Peter Brock dies in accident

[TEEJAY]

Germain Greer

I heard the funiest thing yesterday about her on ABC and the interview finished with the comment that the Australian people would gladly give her a fully funded funeral at public expense in the back of a truck to the local tip - LOL - did cheer me up.

[Wood Butcher]

Germain Greer

That would not be a tragedy. It would be cause for celebration

[Wood Butcher]

yes thats what i was thinking.
sad day for us holden fans

Rowie,

Its just a sad a day for us Ford fans too.

That man was a legend in Australian Motorsport and will be sorely missed by all us fans!

[Andy Mac]

just so terrible, lets just hope there is'nt a 3rd

There already was, Colin Thiele, great (South) Australian author, who I loved reading as a kid, died at 88 on the Gold Coast, same day as Irwin I think. He wrote something like 60 books including "Storm Boy". An Aussie icon, a legend who defined and described an era.
RIP Colin, Steve and Peter.

Regards,

[sliver]

What a week!!! Peter Brock, I must admit I have not seen for years. Last time was racing on 'The mountain' on t.v. Liked his talent very much. I'm a motorsports fan myself & always feel it when these things happen.

My sympathy goes out to his family & friends.

sliver.

[Bushmiller]

I found myself wondering why we revere our heroes in death who, by their own antics and frequently self admission, tempt fate.

Steve Irwin probably had a similar mentality to a lion tamer whilst Peter Brock was an adrenalin junkie arguably past the useby date for most racing drivers.

So why do we lament them so publicly, because on a rational basis you would have to say they brought it on themselves? Just by the law of averages, the more frequently you travel at elevated speeds in excess of 200kmh per hour; the more often you wave a dead chook over the head of a four metre crocodile, the greater chance there is of the ultimate disaster.

You would also have to say that for the most part they were financially well rewarded too.

So could it be that we just admire them and if we had their talents we would be doing exactly the same thing. Is it the proverbial battlefield substitute? Instead of swinging an axe or weilding a mace or other instrument of pain and destruction on the battlefield we watch our heroes allowing them to "do battle" for us by proxy. So when they fall, we go with them.

Perhaps it is because both Steve Irwin and Peter Brock were unselfish in their attitude to charitable and worthy institutions. They didn't ignore or forget their lesser foot soldiers.

It is just sad for me that we cannot honour everyone who dies suddenly or by misadvanture in the same splendid fashion.

I am reminded of a famous saying that everyone knows, but is mostly only partly quoted. It dated from the time of the plague in London when the cart was drawn through the streets calling to people to bring out their dead....

"Any man's death diminishes me, because I am part of mankind. Therfore never send to know for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee."

As a parting comment, Germaine Greer's words reek of an unfullfilled, sour old witch and are totally unworthy of one who once aspired to high ideals.

My sympathies and condolences to the Irwin and Brock families because their greatest trials are still ahead of them.

Sad regards
Paul

[ozwinner]

Just by the law of averages, the more frequently you travel at elevated speeds in excess of 200kmh per hour; the more often you wave a dead chook over the head of a four metre crocodile, the greater chance there is of the ultimate disaster.

Averages.
Each push of the pokie button gives the same chance to win as the push before it, therefore the chance of dieing is the same every time you push the limit?

Or is it different for "heros"

Al :confused:

[craigb]

I dont know. In the case of someone like Brock, maybe we feel it a bit more keenly because they are part of our shared past.

So when they die, a little bit of our past dies too and reminds us that one day it'll be our turn.

Perhaps.

I'm sad that he bought the farm, but as Grunt said, at least he died doing something he loved.

[la Huerta]

i see your point bushmiller...but for me loosing say Steve for instance is loosing hope for what he was doing, he was the one guy in the history of the world that stood up for the animals and made an impact, it's proof that one man can make a difference, and he was just an aussie bloke, not a soldier, royal, politition or rockstar, but someone different that the world had never seen before...someone who had become so vital, and must continue, but how?...will people keep his dream alive or just do it short term so they feel better ...

he had 500 million followers, God has 2 billion, only for times more than Steve.

he was supposed to train his kids so they could continue and now it has suddenly come to an end, i think his wife Terry knows this...

...but

Steves death could possibly make him more powerful, even to the extent of buda or gody like statis (i don't mean worship him) simply because his fans will now do more for thee world and those who were'nt fans before may be now...if one man really can make a difference, imagine what 500 million can do...

...it's not impossible

[Bushmiller]

"[quote=ozwinner;369873]Averages.
Each push of the pokie button gives the same chance to win as the push before it, therefore the chance of dieing is the same every time you push the limit?

Or is it different for "heros"."

Al

Each push of the pokie button considered individually has the same probability, but multiple pushes taken collectively as a group event see the chances of "success" multiplied by the number of times the task is attempted. In reverse it is the same for the racing driver.

Who is more at risk? The driver who completes ten races or the driver of a thousand races; The soldier who fights two wars of he who fights twenty wars?

Is it different for heroes? Unfortunately no. Despite being seemingly bulletproof, their human frailties both mental and physical (and sometimes morally) are every bit as weak and vunerable as the rest of us lesser beings.

Still sad.
Paul

[ozwinner]

I'm sad that he bought the farm, .

No... he just sold the farm an Nutfield Vic. :confused:

Al :confused:

[ozwinner]

Each push of the pokie button considered individually has the same probability, but multiple pushes taken collectively as a group event see the chances of "success" multiplied by the number of times the task is attempted.

Not so Im sorry to say, this is what the casinos and pokie venues want you to think.

Each push is a new and unconnected push to the last push.

Al

[Bushmiller]

Please don't misunderstand me on this one. Both Steve Irwin and Peter Brock were exceptional people who undoubtedly had more to give. We always feel cheated when people die before their time. More than their achievements, my sadness is for their untimely death and their families' grief. It is something to which I can relate.

Paul

[martrix]

So when they die, a little bit of our past dies too and reminds us that one day it'll be our turn. .

I think thats it in a nutshell. It reminds us that we are only here for a short time, and one day, we all must go.....

[Stuart]

No... he just sold the farm an Nutfield Vic. :confused:

Al :confused:

Actually Al, "bought the farm" is a euphemism for dying. I don't think Craig was referring to Peter's recent transactions.

Not so Im sorry to say, this is what the casinos and pokie venues want you to think.

Each push is a new and unconnected push to the last push.

Al

Sorry again Al, as much as they are independant events, there is a collective chance, based on the number of attempts. If you threw a coin 10 times, sure, each throw has a 50/50 chance of being a tail, but collectively, there is a much higher probability that at least 1 of those 10 throws will be a tail.

Put it another way: if we both had $100, and I would give you my $100 if on one flip of a coin it came up tails, and you would give me the $100 if it came up tails on any one of 10 throws, who is more likely to end up broke at the end? The person who had to survive 1 toss of the coin (50/50) or the person who had to survive 10 attempts (1 in a 1000 (almost exactly))?

Anyway, this is a bit of a distraction from what this is about: the late, great Peter Brock.