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Comment by paulcole | Hacker News Reader

The number of truly innocent people bitten by venomous snakes in the United States is essentially 0.

99% of them were doing something incredibly stupid and got what was coming to them.

Edit: Why are people downvoting this? Anyone who grew up in an area with snakes should know this is 100% fact. The truth is that there's essentially 0 venomous snake bite danger in the United States whether you're being an idiot or not. You can reduce that even further by simply not being an idiot.

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In the past year I had one rattle at me on a hiking trail, and almost walked into one on a paved path that hundreds of people walk on... You're quite wrong.

Did you think you were in danger when it rattled?

For a second yeah, i think that's what's supposed to happen.. It rattles, I get scared, I avoid it. nature in action. They're hard to see though. But, if you're in an area with them, it's very possible to be bitten. Definitely rare, but possible.

Were you actually bit? How many bites happen on that paved path per year? The answer is likely very close to 0 no matter how many people walk there.

Fewer than 8,000 venomous snake bites are reported annually:

http://ufwildlife.ifas.ufl.edu/venomous_snake_faqs.shtml

Because you are blaming the victim. The cost of rattlesnake antivenom is not 150k. So being able to charge that means something is broken in the chain of supply.

If you're drunk driving and god-willing kill only yourself, who would argue that it's not OK to say, "Bad decision for drunk driving."

Just because someone was injured or killed does not mean they are a victim.

Being bitten by a snake is in no way comparable to drunk driving.

Taking a selfie with one is pretty stupid.

I wish I got paid 150k everytime someone did something stupid.

People who have a driver's license go through tests and a training program, where they teach the dangers of intoxicated driving.

Most people have not had any such training with regards to hikes and rattlesnakes.

Everyone is going to have a personal list of "really stupid things" others do. You'll find little consensus on these lists, which means they may not be all that stupid.

Most people have not had any such training with regards to lifting the lid on the toilet seat before they take a piss. Yet somehow they figure it out.

You don’t need training to know to not get next to a rattlesnake to take a selfie. They come with their own built in warning—- a loud rattle!

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