaskan Senators want it (I am still trying to find the page that listed the votes on this issue -- I'll e-mail you the link if I ever come across it again).

Spend your energy trying to ensure that as clean an operation as possible is run, rather than trying to stop the inevitable.

FINALLY, anyone posting on the topic of ANWAR should be required to state what sort of vehicle they drive. Anyone NOT driving either an electric car or something run by hamsters should really go sit down quietly.

Sort of like the militant vegetarians in their combat boots and leather jackets . . .

Posted by: Ally on October 4, 2003 01:35 AM

Or like being surprised when Rush Limbaugh says something obnoxious and controversial . . .

Or like going on Howard Stern's show and being shocked when he wants to see your underwear. Preferably being thrown out the window . . .

Okay, I'm done.

Posted by: Ally on October 4, 2003 01:38 AM

About

Search

Links

Tall Dogs

Archives

Extras

Credits

October 03, 2003

more on the wal-mart rattlesnake