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Selfies Kill More People Than Shark Attacks

HughPickens.com writes: The Independent reports that so far this year more people have died while trying to take a 'selfie' than from shark attacks. So far, 12 people have lost their life while trying to take a photo of themselves but the number of people who have died as a result of a shark attack was only eight. Some recent selfie-fatalities: A 66-year-old tourist from Japan recently died after falling down some stairs while trying to take a photo at the Taj Mahal in India, a Mississippi woman was gored to death by a bison while visiting Yellowstone National Park, and in August a man trying to take a selfie was gored to death during a running of the bulls in Villaseca de la Sagra, Spain. Some groups have been trying to get on top of the wave. In June Disney banned selfie sticks in its amusement parks. And foreseeing the selfie crisis in a very specific way, New York State passed a bill in June 2014 to prohibit people from having their photo taken (or taking it themselves) while "hugging, patting or otherwise touching tigers."

160 comments

  1. Looks like death by being gored.. by harshath.jr · · Score: 1, Insightful

    ... and selfie is just the causal action. Same way as surfing/swimming is the causal action in death by shark. Apples to Oranges.

    1. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by bickerdyke · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Kind of.

      The intresting common point here is that somehow people seem to think that activities like petting or hugging tigers, bull running, walking on railroad tracks or the ledge of a wall somehow become magically less dangerous and not completly suicidal if you're wielding a cellphone/camera.

      In "normal" live, people just know how incredibly stupid this is. But give them a camera and they're still doing it against better knowledge.

      --
      bickerdyke
    2. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Or maybe there is high correlation between people who take selvies and people who do dangerous, suicidal and stupid things.

    3. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      The intresting common point here is that somehow people seem to think that activities like petting or hugging tigers, bull running, walking on railroad tracks or the ledge of a wall somehow become magically less dangerous and not completly suicidal if you're wielding a cellphone/camera.

      Nothing new at all. Ignroing warnings is a tradition of park visitors.

      In "normal" live, people just know how incredibly stupid this is. But give them a camera and they're still doing it against better knowledge.

      No, wrong. Some people recognize dangerous activities as dangerous. These also aren't the people taking a cell phone to get a picture of themselves petting the cute buffalo calf. The ones you are thinking of never learned how to recognize a danger, they were taught a specific set of rituals that preserve their lives in the same environments their parents knew. Any change (at all, not just visiting nature) has a noteworthy mortality rate for this segment of society.

    4. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by gstoddart · · Score: 5, Insightful

      You know, my fear is these people would be just as stupid without the camera.

      I'm of the opinion that by the time you've, say, bought a selfie stick that you're sufficiently vain and vacuous that you really might not always be demonstrating any common sense.

      Are the cellphones/cameras making people stupid? Or merely providing a way for existing stupid to manifest?

      --
      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    5. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by Coren22 · · Score: 1

      It is the same thing as cell phone use in cars. The people who didn't get in accidents didn't matter, and the people who previously got in accidents changing their radio station were not compared in the statistics. No it is the evil cell phones causing a rise in accidents!

      --
      APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
    6. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by bickerdyke · · Score: 1

      You know, my fear is these people would be just as stupid without the camera.

      I don't think so. It's incredible what you can get away with when you have a big video camera sitting on your shoulder and a guy with a fake boom mike.

      --
      bickerdyke
    7. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The Mississippi woman at Yellowstone was only slightly injured, not killed. That does not make her any smarter.

    8. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by Hognoxious · · Score: 2

      Either way, it's got to be good for the gene pool.

      --
      Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
    9. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by Hognoxious · · Score: 1

      causal action

      Perhaps that phrase means something different where you come from.

      Here, you're completely wrong.

      --
      Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
    10. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by nedlohs · · Score: 2

      Because no one has fallen down stairs, or been gored by a bison, or gored during the running of the balls without a camera? What evidence do you have that people think things are less dangerous with a camera?

      I would expect there to be a group of people who think doing those things is worth the risk just in and of itself. Then there'd be a group of people who think the risk is worth it for some incentive (from they get a cool picture to put on facebook, being paid a million dollars, walking on a ledge to reach their stuck child, etc). There's no change in their perception of risk though, just the usual as the incentive is increased more and more people think the increasing benefit outweighs the constant risk.

    11. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      You know, my fear is these people would be just as stupid without the camera.

      People may still be stupid without the camera, but they may at least be stupid and paying attention.

    12. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by tnk1 · · Score: 1

      Changing the radio station is not the same level of inattention as talking on a phone is, or texting. Yeah, it is increased inattention, but you're turning a dial. You can do that while watching the road just by either using your ear or these days, you have the presets and also the tuner simply lists the stations for you.

      You can see people visibly driving slowly or erratically when they have that phone up to their ear. It is much better when they have handsfree operation, but they're still distracted somewhat.

      And there's just no way to text safely in motion.

      In the olden days, when someone was driving slow and erratically, I'd try to see if they had white hair. Now, I look for the phone being held up to their head and I am almost never wrong.

    13. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      How do I vote funny and insightful at the same time?

    14. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by Dutch+Gun · · Score: 1

      That's certainly true. I suppose one could make two arguments about selfies:

      1) People are taking pictures of themselves, not only diverting their attention in a potentially dangerous situation, but literally turning their backs to it.
      2) People are trying to frame themselves in an interesting photo, and are in essence "daring themselves" to do something outrageous or risky for the benefit of the photograph in question.

