Ah, the cynics
Well, it seems like some folks are questioning the worth of thee fundraising portion of our endeavor.
Here’s a little missive I recieved from the head of Venomous Reptiles when he found out we were doing this. Decide for yourself:
WOW Shannon, Can’t tell you how much I appreciate this!!! Currently we are involved with a program to develop a new antivenom for the island of Sri Lanka, which - incredibly - does NOT have it’s own antivenom and yet it leads the world in snakebite deaths per capita. To put this into perspective, Sri Lanka is the size of West Virginia, but has 3.5 times as many snakebites as the entire United States, and 100 times as many deaths from snakebite. And of course the US has it’s own AV. Money talks obviously.
Sri Lanka however is a 3rd world country, but is inhabited by the most inoffensive people I have ever encountered. Currently, they import antivenom from India, which hosts 4 antivenom manufacturers, all of which are small-time operations in comparison to the US drug trade. Their product sells in-country for only $3 a vial! But unfortunately about 80% of the people who receive Indian antivenoms have allergic reactions to it, and it only covers 4 of Sri Lanka’s 7 venomous species, and those not very well. Recent research has shown that snakes of the same species only 20 to 50 miles apart can have venom variations wide enough to create severe treatment complications for medical practicioners. So you can imagine how different the venoms of Sri Lankan snakes would be from Indian snakes (of the same species).
By creating a regionally specific Sri Lankan antivenom utilizing cutting edge western technologies, we will significantly be able to alleviate the suffering of the Sri Lankan agricultural workers and other indigenous people. A huge amount of tea and cinnamon are exported to the US from Sri Lanka annually, as well as a huge amount of designer clothing - Banana Republic, Tommy Hilfiger, Columbia etc. The average worker there makes $3 a day by the way. At the very least, I think that we could all pull together to help alleviate the suffering of the rural population by spearheading this project and getting an efficient antivenom where it needs to be.
Certainly, any monies that you will contribute will go toward educational activities as well as this project.Thanks again,
Chris Harper, NREMT-P
Webmaster@VenomousReptiles.org
Pres., Southeastern Hot Herp Society, Inc.
http://www.venomousreptiles.org/
So remember kids, every dollar raised is one fewer dead Sri Lankan come to visit trucraig on his Tommy Hilfigered death bed. Or conversely, each dollar brings us one day closer to Ragnarok, wherein trucraig will be killed by the Midgard Serpent instead of Thor. Take your pick.
And don’t forget, you can find the Pledge Sheet here.
NOTE: Email from Chris updated from initial post.
August 15th, 2006 at 3:58 pm
Ah, to be killed by the results of my own hands… or, fingers rather. Nice, with the Norse references. I don’t mind having death wished on me in exchange for saving soccer moms’ access to cinnamon, but Tommy Hilfiger? Like, khakis and collar poppin’? That shit?
Damn man. Never thought I’d be a fashion victim.
August 15th, 2006 at 4:04 pm
Yeah, Hilfiger’s probably not a great choice. I wanted to use something from the dude’s letter, and I didn’t figure you for a Banana Republic kind of guy. What do you wear?
August 15th, 2006 at 8:06 pm
Not a Tommy Hilfiger fan? Okay then, how about Victoria’s Secret and Ralph Lauren? I know that I saw those brands as well while I was there. Sri Lanka is a huge garment manufacturing center for the first world (meaning us).
We had a Toyota bus rented while I was there, with a driver and porter, that only cost $20 a day! You should have seen the looks on their faces when I tipped them $10 each one day. They were like, “Are you kidding?”
To see some photos from the recent trip to Sri Lanka, check out: http://www.venomousreptiles.org/libraries/Sri%20Lanka
Chris Harper
webmaster@venomousreptiles.org
August 16th, 2006 at 7:08 am
Victoria’s Secret? Hell yes. I’d wear that in a minute.
Light, silky lace and spaghetti straps go well with my beard, errant cursing, and a nipple-topped bottle of whisky. Shows off my curves.
Strictly out of curiosity: Chris, are these the ACTUAL clothing brands doing the manufacturing in Sri Lanka, or are we talking Swap-Meet Louie and Canal Street?
August 16th, 2006 at 3:24 pm
Yes, these are the actual clothing brands. I have several Columbia items that say, “Made in Sri Lanka”. Personally, I think the big name brands should ante up to help fund this project.
Eventually, I may take this cause to some talk shows or CNN or something of that nature. I have a meeting on the 29th that will give me more detail on what the course of this project will be. Right now, I have another individual who has gone to Sri Lanka to do some leg work. Plane tickets are running close to $2000 apiece. It’s a very expensive endeavor, but not in the overall scheme of things. For the price of one helicopter, I could fund this entire project with money to spare. And so far, it’s just been privately funded.
Chris Harper