Steve Irwin was a showman - a great showman - and I'm sure he nor Terri ever expected to get seriously hurt. That's why there really was little danger in his stunt with baby Bob. Pity Michael Jackson didn't try that instead of dangling his baby over that hotel balcony.

The Stingray accident was largely freakish as Stingrays seldom kill. There poison is quite treatable and not fast acting and its really a bummer that this ray caused physical trauma to the heart area. Irwin was passing over the top of the Bull Ray and there was a cameraman close so likely the creature just got nervous. Sad whatever happened.

While I'm hear I'll say i think I was a bit hard on yer average Aussie bloke in some of my macho comments earlier. I was just a bit upset about this and was reacting in a "it's always the good that die young" sort of way. Sorry if I offended any one.

Now a question: What is Tall Poppy Syndrome?

EDIT: Answered my own question here>>>>>>

Tall poppy syndrome (TPS) is a pejorative term used in Australia and New Zealand to describe what is seen as a levelling social attitude. Someone is said to be suffering from tall poppy syndrome when their assumption of a higher economic, social or political position attracts criticism, being perceived as presumptuous, attention seeking or without merit.

The term originates from accounts in Aristotle's Politics (Book 5, Chapter 10) and Livy's History of Rome, Book I. Aristotle wrote: "Periander advised Thrasybulus by cutting off the tops of the tallest ears of corn, meaning that he must always put out of the way the citizens who overtop the rest." In Livy's account, the Roman tyrant, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, received a messenger from his son Sextus asking what he should do next in Gabii, since he had become all-powerful there. Rather than answering the messenger, Tarquinius went into his garden, took a stick, and symbolically swept it across his garden, thus cutting off the heads of the tallest poppies that were growing there. The messenger, tired of waiting for an answer, returned to Gabii and told Sextus what happened, who realised that his father wished him to put to death all the most eminent people of Gabii, which he then did.

A kind of reverse snobbery, this syndrome may have originated in Australasia as a rejection of the British class system. Immigrants to Australia and New Zealand often adopted an egalitarian attitude, viewing people as admirable for what they themselves could do and rejecting the notion that some people are "naturally" superior to their peers by right of birth.

This phenomenon is often misinterpreted by foreign observers as a resentment of others' success. For the majority of the population, however, the targets are those who are seen as taking themselves too seriously or flaunting their success without humility. Apparent cases of tall poppy syndrome can often be explained as resentment not of success but of snobbery and arrogance. Many Australasians have achieved success and wealth without attracting such hostility (e.g. Dick Smith); they usually do so by remaining humble about their achievements and avoiding "lording" their success over others. Thus, Australians and New Zealanders are often self-deprecating, especially those in the public eye.

In modern Australasia, tall poppy syndrome is frequently invoked as an explanation when a public figure is on the receiving end of negative publicity — even if such publicity can be seen as a result of that person's own misconduct.

Belief in the strength of this cultural phenomenon, and the degree to which it represents a negative trait, is to some extent influenced by politics. Conservative commentators, particularly city-based ones, often criticise Australians for their alleged desire to punish the successful. Sometimes, tall poppy syndrome is claimed to be linked to the concept of 'The Politics of Envy'. Critics of the tall poppy syndrome sometimes compare Australia unfavourably to the United States in this respect, in the belief that Americans generally appreciate the successful as an example to admire and attempt to emulate.

Some commentators have argued that tall poppy syndrome may well be a universal phenomenon, accentuated in some cultures. The concept of janteloven, or "Jante law", in Scandinavia is very similar. Similar phenomena are said to exist in Canada and the Netherlands. The Japanese proverb "The nail that sticks out gets hammered down" is particularly well known.

References
Feather, N. T. (1989) Attitudes towards the high achiever: The Fall of the Tall Poppy. "Australian Journal of Psychology, 41," pgs.239-267