Britain Today.

[BIAD]

We're well into the 'Journo-Holiday' part of the year and with it, non-time-sensitive articles that display nothing
in the form of relevance. For many media-outlets, this is the time for Nessie, vegetables that resemble genitalia
and that old favourite 'look what I fell on and accidently inserted into my rectum'.

But even in the shallows of the News Desk's superficial write-ups, a conservative standard still survives and at
the BBC, they still dare not offer anything that doesn't instil the notion that it is prudent to stay at home and
trust them to tell you when it's okay to go outside.



(Note: For those who like a drink, this article is about reptile attacks and not the half-lager/half-cider pints!)

Snakebites becoming more common in the UK

'A rise in exotic pet ownership means snakebite injuries are becoming more common in the UK, doctors are warning.
In the last 11 years medics have seen and treated 300 victims.


For God sake, don't switch off your TV!

Some 72 of the patients were teenagers or children - 13 were under the age of five. Most of the people who had been
bitten made a complete recovery, but some had to be treated in intensive care. One patient needed part of their finger
amputating, and one man died.

He was a reptile conservationist who had been bitten by a king cobra - the world's longest venomous snake...'

Wow! a person who handles snakes got bitten by one?

'...Measuring around 13 feet long, these snakes can rise or "stand up" to reach an adult's eye level. Snake venom is a
 neurotoxin that can stop the victim's breathing and heartbeat. Those who saw the incident said that, after being bitten,
the man staggered about "as if drunk" and then collapsed.
Witnesses tried to resuscitate him while waiting for the ambulance to arrive.

Despite being given 10 vials of antivenom by the emergency services, he died from a cardiac arrest. It's possible he had
an allergic reaction to the antivenom, say doctors in the journal Clinical Toxicology. The amateur snake keeper who lost
part of their finger because the tissue died was also treated with antivenom. They had been bitten by a highly venomous
species of spitting cobra native to Mozambique. They are considered to be among the most dangerous snakes in Africa.
Their fangs can spray venom up to three metres, and their bite can be lethal....'

I see, this piece is built on one incident reported in a journal and then fleshed-out to imply the UK is in danger of being
poisoned by exotic 'slithery things' that are considered dangerous in another country.

Now watch how the article backtracks from its scaremongering with the use of common facts and regulations.

'...According to the World Health Organization, there are more than 250 species of venomous snake - most are native to
Asia, Africa, Latin America and Oceania.

The UK has three native snake species - the adder, the grass snake and the smooth snake. Only the adder is venomous.

It is not illegal to keep some exotic reptiles as pets. The RSPCA advises people to research as much as possible about
what it entails before buying one, since caring for them properly can be challenging. If you have a pet python, for example,
it advises: "Do not handle your python after handling prey as the snake may smell food and try to bite; wash hands well first."...'

The MSM -including the BBC, bang-on about poverty and food-banks in the UK being an everyday reality. Just which strata
of Britain's class-society are we talking about that can afford to keep a pet python?!

'...In the study, the researchers logged 321 exotic snakebites from 68 different species. Of those who were bitten, 15 had
severe symptoms...'

A little different from what the headline implies!

'...One of the study authors, Prof David Warrell from Oxford University, said: "Most of these bites occur to fingers, hands and
wrists following deliberate handling interaction by people who keep snakes as part of their occupation or hobby." Prof Nicholas
Casewell is the director of the Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine.

He said it was important to distinguish between venomous snakes and non-venomous ones, such as corn snakes, which
many High Street pet shops sell. Snakes, like other animals that bite, can be a safe pet. Ownership of many venomous
species requires a special licence in the UK, meaning children shouldn't be handling them.

"People keeping venomous ones should be careful and have a mitigation plan in place for if they are bitten," said Prof Casewell.
He added that native adder bites in the UK were extremely rare. "You can find adders in some coastal areas - parts of the south
-east, north Wales and the Yorkshire moors. Most snakes are not aggressive. You would have to be quite unfortunate to be bitten.

"Very occasionally someone might step on one and get bitten. Or they might pick one up not realising it's an adder. The NHS
has access to different antivenoms for these rare emergencies."...'

BBC:

Sadly, the BBC omitted the other locations where deadly snakes are common, the Houses of Parliament and BBC Studios.