What is the take away from this python, and ventilation system related story?

I am suspicious of the story until the autopsy results are available. Snakes don’t tend to “catch and release” – I’m surprised it didn’t ingest the child.

Snakes are very strong and tend to be escape artists exactly because the can squeeze through shockingly small areas (hence the stories of toilet bowl snakes).

As to outlawing dangerous pets, I am of the opinion that anyone stupid enough to have a giant snake in the same household as small children is stupid enough to endanger children in any number of ways. I do favor strict regulations for exotic and dangerous pets, but blanket bans (like for pit bulls) are foolish and ineffective. Regulations allow the control and monitoring of populations, and hopefully fewer underground/illegal ownership.

I guess if I were going to let my kids stay at an apartment over a pet shop I would look in the pet shop first to see what they carried.

What makes you think that laws would have prevented this? What a silly idea.

It’s almost as silly as pretending that schools will be Gun Free because we pass laws to make it so.

The tragedy is not laughable, of course. What is laughable is the ignorance that “a law” would have prevented this tragedy.

@syz it is 2 children by the way.

“As to outlawing dangerous pets, I am of the opinion that anyone stupid enough to have a giant snake in the same household as small children is stupid enough to endanger children in any number of ways.’’

So, because of that, because some parents are unhelpful, the state should also be unhelpful too?

@Adirondackwannabe We don’t know who was there first, the pet store or the family , but yes I would want to know w

The news says he didn’t have a permit for the python by the way.

@CWOTUS You may have a point, but I feel bad for you anyway.

@flo Yeah, it wasn’t a legal snake.

@flo Yes, I saw that that there were two children, but one child would’ve probably been a full meal. As far as regulations, no, I did not say that there should be no regulations. I did say that blanket bans are ineffective and reactionary.

And by the way, nearly 800 children under 14 were killed in gun accidents from 1999 to 2010, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s a shit-load more than were eaten by large snakes. Where are the protections from the state for that?

@syz I had the same reaction to this story that you did – it sounds a little suspicious to me.

Some of you may be missing the point that a 100# snake, associated ducting and ceiling materials fell on two small children who had been lying down and sleeping.

The snake didn’t eat them; the weight of the snake and everything else falling from the ceiling killed them, pretty much instantly, I would imagine.

@CWOTUS Every time I have heard this story reported, it has been stated that the python apparently strangled the two children.

@CWOTUS Granted, I haven’t been scouring the ‘net looking for stories, but the two that I have seen made no mention of ceiling materials and the first one seemed to indicate that the snake was found somewhere besides the kids’ bedroom. There’s really no way to know what truly happened until the investigation is complete (if then).

The necropy showed that they were asphyxiated.

How about the ventilation system? Couldn’t they be made snake and the like proof?

@syz “And by the way, nearly 800 children under 14 were killed in gun accidents from 1999 to 2010,” Just because that many kids died from guns, it doesn’t mean it is no big deal if more kids died in other (esp. preventable) ways, does it?

Don’t be obtuse. The risk of being eaten by a giant snake is miniscule. The risk of being shot by your little brother playing with a gun is much more significant.

@syz just argue the point, if you can. Why do you need “Don’t be obtuse”._ part. Ask your self

Even if one person dies, unnecessarily (and the snake’s case is one example, a gun case another example) that is one too many.