      As such, there may be a slightly elevated risk of freak accidents while trying to take a selfie, because of these two factors combined. Normally, it would just be one or the other.

      I remember lots of stories about idiots being injured or killed by wildlife in Yellowstone or elsewhere before selfies were a thing, but a lot of examples *were* apparently about getting a good shot with a camera. For example, a NY woman recently on safari rolled down her window, and subsequently took pictures of a lioness right up to the moment it jumped through the window and ate her. As for the animal-related incidents, I simply subscribe it to the fact that fear of nature has been largely bred out of us here in the first world, having tamed it (more or less) long ago.

      With billions of us on the planet, it's inevitable that people will have freak accidents. I suppose it's natural to tell yourself that *you* would never be so foolish, but let's face it, everyone has done foolish things at some point in our lives. Still... well, I would never try to pet a wild bison or roll down a window to take pictures of a lioness just a few feet away from me.

      --
      Irony: Agile development has too much intertia to be abandoned now.
    15. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by Jason+Levine · · Score: 1

      You know, my fear is these people would be just as stupid without the camera.

      I've got to agree. How many people die from similar stupid stunts minus the camera aimed at them? The running of the bulls one seemed highly dangerous but easily documented so I checked and found this article that said 7 people were killed at running of the bulls ceremonies in a one month period. I'm guessing one might be our selfie-taker but what about the other 6 then?

      I'm not saying that selfies aren't stupid at times. That guy who whipped out a selfie stick on a Disney World roller coaster ride was just asking to hurt someone. (Great work on Disney's part to shut down the ride quickly and confiscate the stick.) There are times when selfies are harmless. I've taken them from time to time. But, like any other activity, you need to be aware of where you are and what your safety margin is. If I was standing on the edge of the Grand Canyon, you can bet I wouldn't be leaning over to get a better selfie shot. But when I was in a pool with my kids during a recent cruise (with my phone in a protective water-proof casing) without my wife nearby to take photos? I took a few selfies with my kids along with photos of just my kids. (I also had fun with my kids without involving photography, but I enjoy taking photos.)

      --
      My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
    16. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by Jason+Levine · · Score: 1

      Or, more likely, they just act stupid and it's not documented. How many instances of "sure, I can do this" end up in injury, don't involve cameras at all, and thus don't wind up "going viral"?

      --
      My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
    17. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      the running of the balls

      ouch

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
    18. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by Big+Hairy+Ian · · Score: 1

      On the bright side the Darwin Awards are alive and well

      --

      Build a Man a Fire, and He'll Be Warm for a Day. Set a Man on Fire, and He'll Be Warm for the Rest of His Life.

    19. Re:Looks like death by being gored.. by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      Or, more likely, they just act stupid and it's not documented. How many instances of "sure, I can do this" end up in injury, don't involve cameras at all, and thus don't wind up "going viral"?

      People always have and always will be stupid. I do it myself a lot. As they say growing old is compulsory, growing up is optional. But I can't imagine improving my success rate doing stupid things while holding a selfistick. If anything it just adds another item to mix on which I could impale myself.

    20. Re: Looks like death by being gored.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      This is probably the best comment here

    21. Re: Looks like death by being gored.. by JohnChristopherson · · Score: 1

      So if a diver was killed taking a selfie with a shark, what would be the cause of death?

  2. Selfie-nado by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    How long till we see a tornado movie like shark-nado, but with deadly selfie sticks?

    1. Re: Selfie-nado by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I more thought a movie with people getting eaten by sharks with trying to take selfies with these gentle giants ;)

    2. Re: Selfie-nado by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      I'd be tempted to watch it, but then again, I'm not really in comedies.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  3. The odds are good by Zarjazz · · Score: 1

    I'm so glad I now know that taking a selfie while swimming with sharks is not a good idea.

    1. Re:The odds are good by cellocgw · · Score: 1

      I'm so glad I now know that taking a selfie while swimming with sharks is not a good idea.

      I propose that you're wrong for two reasons. The first is the infamous "two bombs on an airplane" theory: the number of people killed by sharks while taking a selfie (go ahead, mis-attribute my clause there and claim the shark has the camera!) is infinitesimal, so if you're going to swim with shartks, be sure to take a selfie.
      The second is the well-known "cancellation Hearts" rule: each dangerous item cancels out the other.

      --
      https://app.box.com/WitthoftResume Code: https://github.com/cellocgw
    2. Re:The odds are good by martinfb · · Score: 1

      Yet a selfie while being eaten by a shark would go mega-viral!

      --


      Self-importance and self-indulgence is the root of ALL evil.
  4. Discovery Channel Promo by bbsguru · · Score: 5, Funny

    Next month on the Discovery Channel!
    A deadly epidemic reaches around the globe and across cultures:
    See it all on...

    Selfie Week!

    1. Re:Discovery Channel Promo by CaptainLard · · Score: 1

      Yeah, my first thought was when will discovery channel start advertizing selfie week. But lucky for us, thanks to twitter and facebook, every week is selfie week.

    2. Re:Discovery Channel Promo by nytes · · Score: 1

      All I want is a selfie stick with a frikin' laser beam attached!

      --
      -- I have monkeys in my pants.
    3. Re:Discovery Channel Promo by bkr1_2k · · Score: 1

      A full week of shark attacks on people taking selfies. Justice is served!

