Ways To Die: #67 - #76

1. It’s hard to believe, but sometimes plants take revenge. A 27 year old male discovered this after his friend suggested they do a little “cactus plugging” by shooting a cactus with a shotgun. This young man tried his plugging skills on a 25 foot tall Saguaro cactus. After blasting a large hole in the cactus, the cactus fell on him, crushing him to death!
2. Sometimes you can even die strangely while walking through your own city. Allan Pinkerton, famous for creating the Pinkerton detective agency in the 1800’s, died at age 65 after biting his tongue when he slipped on the sidewalk.
3. It’s hard to believe but there’s actually a case of someone eating himself to death. The unfortunate victim was King Adolf Frederick of Sweden. His favorite dessert was a bun filled with marzipan and milk. He was so hungry that one day he ate fourteen servings of this dessert and subsequently died on the spot.
4. You’ve heard of video game fanatics. Well this young man have had the ultimate game addiction. A 28 year old Korean video game lover died at an internet cafe after playing Starcraft for almost 50 hours straight. At least he died doing something he enjoyed.
5. This may be the most nauseating death of all. In the early 1980’s, a 25 year old Dutch woman arrived at the home of a classmate who had invited her to dinner for an intellectual conversation. The conversation must have turned bad because she was killed and eaten by her dinner companion.
6. Celebrities have been known to die in strange ways also. The author, Sherwood Anderson, died after developing an abdominal infection when he swallowed a toothpick at a party.
7. It pays to write down the combination of your safe. In 1911, the famous Jack Daniel, who founded the Tennessee whiskey company, died of blood poisoning after kicking his safe in anger because he couldn’t remember the combination to open it.
8. Sometimes it just pays to stay at home. In 1972, Leslie Harvey, guitarist of Stone the Crows, was on stage performing for a crowd of fans. Unfortunately, he was electrocuted by his microphone and died at the scene.
9. It pays to use the best materials when you construct your laboratory. In 1277, Pope John XXI was killed after his scientific laboratory collapsed on him.

Thanks to socyberty.com for info!

Ways To Die #49 - #54

1. Too much of a good thing – Water Intoxication


In June of 2007 Jennifer Lea Strange joined a short list of people who drank themselves to death with water when she fatally consumed an overdose of H2O during a radio contest called “Hold Your Wee for a Wii”. The young wife and mother agreed to drink as much water as possible as part of the contest in order to win a Wii game player for her family. Contestants competed to see who could go the longest without stopping to urinate. After the contest Strange collapsed and died resulting in a civil lawsuit against the radio station. Water intoxication which is also known as hyper-hydration can cause a fatal disturbance in the brain when the electrolytes in the body are thrown off their normal balance. Other famous deaths from water intoxication include artist Andy Warhol whose family claimed he was given too many fluids following gallbladder surgery in 1987.


2. Jumping into a Volcano

In 430 BC Empedocles a Greek philosopher who is best known being the originator of the cosmogenic theory of the four classic elements threw himself into the very active Mount Etna either to convince his followers, he was a god, or because he believed himself to be immortal. He might also have thought he would be reincarnated. The volcano put a quick end to any more hypotheses on his part.

3. Laughter isn’t always the best medicine

In 1599 when Burman king Nanda Bayin was informed by a visiting Italian merchant that Venice was without a king and therefore a free state he started to laugh. Unfortunately, for him he couldn’t stop laughing. His death was more than likely a result of brain hemorrhage brought on by the strain of his giggle fit. Thomas Urguhart a Scottish aristocrat and diplomat is said to have died in the same manner in 1660 after hearing that Charles II had been made king.


4. What a way to go – Death by Overeating

After drinking champagne and consuming a meal of lobster, smoked herring, caviar, sauerkraut, and over a dozen servings of a favorite dessert Swedish king Adolf Frederick understandably complained he didn’t feel well. He died a few hours later. Sadly, Adolf’s favorite pastimes as ruler had been to make snuff boxes and not much else. He’s therefore remembered only as “the king who ate himself to death” in his own homeland.


