The Undefeated Charles Darwin

"Shot through the heart, and you're to blame, you gave animal activists a bad name

You played your part, and you played your game, Few were surprised, just the same"

Normally, it is really tacky to make fun of the dead, but come on- did no one else see this coming? The fact that Steve Irwin (The Crocodile Hunter) was accidentally killed by a stingray (of all things) shows just how dangerous wild animals are, even if you are a trained professional. The obverse is, of course, that Steve Irwin was always reckless, he was just really lucky for a really long time.

A million years ago when I fancied myself as a really bad stand-in for stand-up comedians, I did a bit on this relatively new, albeit crazy, Australian who would chase after really dangerous animals. I concocted an image of his wife, sitting in a boat, endlessly waiting for Steve to surface. Three weeks later, the "crocodile hunter" would be back on television with a new host. No one would actually know what happened, but everyone would know exactly what happened.

For the record, Steve Irwin did a lot of good for pushing animal rights and dispelling certain myths about large predators, venomous reptiles and the common sense of Australians. Though he labelled himself as their protector and as a naturalist, he would routinely pick up these creatures for your viewing pleasure. There are lots of equally effective advocates who don't grab animals by their necks or make a fortune by invading their habitats.