      --
      "Growing old is inevitable; growing up is optional."
    4. Re:Discovery Channel Promo by ebvwfbw · · Score: 1

      Yes, we laugh now. Just wait until they do it.

  5. Selfie With A Shark by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Somebody has to actually do it...

    http://www.snopes.com/media/notnews/sharkselfie.asp

  6. Obvious tactic by Chrisq · · Score: 5, Funny

    If you get attacked by a shark take a selfie. That way your chance of death will be lower.

    1. Re:Obvious tactic by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Don't forget the lottery ticket for the Golden Trifecta.

    2. Re:Obvious tactic by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's wrong.
      This joke would only work if we were talking about the percentage of people that died from shark attacks and the percentage that died from selfies.
      In this case if you're attacked by a shark the only chance that's lowered is the chance of successfully taking a selfy.

    3. Re: Obvious tactic by bistromath007 · · Score: 2, Funny

      You've got it backwards. If you're trying to promote safety, you need to push anyone trying to take a selfie into a pool full of sharks.

    4. Re:Obvious tactic by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      No, no, no. You make the shark take the selfie.

    5. Re:Obvious tactic by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      Don't know what's funnier, the logic or the fact that the logic is backwards.

    6. Re:Obvious tactic by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      That approach appears to have failed in this case:

      http://www.useducationtv.com/u...

  7. Vainglory by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Sinning bitches!

  8. First ... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    First !!!

  9. It's called Natural Selection by hyperar · · Score: 5, Funny

    The less narcissistic pricks the better.

    1. Re:It's called Natural Selection by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 0

      So you don't mind pricks, as long as they aren't excessively narcissistic.

      (ProTip: We have the word "fewer" for a reason.)

      --
      Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
    2. Re:It's called Natural Selection by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ProTip: Prescriptivism is one a primary indicator of a prick.

      Awesome captcha: misuse

    3. Re: It's called Natural Selection by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So says the "mindless" fool.

    4. Re:It's called Natural Selection by Crowd+Computing · · Score: 2

      Natural selection only works if the selfie-takers haven't reproduced yet. So bad traits that don't hinder reproduction can propagate. The deterioration that comes with old age is bad but since it happens way past child bearing age, there's no evolutionary benefit to remain healthy when you reach 100.

      Narcissism itself may have an evolutionary advantage if this has the side effect of maintaining the narcissist's attractiveness to the opposite sex (sexual selection).

    5. Re:It's called Natural Selection by fisted · · Score: 0

      Protip: You wouldn't camel-case "protip". It only makes you look like a JavaProgrammer....Same goes for child.

    6. Re:It's called Natural Selection by hyperar · · Score: 2

      Natural selection only works if the selfie-takers haven't reproduced yet. So bad traits that don't hinder reproduction can propagate. The deterioration that comes with old age is bad but since it happens way past child bearing age, there's no evolutionary benefit to remain healthy when you reach 100.

      Narcissism itself may have an evolutionary advantage if this has the side effect of maintaining the narcissist's attractiveness to the opposite sex (sexual selection).

      Not really, as long as they don't reproduce anymore, that's a good thing.

    7. Re:It's called Natural Selection by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But is that happening? Everyone is only considering the negatives of taking a selfie. If I succeed in taking a selfie with bulls running behind me and post the picture on Facebook, that will impress girls and the selfie will have increased my chances of reproducing. So overall, in expected value, natural selection might favor selfie-takers.

    8. Re:It's called Natural Selection by Zero__Kelvin · · Score: 1

      I have no doubt he finds morons who can't understand what they read equally offensive.

      --
      Guns don't kill people; Physics kills people! - John Lithgow as Dick Solomon on Third Rock From The Sun
    9. Re:It's called Natural Selection by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      Actually, camel-case is the correct usage. The term was coined by an old gaming magazine called GamePro, and that's how they wrote it.

    10. Re:It's called Natural Selection by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Did you mean "fewer" rather than "less"?

    11. Re:It's called Natural Selection by Hognoxious · · Score: 1

      ProTip: Prescriptivism is one a primary indicator of a prick.

      ProTip: Use either the indefinite article or the "one" - not both.

      --
      Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
    12. Re:It's called Natural Selection by Hognoxious · · Score: 1

      ProTip: Use either the indefinite article or [the number] "one" - not both

      . Bonus ProTip: Don't post when a toddler is having a tantrum right behind you.

      --
      Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
    13. Re:It's called Natural Selection by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      *corrects you inconsequentially while makign a typo*

    14. Re:It's called Natural Selection by fisted · · Score: 1

      Actually, camel-case is the correct usage.

      No.

      The term was coined by an old gaming magazine called GamePro

      Yes.

      and that's how they wrote it.

      No.

      Wouldn't you think it's sensible to verify your claims before uttering them as factoids?

      But hey, two "informative" upmods already, way to go.

    15. Re:It's called Natural Selection by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Let's just hope their attempts at reproducing while selfying result in premature death, but not before they hit the send button.

    16. Re:It's called Natural Selection by hyperar · · Score: 1

      But is that happening? Everyone is only considering the negatives of taking a selfie. If I succeed in taking a selfie with bulls running behind me and post the picture on Facebook, that will impress girls and the selfie will have increased my chances of reproducing. So overall, in expected value, natural selection might favor selfie-takers.

      Yes, but that would encourage others to do the same or even more dangerous things, and most likely they won't be the exception as you were ;)

    17. Re:It's called Natural Selection by hyperar · · Score: 1

      Did you mean "fewer" rather than "less"?