5. A great demonstration – Lawyer proves his case by killing himself

In 1871 while representing a defendant in a murder case lawyer Clement Vallandigham a United States Congressman and one time political opponent of Abraham Lincoln wanted to prove the supposed murder weapon could have accidentally been fired by the victim. Taking the gun from evidence Vallandigham tried to demonstrate to the jury how the victim might have shot himself. His mistake was in not checking to see if the gun was loaded. Just as Vallandigham had speculated the firearm discharged and just as he’d conjectured the result was a mortal wound. On an upbeat note at least the defendant was acquitted.


Thanks to Kacey Stapleton – content from  www.weirdworm.com

Ways To Die #38- #48: 10 Manliest Ways to Die

We're all going to die anyway, so at least do it like a man. Meet ten manliest ways to die.

1. Steve Irwin: Impaled by a Stingray
   Is it even possible to start a manly list about anything without the Crocodile Hunter? Steve died as manly as possible on 2006, while filming a documentary entitled "Ocean's Deadliest" in Queensland's Great Barrier Reef. His heart was impaled by nothing less than a short-tail stingray barb. Of all the different ways to die, we can't think of a manliest; his legacy will impale us forever.
   
2. Eleazar Maccabeus: Crushed to death by a War Elephant
   Here's a guy with balls of steel, just like his whole family. During the Maccabean revolt, where Jewish people revolted against Seleucidic and Syrian rulers, Eleazar identified a war elephant that he believed to carry the Seleucid King Antiochus V --due to the special armor the elephant wore-- so he decided to endanger his life by attacking the elephant and thrusting a spear into its belly. Yes, the dead elephant then collapsed upon Eleazar, killing him as well, but remained a hero for eternity.
   
3. Empedocles: Jumped into a Volcano
   Laërtius records the legend that pre-Socratic philosopher Empedocles died by throwing himself into an active volcano (Mount Etna in Sicily), so that people would believe his body had vanished and he had turned into an immortal god; however, the volcano threw back one of his bronze sandals, revealing the deceit. Another legend has it that he threw himself in the volcano to prove to his disciples that he was immortal; he believed he would come back as a god among man after being devoured by the fire. Ok, it didn't work, but here we are talking about him, which makes him inmortal in a way.
   
4. J. G. Parry-Thomas: Died breaking a Speed Record
   In 1927, the Welsh racing driver J. G. Parry-Thomas was trying to regain his own world land speed record that had been broken just weeks earlier by Malcolm Campbell on the same beach of Pendine Sands. His car, Babs, used exposed chains to connect the engine to the drive wheels while the high engine cover required him to drive with his head tilted to one side – the right. On his final run the right-hand drive chain broke at a speed of 171 mph (270 km/h), setting a new record, but partially decapitating him as well.
   
5. Thích Quang Duc: Lit himself on Fire to make a point
   Ok, we agree this wasn't the best way to protest, but he made his point. On 1963, Thích Quang Duc, a Vietnamese Buddhist monk, sat down in the middle of a busy intersection in Saigon, covered himself in gasoline, and lit himself on fire, burning himself to death. He was protesting President Ngo Dinh Diem's administration for oppressing the Buddhist religion.
   
6. Kenji Urada: Killed by a Robot
   After working on a broken robot at a Japanese Kawasaki plant, 37-year old Kenji Urada forgot to turn it off. Big mistake! The Robot woke up, said "hasta la vista", and pushed him into a grinding machine with its hydraulic arm. Ok, he died, that's awful, but we'll always remember him as the man who second man ever to be killed by a Robot. And by the way, the first ever, Robert Williams, went to hit himself with the robot; not manly enough for our list.
   
7. Les Harvey: Killed by Rock and Roll
   Out of all music styles, only Rock and Roll is manly enough to kill you. On 1972, scottish guitarist of Stone the Crows, Les Harvey, was rocking his guitar on stage with his band at the Top Rank Bingo club in Swansea, and then, rock and roll took his life: he was electrocuted by touching an unearthed microphone with wet hands.
   
8. Félix Faure: Killed by Sex
   In 1899, French president Félix Faure died of a stroke while in his office. That's the official story, but it is popularly believed that he died in the arms of his 30-year-old mistress Marguerite Steinheil, while receiving oral sex. Au revoir!
   
