Why are people so afraid of snakes?
13 messages in this thread |
Started on 2005-10-21
Why are people so afraid of snakes?
From: marthastewartletterboxer (nishakamada@yahoo.com) |
Date: 2005-10-21 17:22:55 UTC
> Why would anyone want to mess with any snake regardless of it's
> coloring? Just leave it be, unless it has 2 inch fangs imbedded into
> your leg.
Not quite sure why snakes have such a bad rap. Except for the few
poisonous ones, snakes are pretty cool. I am aware that many people
are pathalogically afraid of them but I confess to not being sure
why... Is it a religious thing?
Nisha
Re: [LbNA] Why are people so afraid of snakes?
From: Jackie Farrell (jackielfarrell@yahoo.com) |
Date: 2005-10-21 10:34:56 UTC-07:00
For me it is they are slimmy, and some are dangerous. I just don't mess with them and hope they don't mess with me. Maybe I have watched to many sci-fi movies about mean snakes.
Daddy's Girl Forever! I will miss you!
Jackie
Daisy Leader
Clinton Area
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Daddy's Girl Forever! I will miss you!
Jackie
Daisy Leader
Clinton Area
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: [LbNA] Why are people so afraid of snakes?
From: Charlotte Schmotzer (charpezt@yahoo.com) |
Date: 2005-10-21 11:56:56 UTC-07:00
Well, I for one am not really afraid of snakes, I used
to keep a little garter snake in my pocket to keep my
older sister away from me. it worked very well!!!
also, regarding snakes being "slimey" they aren't.
they are dry and very sinewy, muscular and wonderful.
only slimey ones are eels because they live in the
water, but regular land snakes are dry.
there are ones to avoid and we do go into their
habitat afterall, but they really want to avoid us
also. so there's my 2 cents worth...
charpezt
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to keep a little garter snake in my pocket to keep my
older sister away from me. it worked very well!!!
also, regarding snakes being "slimey" they aren't.
they are dry and very sinewy, muscular and wonderful.
only slimey ones are eels because they live in the
water, but regular land snakes are dry.
there are ones to avoid and we do go into their
habitat afterall, but they really want to avoid us
also. so there's my 2 cents worth...
charpezt
__________________________________
Yahoo! Mail - PC Magazine Editors' Choice 2005
http://mail.yahoo.com
Re: Why are people so afraid of snakes?
From: Crappiefisher (crappiefishergirl@yahoo.com) |
Date: 2005-10-21 19:39:54 UTC
the general population is not taught how to identify snakes, so since
there are poisonous snakes in many parts of the US those who do not
hav the training/knowledge on how to identify those few dangerous ones
are afraid of all snakes because they don't know if the snake they
come in contact with is poisonous or not.
i'm from s. louisiana and my parents made sure that i knew the
difference between a copperhead and a kingsnake. how to identify a
moccasin vs. a rat snake. so i know to stay away from certain snakes,
but not all snakes scare me. i ran across the overall snake fear
moving up here to the midwest where there are hardly any instances
where one would come across a poisonous snake....as opposed to my home
in s. louisiana where copperheads could be found in the backyard!
so i think that the fear stems from ignorance. maybe they should teach
these types of life lessons in school.
there are poisonous snakes in many parts of the US those who do not
hav the training/knowledge on how to identify those few dangerous ones
are afraid of all snakes because they don't know if the snake they
come in contact with is poisonous or not.
i'm from s. louisiana and my parents made sure that i knew the
difference between a copperhead and a kingsnake. how to identify a
moccasin vs. a rat snake. so i know to stay away from certain snakes,
but not all snakes scare me. i ran across the overall snake fear
moving up here to the midwest where there are hardly any instances
where one would come across a poisonous snake....as opposed to my home
in s. louisiana where copperheads could be found in the backyard!
so i think that the fear stems from ignorance. maybe they should teach
these types of life lessons in school.
Re: [LbNA] Why are people so afraid of snakes?
From: Jackie Farrell (jackielfarrell@yahoo.com) |
Date: 2005-10-21 13:27:39 UTC-07:00
charpezt
Thanks for setting my asumptions straight. I don't like being misleading. Something about the way they slither across the group, but how else are they suppose to move:) I have fishes, snails, frogs (in my fish tank), dragon fish, shrimp, even hermit crabs, and an igronia (It did not survive think it was sick when we got it). My husband wants a snake not up to it with three small ones.
Daddy's Girl Forever! I will miss you!
Jackie
Daisy Leader
Clinton Area
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Thanks for setting my asumptions straight. I don't like being misleading. Something about the way they slither across the group, but how else are they suppose to move:) I have fishes, snails, frogs (in my fish tank), dragon fish, shrimp, even hermit crabs, and an igronia (It did not survive think it was sick when we got it). My husband wants a snake not up to it with three small ones.
Daddy's Girl Forever! I will miss you!
Jackie
Daisy Leader
Clinton Area
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: [LbNA] Re: Why are people so afraid of snakes?