      Maybe, english is not my native language, i try to do my best, but thanks for the correction ;)

  10. Darwinism: After RTFA, I say let'em do it by mykepredko · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Seriously, while a couple of the accidents listed are acts of God and could have happened anyway, many of them, from the human gene pool perspective, deserved to die.

    Putting a gun to your head while taking a picture? Turning your back on bulls and or bisons? Having to be told to NOT touch or hug tigers? I do agree with Disney on their policy however, as a selfie-stick on a ride is most likely to hurt somebody behind the person taking the shot.

    Sorry, for the sake of the human species, these people should be allowed to remove themselves from the reproductive population.

    1. Re:Darwinism: After RTFA, I say let'em do it by LWATCDR · · Score: 1

      "Sorry, for the sake of the human species, these people should be allowed to remove themselves from the reproductive population."
      Too late. I fear that most are already past their prime reproductive years.

      --
      See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
    2. Re:Darwinism: After RTFA, I say let'em do it by Jamlad · · Score: 1

      So you come from the school of 'removing the safety labels from everything and let the problem solve itself'? The problem with common sense is that it ain't. At this stage, owing to the omission of personal liability, it's near a goddamned superpower. Either that or the human brain isn't developed enough to deal with modern distractions. My (blonde) roommate nearly broke her ankle checking her phone while walking down the stairs. I was afraid I was going to have to carry her to A&E.

    3. Re:Darwinism: After RTFA, I say let'em do it by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      So you come from the school of 'removing the safety labels from everything and let the problem solve itself'? The problem with common sense is that it ain't. At this stage, owing to the omission of personal liability, it's near a goddamned superpower.

      That just comes around to the idea that we should remove the safety labels so as to reinstate personal liability. I don't actually believe that, though. There's no reason why anybody should be allowed to sell something dangerous without labeling it as such. However, having labeled it, and put it in a suitable container, their job should be done.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    4. Re:Darwinism: After RTFA, I say let'em do it by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Then I guess only those parents that did not pack their kids in bubble wrap 'til they're 18 and allowed them to learn that actions have consequences will see grandchildren.

      Can't say I'm too unhappy with that.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    5. Re:Darwinism: After RTFA, I say let'em do it by Triklyn · · Score: 1

      #multitaskingainteasy

      i think part of the danger is that, you know, to get that awesome selfie, you've gotta put your back to the really cool/super dangerous thing.

      at least in the wild-predator case, you're going from "creature that is aware that i'm there and may be able to defend itself" to
      "stalking successful" mode... voluntarily.

      The first is a cake in a box.
      the second is a piece of cake, plated with a fork in it.

      just so much more inviting no?

    6. Re:Darwinism: After RTFA, I say let'em do it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I do agree with Disney on their policy however, as a selfie-stick on a ride is most likely to hurt somebody behind the person taking the shot.

      So, ban selfie sticks on rides. Why should responsible people have to suffer the ban?

      This is the reason we can't have nice toys, like hand grenades.

    7. Re:Darwinism: After RTFA, I say let'em do it by war4peace · · Score: 1

      I wonder if the count includes that Romanian guy who fell off a mountain clip while trying to take a selfie and died. It happened about two weeks ago.
      Earlier this summer, a Romanian woman was swept away by sea waves while taking a selfie as well.

      Probably that count is severely underestimated.

      --
      ...gis sdrawkcab (usually not responding to ACs; don't bother posting as AC)
    8. Re:Darwinism: After RTFA, I say let'em do it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sorry, for the sake of the human species, these people should be allowed to remove themselves from the reproductive population.

      Just to be clear: nobody's advocating that we go kill all the stupid people.

      We're saying let's remove all the warning labels, and let the problem sort itself out.

    9. Re:Darwinism: After RTFA, I say let'em do it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's fun to scowl and say Let Them Burn - I certainly subscribe to selfiefags falling off things - but whenever people drop the Darwinism! Natural Selection! line they oversimplify.

      For one, "Let misbehavior X continue" will often impact surroundings or the innocent. It can be misleading, or you could argue about a moral imperative ala handrails-belong-on-stairs.

    10. Re:Darwinism: After RTFA, I say let'em do it by Greyfox · · Score: 4, Funny

      Yeah but think of the consequences, man! The surviving generation will be better at taking selfies! And the one after that even more so! One day people will be able to safely take selfies while being lit on fire while simultaneously exploding! And it's probably already too late to stop it!

      --

      I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?

    11. Re:Darwinism: After RTFA, I say let'em do it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      responsible people wont be retarded enough to have a selfie stick in the first place

    12. Re:Darwinism: After RTFA, I say let'em do it by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      I do agree with Disney on their policy however, as a selfie-stick on a ride is most likely to hurt somebody behind the person taking the shot.

      So, ban selfie sticks on rides. Why should responsible people have to suffer the ban? This is the reason we can't have nice toys, like hand grenades.

      There is no situation in which a real hand grenade is a toy.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
  11. And the Darwin award winner is!!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    n/a

  12. wmd deception starvation #1 killers worldwide by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    added features;;; https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=wmd+weather+deception ,,, yuk wonder we can even look at ourselves?