9. Georg Richmann: Killed by a Ball Lightning
   Yeah, that's right. Richmann was a German physicist living in Russia. On 1753, created a kite flying apparatus similar to the one built by Benjamin Franklin a year earlier. He was attending a meeting of the Academy of Sciences when he heard thunder, and ran home with his engraver to capture the event for posterity. While the experiment was underway, ball lightning appeared and collided with Richmann's forehead. He died, but we'll always remember him as the man who stood manly in the way of electricity.
   
10. Franz Reichelt: Fell to his death from Eiffel Tower while testing his invention
    For being man enough to test his own invention and for giving us that AWESOME video, Franz Reichelt is number ten in our list. Reichelt (alias the flying tailor) designed an overcoat to fly or float its wearer gently to the ground like the modern parachute. To demonstrate his invention he made a jump of 60 meters from the first deck of the Eiffel Tower, at that time the tallest man-made structure in the world. The parachute failed and Reichelt fell to his death. But we'll always remember him for this video. 

Thanks to http://www.oddee.com for the info!

Ways To Die #17 - #37: A collection of ways to die

Strange ways to die... Top twenty countdown of strange ways to die (taken from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_unusual_deaths)

20. Alex Mijtus was killed by his wife, who had had enough of his strange sexual practices, ruptured several of Alex’s organs internal organs and caused severe bleeding using a 20-inch sex toy.

19. Debby Mills-Newbroughton was killed as she crossed the road. She was to turn 100 the next day but on the way to her own birthday party she was hit by the truck delivering her birthday cake.

18. Peter Stone was murdered by his eight year old daughter, who he had just sent to her room without dinner. Young Samantha Stone inserted 72 rat poison tablets into her father's coffee the following morning.

17. David Danil was killed by his girlfriend Charla after his attempted sexual advances. The last thing he felt was four shots from a doubled barreled shot gun Charla's father had given to her an hour before.

16.Javier Halos was killed by his landlord for failing to pay his rent for eight years. Landlord Kirk Weston clubbed the victim to death with a toilet seat after he realized just how long it had been.

15. Mary-Lee Cooper was killed by her one year old sister who climbed on top of her while she was sleeping, suffocating her.

14. Megan Fri was killed by 14 state troopers after she wandered onto a live fire training scene. Seeing the troopers all walking slow down the street, Megan jumped out in front of them and yelled, "Boo!" The troopers, thinking she was a pop up target, fired 67 shots between them.

13. Fiona Given was killed by a hit man hired by her ex-boyfriend. Then the hit man killed the ex-boyfriend, after he discovered that a 16 year old high school student didn’t really have access to $500 000.

12. Louis Zaragoza was killed as he prepared to drive to work. His wife was just about to cut the brakes on his car, when Louis snuck up behind her, causing her to lose her footing and stumble into him, stabbing him fatally.

11.  Mahmood Foli, a waiter, was killed by an unknown member of the Russian Mafia after he accidentally removed the gangster’s drink and was forced to drink over 27 litres of Coca Cola causing drowning.

10. Julia Smeeth was killed by her brother Michael because she talked on the phone too long. Michael clubbed his sister to death with a cordless phone and stabbed her several times with the broken aerial.
9. Helena Simms, wife of American scientist Harold Simms, was killed by her husband after she had an affair with the neighbour. Harold killed her by substituting her eyeliner with a highly radioactive uranium substance.

8. Military Sergeant John Joe Winter killed his ‘two-timing wife’ by loading her car with 500kg of C4 explosive. The explosion was heard from 14km away, and no trace of the victim or her car were ever found.

7. Patty Winter was killed by her neighbour, who had mounted a F6 Phantom jet engine in his backyard. Patty had complained to police about the noise, and when the neighbour invited her over for ‘tea’, he switched on the engine, and vaporised her with 5000 degrees of heat.

6. Michael Lewis drugged his boyfriend, Tony Berry, and dressed him in a double sided white board that read "God loves the K.K.K.". Lewis then drove the victim to downtown Harlem and dropped him off. Two minutes later Berry was deceased.
5. Jay Newton was killed after a co-worker at Sea World in Florida dropped a 20 ton killer whale on him. The whale had been hoisted out of his tank by a Master Tonne Crane, when the victim swam underneath to inspect the harness.