From: Jackie Farrell (jackielfarrell@yahoo.com) |
Date: 2005-10-21 13:32:34 UTC-07:00
I don't think it would hurt anything to teach those leassons in school. I agree it is out of not knowing which ones can hurt you and how they hurt you that makes me afraid of them all.
Daddy's Girl Forever! I will miss you!
Jackie
Daisy Leader
Clinton Area
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Daddy's Girl Forever! I will miss you!
Jackie
Daisy Leader
Clinton Area
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: [LbNA] Re: Why are people so afraid of snakes?
From: Pats DuBos (votremerci@yahoo.com) |
Date: 2005-10-21 13:57:18 UTC-07:00
Gene has the rhyme on his SC site www.snakesandfrogs.com as:
Red and Yellow, kill a fellow
Red and Black, friend of jack.
Here are some photos of what you don't want to encounter
http://www.snakesandfrogs.com/scra/snakes/images/coral2.jpg
Never hurts to familiarize yourself some - enough to be aware. It is tough to try and teach the differences in snakes, but great groups like Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (PARC - www.parcplace.org ) do education outreach, as well as local nature centers and such.
There is a good reason when I'm out boxing alone why I won't reach into dark holes, under logs, or stray too far from the path. The only snake I've actually seen is a little tiny ringneck in NC. ;-)
MoWizLiz
Jackie Farrell wrote:
I don't think it would hurt anything to teach those leassons in school. I agree it is out of not knowing which ones can hurt you and how they hurt you that makes me afraid of them all.
---------------------------------
Yahoo! FareChase - Search multiple travel sites in one click.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Red and Yellow, kill a fellow
Red and Black, friend of jack.
Here are some photos of what you don't want to encounter
http://www.snakesandfrogs.com/scra/snakes/images/coral2.jpg
Never hurts to familiarize yourself some - enough to be aware. It is tough to try and teach the differences in snakes, but great groups like Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (PARC - www.parcplace.org ) do education outreach, as well as local nature centers and such.
There is a good reason when I'm out boxing alone why I won't reach into dark holes, under logs, or stray too far from the path. The only snake I've actually seen is a little tiny ringneck in NC. ;-)
MoWizLiz
Jackie Farrell
I don't think it would hurt anything to teach those leassons in school. I agree it is out of not knowing which ones can hurt you and how they hurt you that makes me afraid of them all.
---------------------------------
Yahoo! FareChase - Search multiple travel sites in one click.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: [LbNA] Re: Why are people so afraid of snakes?
From: (motofranz@webtv.net) |
Date: 2005-10-21 17:45:04 UTC-04:00
Eeeeewwwww,SNAKES!!
I Hate snakes..(not to kill them) but I just don't like the way they
slither .
I had a snake come out of one of my letterboxes as I was going to do a
little maintenance.
I sure did screammm..... ;-)
I DO like fuzzy Bunny Rabbits though....
Franzsolo...
I Hate snakes..(not to kill them) but I just don't like the way they
slither .
I had a snake come out of one of my letterboxes as I was going to do a
little maintenance.
I sure did screammm..... ;-)
I DO like fuzzy Bunny Rabbits though....
Franzsolo...
Re: Why are people so afraid of snakes?
From: dac0917 (dac0917@cox.net) |
Date: 2005-10-21 22:08:40 UTC
I really like snakes, I'm fascinated by them. Actually, I always hope
to run across one when I'm out boxing. No luck so far, though. Maybe
I should visit Farmington ;)
I didn't know there were still copperheads and rattlers in Southern
New England, that's good information to have. Make sure you can
identify those bad boys!
I heard a theory about how there may be an evolutionary explanation
for so many people's fear of snakes. It goes that it would obviously
be advantageous for someone to be afraid of poisonous snakes, and try
to avoid them, so maybe a little bit of this trait is still inside of
us today. Same thing for spiders, I suppose.
And for the record, eels are fish, not snakes.
to run across one when I'm out boxing. No luck so far, though. Maybe
I should visit Farmington ;)
I didn't know there were still copperheads and rattlers in Southern
New England, that's good information to have. Make sure you can
identify those bad boys!
I heard a theory about how there may be an evolutionary explanation
for so many people's fear of snakes. It goes that it would obviously
be advantageous for someone to be afraid of poisonous snakes, and try
to avoid them, so maybe a little bit of this trait is still inside of
us today. Same thing for spiders, I suppose.
And for the record, eels are fish, not snakes.
Re: Why are people so afraid of snakes?
From: virginiawaterbird (virginiawaterbird@yahoo.com) |
Date: 2005-10-21 23:46:59 UTC
--- In letterbox-usa@yahoogroups.com, "marthastewartletterboxer" <
nishakamada@y...> wrote:
>
>
> > Why would anyone want to mess with any snake regardless of it's
> > coloring? Just leave it be, unless it has 2 inch fangs imbedded into
> > your leg.
>
> Not quite sure why snakes have such a bad rap. Except for the few
> poisonous ones, snakes are pretty cool. I am aware that many people
> are pathalogically afraid of them but I confess to not being sure
> why... Is it a religious thing?