  13. learn to mind our own business... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    finally https://www.youtube.com/results?q=watching+the+watchers

  14. Sorry, I'm calling a recount by edxwelch · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The guy who posted this never bothered checking out his own links. If you read the story about the guy gored to death by a bull, he was filming two bulls fighting, not actually taking a selfie. Also, the bison death seems unrelated to selfies... so that would mean shark attacks come out ahead, yeh! The sharks win!

    1. Re:Sorry, I'm calling a recount by Quirkz · · Score: 4, Funny

      It's true people often display a surprising lack of sense around large animals in the national parks, though. After a return trip from Grand Teton I was flipping through my pictures and wondered why I apparently had one of a middle-aged woman standing in a field. Then I saw the brown dot farther out, and remembered the moose. It was sixty yards away from the road in a field. I, along with a hundred or so other tourists, pulled our cars to the shoulder for a picture, but this one woman was more than halfway out into the field shouting, "Moose! Hey moose!" trying to get it to look up at her and pose for a close-up.

    2. Re:Sorry, I'm calling a recount by capitan · · Score: 2

      There was a Mississippi woman who was attacked by a bison while taking a selfie at Yellowstone. She got away with minor injuries and a lot of ribbing from her co-workers. (We work at the same place.) So bad timing for a selfie, but no death thankfully.

    3. Re:Sorry, I'm calling a recount by ceoyoyo · · Score: 1

      I was doing my open water certification dives in a lake in Jasper National Park. I had just finished suiting up and was about to carry my tank down to the lake when my friend pointed out there was a bear by the shore. So I put the tank down (to wait for the bear to leave) and picked up my camera (to be ready if the tourists swarming it learned the difference between teddy bears and real ones).

    4. Re:Sorry, I'm calling a recount by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "Gran Teton" is "Great Enormous Boob" in Spanish.

      And you *didn't* take a selfie?

      Words fail me at this point.

    5. Re:Sorry, I'm calling a recount by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well, maybe they should train those animals in the National Parks better...

      Comment Card Scolds National Park For Failing To Train Bears Better
      "Please train your bears to be where guests can see them."

    6. Re:Sorry, I'm calling a recount by Quirkz · · Score: 1

      I'm definitely aware of the linguistic origins. Curiously, there are three peaks that are part of the park - how's that for messing with you? Also, this was back in 2001, so I didn't take a selfie because I'm not sure the concept existed then.

  15. Sefies don't kill people by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Selfies don't kill people.

    People taking selfies kill people.

    1. Re:Sefies don't kill people by nondeterministic · · Score: 1

      Does it count if the person taking selfie kills someone else?

  16. All will change when sharks get lasers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What are the chances a shark will die of a shark attack when it takes a selfie?

  17. What is a "selfie"? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    For journalists, a "selfie" is any photograph, apparently. Logic and semantics be damned, they're desperate to use the trendy new word.

  18. But what about the moon? by Uomograsso · · Score: 1

    There were more deaths via selfies than deaths on the moon this year.

  19. Does that mean... by Sir_Eptishous · · Score: 4, Funny

    that selfies have Jumped the Shark?

    ...I'll be here all week.

    --
    We play the game with the bravery of being out of range
    1. Re:Does that mean... by Triklyn · · Score: 1

      go die in a fire.

      you deserve worse than anything i can think of.

      get eaten alive by rats.

    2. Re:Does that mean... by Sir_Eptishous · · Score: 1

      I know, I was surprised no one had posted it yet either...

      --
      We play the game with the bravery of being out of range
    3. Re:Does that mean... by Triklyn · · Score: 1

      no, the level of hatred i felt for you in that moment, was beyond the ken of normal, well-adjusted people.

      now we're good, but then...

      Sir, i think you've made me a worse person for what i felt toward you in that moment.

    4. Re:Does that mean... by Sir_Eptishous · · Score: 1

      Don't sweat it kid, as they say, Comedy isn't pretty

      --
      We play the game with the bravery of being out of range
  20. grandmother moon will not fail us leave her alone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    she lifts oceans,, who believes she cannot use the same magnetic resonance to keep us breeding like bunnys since/until forever?

  21. Tiger Repellent Comment by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Fortunately for you, this is a tiger repellent comment.

    Proof: Do you see any tigers modded-up in this comments section?

  22. Sample size? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    How many people have put themselves at risk of a shark death vs. a selfie death? Selfies are likely still safer when at-risk population size is known.

  23. Bullshit by JustAnotherOldGuy · · Score: 5, Informative

    A shark attack is a direct mechanism of death — a thing that produces actual, physical harm. A selfie, on the other hand, is what health statisticians might classify as an “underlying mechanism” or an “intermediate mechanism,” depending on the exact circumstances: a thing that’s involved in, and maybe precipitates, an accident, but doesn’t actually cause any physical harm. (Unless your phone electrocutes you or something, but that’s a different situation.)

    That may seem like a small distinction, but it’s actually pretty huge. Let’s turn to the World Health Organization to see how it breaks down the issue. WHO gives the example of a woman tripping over something on the floor and hitting her head on the counter; you’d never say that the thing on the floor killed her — that’s just the underlying mechanism. (Also, stupid.) The direct mechanism was hitting her head, just as in most “selfie deaths,” the direct mechanism is being struck by a car, falling down, what have you.

    We could, for the sake of argument, compare the number of deaths from falling down the stairs to the number of deaths from shark attacks. Or we could compare the number of deaths while taking selfies to the number of deaths while swimming in the ocean.