4. Carl Densinter was killed by a fellow worker trying to prove a point. The worker disconnected landing gear settings on a Boeing 747 test plane, and when Carl tried to land the plane it burst into a ball of flame.

3. Mary Dridely, Joseph Coles and Haven Gillies were killed as they walked past a New York apartment building. A few kids on the top floor were bored, and had decided to throw fruit, chairs, even the television from height.

2. Conrad Middleton was killed by his twin brother Brian after a disagreement over who should take the family home after their parents passed away. Conrad had no sense of smell, so Brian filled the house with gas and left a box of cigars, a lighter and a note saying, "Sorry for the spree, have a puff on me. Brian."

1. Gail Queens was killed by her zoo keeper boyfriend, after he invited her to the zoo to see the lions feed. He took her into a ‘viewing’ room and ‘ducked out for a quick smoke.’ Another door opened and three hungry lions were let into the pen...

Way To Die #17: Lawyer proves his case by killing himself

Strange, but a lawyer proves his case by killing himself...


In 1871 while representing a defendant in a murder case lawyer Clement Vallandigham a United States Congressman and one time political opponent of Abraham Lincoln wanted to prove the supposed murder weapon could have accidentally been fired by the victim. Taking the gun from evidence Vallandigham tried to demonstrate to the jury how the victim might have shot himself. His mistake was in not checking to see if the gun was loaded. Just as Vallandigham had speculated the firearm discharged and just as he’d conjectured the result was a mortal wound. On an upbeat note at least the defendant was acquitted.

Way To Die #16: Drink Yourself To Death

& no, it's not with alcohol :)

In June of 2007 Jennifer Lea Strange joined a short list of people who drank themselves to death with water when she fatally consumed an overdose of H2O during a radio contest called “Hold Your Wee for a Wii”. The young wife and mother agreed to drink as much water as possible as part of the contest in order to win a Wii game player for her family. Contestants competed to see who could go the longest without stopping to urinate. After the contest Strange collapsed and died resulting in a civil lawsuit against the radio station. Water intoxication which is also known as hyper-hydration can cause a fatal disturbance in the brain when the electrolytes in the body are thrown off their normal balance. Other famous deaths from water intoxication include artist Andy Warhol whose family claimed he was given too many fluids following gallbladder surgery in 1987.

Odds On Dying A Strange Death

Here are some statistics regarding the odds of dying a strange or odd death:

300,000,000/1 SHARK ATTACK



AROUND 40 people are killed every year from shark attacks, with the numbers increasing as more people take holidays on coasts where sharks live.



300,000,000/1 FAIRGROUND ACCIDENT

THE worst rollercoaster accident in Britain was in 1972 when five children were killed on the Big Dipper in Battersea, London, when one of the cars broke loose and collided with another. Just last week 29 people were injured when the Runaway Mine Train at Alton Towers split in two.



250,000,000/1 FALLING COCONUT



COCONUTS apparently kill around 150 people every year. Falling from a height of 80 feet, they can build up an impact speed of 50 mph.



11,000,000/1 PLANE CRASH



PLANE crashes worldwide claim 1,300 people every year. Young men are most likely to emerge from the wreckage alive - and 12 per cent of passengers who survive the impact will die from shock later.



10,000,000/1 KILLED BY LIGHTNING



IN the UK around five people are killed by being hit by lightning every year. And men are four times more likely to be struck than women.



10,000,000/1



KILLED BY THE ESCAPE OF RADIATION FROM A NEARBY NUCLEAR POWER STATION.



THE chances of an explosion at a nuclear reactor are increasing with the risk of terrorism and as conventional fuels run out. The Chernobyl nuclear disaster and its aftermath has killed an estimated 30,000 people.



9,300,000/1 DYING IN TERRORIST ATTACK



LAST year there were 651 significant international terrorist attacks worldwide, killing nearly 2,000 people.



5,000,000/1 SCALDED BY HOT TAP WATER.



CHILDREN under five are most at risk, with 126 accidents reported every year in Britain. In Japan, around 150 people die from hot water scalding every year.



4,400,000/1 LEFT-HANDED PEOPLE KILLED USING A RIGHT-HANDED PRODUCT.