> Nisha
>
It's ignorance. If it's different, and especially if it lacks "arms" and legs, you'd
better kill it, is the way the reasoning (if you can call it that) goes. It's just
different, that's all, but that's scary.
Waterbird
nishakamada@y...> wrote:
>
>
> > Why would anyone want to mess with any snake regardless of it's
> > coloring? Just leave it be, unless it has 2 inch fangs imbedded into
> > your leg.
>
> Not quite sure why snakes have such a bad rap. Except for the few
> poisonous ones, snakes are pretty cool. I am aware that many people
> are pathalogically afraid of them but I confess to not being sure
> why... Is it a religious thing?
> Nisha
>
It's ignorance. If it's different, and especially if it lacks "arms" and legs, you'd
better kill it, is the way the reasoning (if you can call it that) goes. It's just
different, that's all, but that's scary.
Waterbird
Re: [LbNA] Why are people so afraid of snakes?
From: Rachel Pollock (ladybee@gmail.com) |
Date: 2005-10-21 20:29:43 UTC-04:00
I'll weigh in on the "likes snakes" side. I had one as a pet for a while,
and a year ago i drove across the country (Boston to LA) with a friend and
her pet cornsnake. That was pretty crazy, i have to admit! She wound up with
one well-travelled snake, that's for sure.
I think that lots of people are scared of them because they're so alien--no
legs at all, so their movement is unusual-looking, perhaps disturbing. And,
we see and read so much about poison snakes, horror movies with snakes,
parables where snakes are presented as evil creatures (The Jungle Book, or
even the Bible).
I think it's a good idea to read up on a few safety subjects about anywhere
you're going to go wandering around in the wilderness, not only to see what
poisonous snakes might be indigenous, but also other threats: bears, poison
ivy, when hunting season starts. Just to be informed.
Ladybee
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
and a year ago i drove across the country (Boston to LA) with a friend and
her pet cornsnake. That was pretty crazy, i have to admit! She wound up with
one well-travelled snake, that's for sure.
I think that lots of people are scared of them because they're so alien--no
legs at all, so their movement is unusual-looking, perhaps disturbing. And,
we see and read so much about poison snakes, horror movies with snakes,
parables where snakes are presented as evil creatures (The Jungle Book, or
even the Bible).
I think it's a good idea to read up on a few safety subjects about anywhere
you're going to go wandering around in the wilderness, not only to see what
poisonous snakes might be indigenous, but also other threats: bears, poison
ivy, when hunting season starts. Just to be informed.
Ladybee
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: [LbNA] Re: Why are people so afraid of snakes?
From: Charlotte Schmotzer (charpezt@yahoo.com) |
Date: 2005-10-21 18:17:03 UTC-07:00
Yeah I know eels are fish, but they LOOK snake-like so
they are the slimey ones still in my book...;-)
charpezt
--- dac0917 wrote:
> I really like snakes, I'm fascinated by them.
> Actually, I always hope
> to run across one when I'm out boxing. No luck so
> far, though. Maybe
> I should visit Farmington ;)
> I didn't know there were still copperheads and
> rattlers in Southern
> New England, that's good information to have. Make
> sure you can
> identify those bad boys!
> I heard a theory about how there may be an
> evolutionary explanation
> for so many people's fear of snakes. It goes that
> it would obviously
> be advantageous for someone to be afraid of
> poisonous snakes, and try
> to avoid them, so maybe a little bit of this trait
> is still inside of
> us today. Same thing for spiders, I suppose.
> And for the record, eels are fish, not snakes.
>
>
>
>
>
__________________________________
Yahoo! FareChase: Search multiple travel sites in one click.
http://farechase.yahoo.com
they are the slimey ones still in my book...;-)
charpezt
--- dac0917
> I really like snakes, I'm fascinated by them.
> Actually, I always hope
> to run across one when I'm out boxing. No luck so
> far, though. Maybe
> I should visit Farmington ;)
> I didn't know there were still copperheads and
> rattlers in Southern
> New England, that's good information to have. Make
> sure you can
> identify those bad boys!
> I heard a theory about how there may be an
> evolutionary explanation
> for so many people's fear of snakes. It goes that
> it would obviously
> be advantageous for someone to be afraid of
> poisonous snakes, and try
> to avoid them, so maybe a little bit of this trait
> is still inside of
> us today. Same thing for spiders, I suppose.
> And for the record, eels are fish, not snakes.
>
>
>
>
>
__________________________________
Yahoo! FareChase: Search multiple travel sites in one click.
http://farechase.yahoo.com
Re: [LbNA] Why are people so afraid of snakes?
From: Jackie Farrell (jackielfarrell@yahoo.com) |
Date: 2005-10-22 09:23:38 UTC-07:00
I am afraid they are going to hurt my children if I have one as a pet:( I know that serveral people have snakes and kids but it is just a fear I have.
Daddy's Girl Forever! I will miss you!
Jackie
Daisy Leader
Clinton Area
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Daddy's Girl Forever! I will miss you!
Jackie
Daisy Leader
Clinton Area
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]