    But if we did that, we’d come to the boring conclusion that selfie-related deaths are total anomalies: a microscopic sliver of the big ole Death pie chart, scarcely even worth mentioning.

    --
    Just cruising through this digital world at 33 1/3 rpm...
    1. Re:Bullshit by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Ok, then selfies gone wrong kill more people than swimming in the ocean gone wrong.

      Better?

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    2. Re:Bullshit by adonoman · · Score: 1

      then selfies gone wrong kill more people than swimming in the ocean gone wrong

      Except that they don't - because then you have to add in drownings, jellyfish attacks, lightning strikes, etc...

    3. Re:Bullshit by penguinoid · · Score: 1

      Isn't this kind of like saying, "Guns didn't kill this guy, he died from blood loss"? Selfies can cause a dangerous lack of attention/focus and possibly contribute to dangerous behavior -- although if we're talking 12 deaths / 7 billion population, then blaming those deaths on selfies should consider whether the average person spends less than 0.0000015 seconds per day taking selfies.

      I suspect that overall, you're far less likely to die while taking a selfie than while not, which isn't the same thing as saying that selfies protect from death. Eg a disproportionate number of people die in hospitals, but that doesn't mean that hospitals on average cause death.

      --
      Don't waste your vote! Vote for whoever you want, unless you live in a swing state it won't matter anyways
    4. Re:Bullshit by Solandri · · Score: 1

      The proper way to measure the risk of an activity is to calculate a death rate relative to exposure rate. Shark attacks are relatively rare (more people are killed by deer) because the time people spend exposed to sharks is relatively short. Although millions of people visit the beach every day, the aggregate time they spend in the water and thus expose themselves to possible shark attacks is comparatively short. That's why a disproportionate number of shark attacks are on surfers and body boarders - they represent a smaller population than swimmers, but they spend a lot more time in the water each year than the average beach swimmer.

      On the other hand, any time you're driving a car in an area where deer are free-roaming exposes you to a potential collision with a deer. The population and time you're exposed to the risk is huge. Consequently, you are safer from being killed by a deer than by a shark, even though deer kill more people annually than sharks. The same goes for selfies - the size of the population and the aggregate amount of time they spend taking selfies is huge compared to the aggregate exposure time to potential shark attack. So even if the risk of the two were identical, you'd expect more deaths from the former.

    5. Re:Bullshit by Impy+the+Impiuos+Imp · · Score: 1

      It's worse than that. When one thinks "died because they took (or tried to take) a selfie, one thinks of tumbling off a cliff edge or getting hit by a car on the edge of a road.

      The story lists a guy who just fell over and died of a heart attack, coincidentally taking a selfie. Unless they propose lifting one's arm or some other exertion triggered it, coincidental deaths should not count.

      --
      (-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
    6. Re:Bullshit by ColdWetDog · · Score: 1

      You're a medical coder aren't you?

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    7. Re:Bullshit by JustAnotherOldGuy · · Score: 1

      Except that they don't - because then you have to add in drownings, jellyfish attacks, lightning strikes, etc...

      Exactly. Or being hit by boats, getting swept out to sea, moray eels, undertows, etc etc.

      One might as well say that more people are "killed by ladders" than sharks. It's not the ladder that kills you, it's some activity that involves a ladder.

      --
      Just cruising through this digital world at 33 1/3 rpm...
  24. Subjects are stupid by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Yes, but terrorism!

  25. Darwin Awards. by tekrat · · Score: 2

    Is this what we used to call DARWIN AWARD WINNERS!

    Even before the Web, Usenet distributed texts yearly of the Darwin Awards, wonderful stories of people who took themselves out of the gene pool.

    Selfies killing people?
    Sound like a public service was performed.

    --
    If telephones are outlawed, then only outlaws will have telephones.
  26. I just need to point out by MrKaos · · Score: 2

    I don't need a multi million dollar study to determine that if you have factory ships taking out all of the fish from the local region then you are going to get more shark attacks as they look closer to shore for food.

    Want less shark attacks, have less factory ships.

    --
    My ism, it's full of beliefs.
    1. Re:I just need to point out by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I also believe that shark attacks will happen with the same frequency, but with less intensity if we were to make factory ships smaller. It's odd, because you're the only other person who agrees with me!

    2. Re:I just need to point out by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What's odd is that your anus creates such a perfectly formed sentence.

  27. double whammy? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    anyone got killed by a shark by a selfie? Darwins head would probably explode...

  28. Good by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I endorse selfies. Selfies are the technological answer to what nature isn't capable of enforcing anymore: Natural Selection.
    Every selfie death represents a cleaner gene pool of Humanity. The final solution with consent of the individual sourcing from stupidity.
    ALL HAIL SELFIES
    ALL HAIL SELFIES

  29. The Russian's Already Know About Selfie Danger by turp182 · · Score: 1

    Shoot they did a PSA sheet on it after some deaths:

    http://www.theguardian.com/wor...

    The little images are classic, my favorite is the person who appears to be jumping in front of a train while taking a selfie.

    --
    BlameBillCosby.com
    1. Re:The Russian's Already Know About Selfie Danger by Nidi62 · · Score: 1

      I like the one that apparently says not to take selfies while your boat is in the process of capsizing. And the one that says no selfies during avalanches.

      --
      The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
    2. Re:The Russian's Already Know About Selfie Danger by Opportunist · · Score: 2

      Awww, how typically Russian. Everything's forbidden.

