Holy Crap - Someone Died

Well my feeling is that during this tragic time, we as a community have a responsibility to come together and support not only Eddie's family but Ben's as well. We knew right away the general public would support neither so that leaves us. Unfortunately Jerry's posts seem to be something I would expect from outside the reptile community, not from the inside.

Agreed.

Originally Posted by gonzoone

Well my feeling is that during this tragic time, we as a community have a responsibility to come together and support not only Eddie's family but Ben's as well. We knew right away the general public would support neither so that leaves us. Unfortunately Jerry's posts seem to be something I would expect from outside the reptile community, not from the inside.

Well said.

Originally Posted by KNOBTAIL

We do not know if these roaches were recently purchased, harvested or where they came from not to mention the condition they were kept in..

We don't know ANYTHING, and speculation is totally useless until an autopsy comes back. Throwing out what are at the moment totally baseless accusations of "poisoned roaches" is neither fair, nor helpful.

If this crap about "poisoned roaches" keeps getting spread around before the report, you know the media is going to pick it up and make the bug and reptile industry look WORSE. This is adding fuel to the fire.

And actually, I mis-spoke before -- we DO know TWO things that do allow a small degree of reasonable hypothesis, unlike the totally baseless "toxic bugs" nonsense.

1) an allergic reaction is unlikely to be the cause, as he ate the same bugs some HOURS before in the qualifiers and showed no adverse reaction. Anaphylactic shock usually sets in within minutes of ingesting an allergen.

2) he puked after winning the contest. And we KNOW that, medically, vomiting always carries the risk of aspirating vomit into the lungs and "drowning", as many a healthy college kid finds out the hard way after a night of partying too hard.

Aren't those a whole lot simpler answers than conspiracy theories and baseless nonsense? And I'd be careful there, Jerry, sharing your "theories" too widely -- even if they're couched as "well, *I* think it's this", instead of a fact, and your theory turns out to be baseless, you could easily find yourself on the wrong end of a libel lawsuit.

Spreading false information that's damaging to one's reputation -- y'know, claiming someone you're in a business dispute with at the time has contaminated feeders -- is an awfully stupid thing to do for someone that claims to have such an in-depth understanding of the legal system and lawsuits.

Originally Posted by KNOBTAIL

Hope your not owed any money from Ben !

Or Jerry Tresser from the way it sounds.

Originally Posted by RainDropExotics

If this is a post about the tragic life lost and the survivors (his daughters), attaching the link to the fund set up for them through this difficult time would be honorable Regardless, those two little girls are suffering now. Why not focus on turning to a positive solution what we can as a community rather than trying to further black ball a respected member trying to give a person the opportunity to acquire an animal that most would never be able to afford.

A fund has been set up, this has been circulating on FB, including on Ben's business page. It was set up by Joe Ellis Reptiles. (Note that I am not controlling this fund, nor involved in any way with it, except for spreading the info, so I don't have the answers to any questions about it.)

"If you care to donate the Paypal Address is eddiememorial@yahoo.com

Edward (Barry) Archbold passed away from a tragic accident.

"A 32-year-old man died after winning a midnight roach-eating contest at a Reptile Store in Florida. The grand prize was a female Ivory Ball python. He planned on giving it to his friend"

I personally did not know Eddie and many of you did not either. I am told Eddie was a very nice guy and his friends were everything to him. "He was the life of the Party" What happened was tragic and no one could have predicted what happened. It is difficult for the family as well as the reptile community.

Eddie left two Daughters behind. They could use our help. I have spoken to his Sister, and Girlfriend Natasha Proffitt to start a Memorial Fund. The money will be going towards Eddie's Daughters College Fund.

If you care to donate the Paypal Address is eddiememorial@yahoo.com

Rest In Peace Eddie......

https://www.facebook.com/edward.w.barry

Joe Ellis Reptiles"

Thanks Siren. I was just about to do that on my daily bank run because I saw that Knubtail was apparently too busy to contribute anything positive. Donations wont replace their father but it might ensure a promising future.

Anyone have a direct donation address for the family? After some recent and not-so-recent donation fund skimmings and outright scams, I much prefer to give my money directly to the individual it is supposed to help.

I'm not naive about the fact of what can happen in situations like this but it still amazes me that the first thing coming out of some peoples mouths is get ready for lawsuits. Far as I know cause hasn't been determined yet, family hasn't stated anything about a lawsuit.

Like I posted on the other thread about this incident,

http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/foru...d.php?t=353872

It should be about personal responsibility.

Originally Posted by Dennis Hultman

I personally dislike the direction the topix thread is going.

Right of the back people start talking about representation.

Here you have people volunteering to do something to try and receive a reward. Something of value. Free will people. You engaged in a act freely.

Personal responsibility used to be common place. Now, the first thought is always how can I hold someone else accountable for my actions.

We should rally around the person's family and lend support but not encourage a frivolous lawsuit that nothing presented thus far shows responsibility belongs to anyone but the individual who freely took part in this event.

Ah, there is another thread with far more on-topic conversation. Didn't see that. Still some ignorance going on there, though..