Way To Die #14: Death by Storm Drain

Way To Die #14: Death by Storm Drain

Sadly, more than one person has died after getting stuck in a storm drain.This bizarre and sad death is a good example of tragic bad luck. In 2008, a Canadian man died after attempting to retrieve his stolen wallet from a storm sewer drain. The wallet and some other personal items were stolen after the 57-year-old man left them at a gas station. He called police before finding the wallet in a nearby sewer drain. He tried unsuccessfully to reach it once before the police arrived and cautioned him not to try again. But the man came back later, removed the grate and gave it another shot. When an officer investigating the crime noticed the man's truck had returned, he went to check out the drain and found the man wedged headfirst several feet below the street. The victim was still alive at this point and remained so as firefighters used a tow truck to pull him from the drain. Sadly, he was pronounced dead at the hospital a short time later.

Way To Die 13: Crushed By Asteriod

Papers released from secret governement archives revealed that in 1980 government scientists were told to calculate the exact chances of a Brit being killed by a falling asteroid.

The study was an attempt to persuade the public that nuclear power was safe, and that there were plenty of other things that were statistically more lethal than a neighbourhood reactor.
After much consideration, the men in white coats calculated that that one member of the public would be killed by an asteroid every 7,000 years.

Way To Die #12: Flipped Car

So, the other day we were going to do our laundry. Since we don;t have central heat or air, go figure we don't have a washing machine! We were up at the coin laundry by our house and saw this accident.

Apparenlty, the BWM in the right corner hit the Altima so hard it flipped it clear on it's roof. UGLY!!!!

Way To Die #11: When Good Bras Go Bad

(This was too funny to not repost)

We all know to steer clear of big sheets of metal and barbed-wire fences during a lightning storm, but I didn’t know to avoid my bra, too!

It seems odd that one of your instincts should be to unhook and let the girls roam free when lightning strikes, but that’s exactly what two women who died in London should have done. According to the New York Times, they were struck and killed by lightning because of their underwire bras.

Way To Die #10: Cactus Crush

A 27 year old male discovered this after his friend suggested they do a little "cactus plugging" by shooting a cactus with a shotgun.

This young man tried his plugging skills on a 25 foot tall Saguaro cactus. After blasting a large hole in the cactus, the cactus fell on him, crushing him to death!

Way To Die #9: Too Much Sex

In 2009, Sergey Tuganov, a 28-year-old Russian died after betting two women that he could have non-stop sex with them both for twelve hours. He dropped dead minutes after winning the $4,300 bet. Medics said he died of heart attack, most likely because of the quantity of stimulating pills (Viagra) he had ingested.

Way To Die #8 (Isadora Duncan): Choked By Scarf

In 1927, Isadora Duncan, dancer, died of a broken neck when one of the long scarves she was known for caught on the wheel of a car in which she was a passenger.

Way To Die #7: Died From Laughing

Chrysippus, a Greek stoic philosopher, is believed to have died of laughter after watching his drunk donkey attempt to eat figs.

Way To Die #5: Happy Cinco De Mayo - I Crushed My Jeep

So, this is how I spent my Cinco De Mayo 2009.

Looks fun huh? State farm totaled it...

I walked away just fine - a testament to how great Jeeps are - i just had a sore neck for awhile and some brusises from the seatbelts.

All in all, I want to drive a Jeep again! Hopefully I will!

Way to Die #4: Crushed by tree

My finance's parents neighbor has the worst luck with trees. She had a huge one in the back fall and take out her deck, less than a month later, this one feel and crushed her whole porch!

Way To Die #2: Scenic Mountain Drive

So, I learned the other day on our vacation to Tennessee that I really don't care much for riding up mountains. The picture you see if at the very beginning. Towards the end, all I could do was grip the jeep door, so I don’t have a pic of the incredible drop off on the road. I do, have a pic of how freakin high up we were, which according to me was too damn high. We are proud to present to you Way #2 To Die, which is plummeting to your death from Chilhowee Mountain in Benton, TN.

Way To Die #1: Fish Tank Electrocution

Our number 1 way to die was figured out by my fiancé last weekend while we set up our new fish tank. See attached picture.

We had hooked up the filter and pump and he had his entire arm stuck down in the water trying to straighten out gravel and rocks and plants- he was spilling water out on the floor, and then said “What if the electric filter fell in the water – I'd be ***ed!”