      I prefer the US model. Everything's allowed, let God/evolution (either is fine with me) cull stupidity.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    3. Re:The Russian's Already Know About Selfie Danger by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      Awww, how typically Russian. Everything's forbidden.

      I prefer the US model. Everything's allowed, let God/evolution (either is fine with me) cull stupidity.

      Clearly there's nothing in between the two extremes.

      Life's so easy when everything's a binary choice isn't it?

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
    4. Re:The Russian's Already Know About Selfie Danger by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Indeed. If it was only so easy to make sarcastic comments clearly identifiable as such.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  30. The Population NEEDS to be Culled by jazman_777 · · Score: 1

    Since we don't have large-scale wars, we need something else to cull the population of such imbeciles. Every little bit helps.

    --
    Slashdot: Failed Car Analogies. Amateur Lawyering. Anecdote Battles.
    1. Re:The Population NEEDS to be Culled by Zero__Kelvin · · Score: 1

      On what planet do "we" not have large-scale wars?

      --
      Guns don't kill people; Physics kills people! - John Lithgow as Dick Solomon on Third Rock From The Sun
    2. Re:The Population NEEDS to be Culled by tehcyder · · Score: 2

      large scale wars tend to kill off a disproportionate number of healthy young males. Quite why this would have any evolutionary advantage is unclear to me.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
  31. As always in these cases... by nospam007 · · Score: 1

    Think of it as evolution in action.

  32. Why tigers? by adonoman · · Score: 1

    So taking a picture while hugging a lion or jaguar is still ok? What about Ligers? This seems like way too specific of a law.

  33. Evolution did not stop by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    Just because we are able to cure many diseases that used to kill us doesn't mean evolution is halted. Yes, having a weak immune system is no longer lethal. But thankfully being too stupid to survive still is.

    Don't try to mess with it. It can only improve the gene pool.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    1. Re:Evolution did not stop by Moof123 · · Score: 1

      Only applies to those to those who off themselves before procreating.

    2. Re:Evolution did not stop by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      The others can serve as a warning.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  34. Re:grandmother moon will not fail us leave her alo by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    >magnetic resonance

  35. What about California? by Dareth · · Score: 1

    What about California? Do selfie sticks come with a warning that they may cause cancer?

    --

    I only look human.
    My mother is a halfling and my dad is an ogre, so that makes me an Ogreling
  36. And don't forget failed attempts... by cloud.pt · · Score: 1

    The statistic at hand - 12 people dead with phone in hand - doesn't take into account deaths that were caused by the sheer intention to take a selfie afterwards. The guy that recently fell from a 25m tall statue in Paris comes to mind... It's not just the act of having using a phone with a dangerous background that kills - sometimes the problem comes from getting to the place with that background. Problem, obviously, is the dead aren't here to talk about it anymore.

  37. Selfie and Sharks by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    How many people died while trying to take a selfie with a shark? Is this considered a shark death, or a selfie death? Or do you count it in both columns?

  38. Clickbait by chrisfromnowhere · · Score: 1

    I think I've seen this headline as clickbait before.

  39. Step back by fulldecent · · Score: 1

    This seems disingenuous, if I were at risk of shark attack, I would much rather be armed with a large, expandable metal stick than with only my bare hands.

    --

    -- I was raised on the command line, bitch

  40. You're being pedantic... by XxtraLarGe · · Score: 1

    A shark attack is a direct mechanism of death â" a thing that produces actual, physical harm. A selfie, on the other hand, is what health statisticians might classify as an âoeunderlying mechanismâ or an âoeintermediate mechanism,â depending on the exact circumstances: a thing thatâ(TM)s involved in, and maybe precipitates, an accident, but doesnâ(TM)t actually cause any physical harm. (Unless your phone electrocutes you or something, but thatâ(TM)s a different situation.)

    The headline reads "Selfies Kill" but the summary clearly states that the story is about people who died while taking selfies. Just Another Old Guy indeed! ;-P

    --
    Taking guns away from the 99% gives the 1% 100% of the power.
    1. Re:You're being pedantic... by JustAnotherOldGuy · · Score: 2

      Re:You're being pedantic...

      I prefer to think of it as being "accurate".

      --
      Just cruising through this digital world at 33 1/3 rpm...
  41. Despite the hysteria by tompaulco · · Score: 1

    Despite the hysteria, shark attacks are exceedingly rare. Enough so that entire years go by without a death. More people win the lottery than die from shark attacks. Lots more.
    And also, the article is wrong. Nobody has ever died from taking a selfie. They died from a related or unrelated accident while taking or as a result from a selfie.

    --
    If you are not allowed to question your government then the government has answered your question.
    1. Re: Despite the hysteria by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Just like cell phones and thousands of other things, the real reason for many of these is inattentiveness while doing dangerous things.

      People get too comfortable doing something inherently dangerous like driving a car and stop concentrating on the task at hand.

    2. Re:Despite the hysteria by Moof123 · · Score: 1

      Previously there has been hysteria over "Death by iPod!' from zoned out ipod listeners getting mowed down by cars and trains.

      Blame the car? Blame the driver? Blame the walker? Blame the iPod?

      How about blame whatever makes the best headline...

      Many more examples of such bad sensationalist journalism, but that one came to mind first.

    3. Re:Despite the hysteria by Hognoxious · · Score: 1

      Nobody has ever died from taking a selfie. They died from a related or unrelated accident while taking or as a result from a selfie.

