Woman climbs Mount Everest to prove vegans aren’t weak, dies. A Melbourne university lecturer, 34, died of altitude sickness on Mount Everest after taking on the climb with her husband to prove ‘vegans can do anything’.
A woman who died of altitude sickness while climbing Mount Everest took on the challenge to prove that ‘vegans can do anything’.
Maria Strydom died on Saturday afternoon after having to turn back from the final leg of the expedition because she felt unwell. She returned to Camp 4, the last camp before the mountain’s summit, on Friday where she spent the night but died from lack of oxygen the following day.
Her husband Robert Gropel is injured but, according to trip organisers, ‘100 per cent safe’.
Weeks before her death Dr Strydom told how she and her husband wanted to dispel the belief that vegans were ‘weak’ or ‘malnourished’ by taking on the climb. ‘It seems that people have this warped idea of vegans being malnourished and weak. By climbing the seven summits we want to prove that vegans can do anything and more,’ she said in an interview with the university where she worked.
Funnily enough, Joanne and I were watching the ABC News last night and were wondering why the ABC ran a long segment on this woman’s death. We figured she was an indulgent PC type, engaged in a trendy PC activity, which made it IMPORTANT. The ABC thinks highly of such people and their deaths sometimes get a mention, while the rest of us are ignored. Ahh, but the ABC didn’t mention she was a vegan, or out to prove that vegans can do anything. I’m sure we would have noticed that, or maybe we too busy laughing and critiquing the ABC.
(We only watch the ABC News to see how they present their version of the world. Ever notice how it is all “government did this, government did that, the most important thing is who controls government.” It’s like the private world, which is most of us and mostly makes the actual world move forward and go around, scarcely exists. And there is always a religious feel good story about 15 minutes in — some environmental or aboriginal group, with government help, is doing something terribly worthy.)