      Nobody ever died while drunk driving. They died while slamming into a bridge pillar.

      --
      Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
  42. The Sky is Falling by userw014 · · Score: 1

    OMG! Is this worse than NASCAR driving?

  43. Inferring the facts by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    people_who_were_killed_by_clumsiness_while_taking_selfie = people_who_died_while_taking_selfie - people_who_were_KILLED_BY_selfie

    people_who_died_while_taking_selfie=12

    people_who_were_KILLED_BY_selfie=12

    ergo, people_who_were_killed_by_clumsiness_while_taking_selfie=0

    So if I take a selfie and die, at least I know it won't be my fault, due to clumsiness, staggeringly-shocking stupidity, bad conditions, bad luck, etc.

  44. Why are the laws in some areas so complex? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The example from the summary of the law passed in New York is a perfect example of lawmaking run amok. That lawmakers seriously spend their time working on laws like this whole leaving tons of others in committee is ridiculous.

    One issue with that law is the bizarrely specific nature of it. But the other is the very existence of laws that are intended to prevent people from making stupid decisions that only affect them (nanny laws).

    1. Re:Why are the laws in some areas so complex? by tehcyder · · Score: 1

      The example from the summary of the law passed in New York is a perfect example of lawmaking run amok. That lawmakers seriously spend their time working on laws like this whole leaving tons of others in committee is ridiculous.

      One issue with that law is the bizarrely specific nature of it. But the other is the very existence of laws that are intended to prevent people from making stupid decisions that only affect them (nanny laws).

      I think the law is there to protect the tigers, which are an endangered species.

      When people are killed by zoo animals, they generally have the animal put down don't they?

      The law allows zoos to pre-empt idiots getting themselves and valuable tigers killed.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
  45. Definately, Definately by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Do not take a selfie while being attacked by a shark.
    Damn statistics.

  46. What does this count as? by Cro+Magnon · · Score: 4, Funny

    If someone falls into the ocean while taking a selfie, and gets eaten by a shark, does that count as a selfie death or a shark death?

    --
    Slow down, cowboy! It has been 4 hours since you last posted. You must wait another few hours.
    1. Re:What does this count as? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If someone falls into the ocean while taking a selfie, and gets eaten by a shark, does that count as a selfie death or a shark death?

      Yes!

    2. Re:What does this count as? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If someone falls into the ocean while taking a selfie, and gets eaten by a shark, does that count as a selfie death or a shark death?

      And if that someone fell into the ocean because I pushed them in with their selfie stick? It's still a selfie-related death in my opinion as none of it would have occurred if they hadn't been taking a selfie. :)

  47. Laser? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Is that shark with, or without friggin' laser?

  48. Law of small numbers by davidwr · · Score: 1

    Yawn.

    --
    Knowledge is how to play a game, intelligence is how to win, wisdom is knowing what game to play.
  49. Correction: Stupidity kills more people than... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Stupidity kills more people than shark attacks.

    The root cause driving imbeciles to increase their risk of death with a superfluous action (selfie) during an already lethally dangerous maneuver is stupidity.

  50. I'm waiting for.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Selfnado 1, 2 and 3 then!

  51. Selfies with tigers in NY by ItsJustAPseudonym · · Score: 1

    New York State passed a bill in June 2014 to prohibit people from having their photo taken (or taking it themselves) while "hugging, patting or otherwise touching tigers."

    In related news, the government of India passed a law to prohibit people from having their photo taken (or taking it themselves) while "hugging, patting or otherwise touching the Statue of Liberty."

  52. New study by TsuruchiBrian · · Score: 1

    A new study shows that more people died while sleeping than from drunk driving. This proves that sleeping is more dangerous than drunk driving.

  53. No No don't ban it - it must continue by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    For the good of the human race we must allow selfies to continue.
    Everyone who dies will raise the average IQ of the human race by a fraction.
    It would be *criminal* to ban them from topping themselves for our benefit.

  54. Meanless articles by pubwvj · · Score: 1

    These sorts of articles that compare unrelated statistics are meaningless. It is relevant how many people die of selfies vs how many die of sharks vs how many die of lightning.

  55. Summary is in error by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The woman in the Yellowstone case was "released with minor injuries." Why does the summary claim she was killed?

    http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/22/travel/yellowstone-woman-bison-attack-selfie/

  56. So by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Does this list also include people killed directly because of a selfie, or only people killed while attempting a selfie. A certain ISIS fighter's misguided social media post comes to mind.

  57. It WAS an Awesome Selfie, Though by Greyfox · · Score: 1

    Guy with the bull up on him, horn sticking out his chest, it's a shoo-in for selfie of the year.

    --

    I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?

  58. In other news... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    more people die from falling down the stairs than being hit by meteorites.

  59. Thank god I moved to Georgia by sabbede · · Score: 1

    Where I can take all the tiger-selfies I want!

  60. I took a selfie once by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I took a selfie once but it was to see the clearance height of my 70L external frame backpack loaded up for a 5 day hike in winter. I ended up dropping the frame rails because snagging on tree limbs while ducking under them was troublesome. I know, I know... external frame packs are "vintage" and 70L is too much for just 5 days... Don't worry I have an internal frame 32L pack that I rock out the 3 other seasons, which I got down to 19.25lbs for wet-weather. All about that comfort.
    Hashtag wayofftopic. That's how you hashtag right?