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According to a peculiar government initiative, Russia has a very real problem with people dying because of their affinity for selfies.
CNN's Payal Uttam points to a recently surfaced guide on how to properly photograph yourself without dying as well as a Tass Society report on the subject.
An official at the Ministry of Interior spoke with Tass and offered some truly startling numbers, via Google Translate, "At least, I think, injured more than 100 people, we'll still have led more than 10 examples of the self have been fatal."
Essentially, 100 people have been harmed and 10 have died because of the simple act of taking a photograph in precarious environments.
Because of what is a purported problem, officials have become proactive and offered a list of activities that could lead to harm or death.
One such example warns in picture form not to take a photo with an oncoming train, which we previously believed would have been relegated to basic human intuition.
But then there is this, a list of things not to do thanks to an image posted by Tass, credited to the Interior Ministry.
The Guardian recounts just a couple of tragic ends met by people attempting to capture a selfie: "In January, two young men died in the Urals while taking a selfie holding a hand grenade with the pin pulled out. The mobile phone with the selfie survived as a record. In May, a teenager in the Ryazan region died while attempting to photograph himself as he climbed on a railway bridge and accidentally came into contact with live electrical wires."
And CNN points to this video of a young man who came away with a horrible knock to the head because of an extremely ill advised attempt:
Fortunately this person came away with life still intact, but that sadly isn't the case for some who decided dangerous locales were worth the perfect shot.
Selfies have become a ubiquitous practice around the world, normally featuring the relatively mundane image of tourists outside a landmark or enjoying a moment with friends and family at a park or other serene locale.
But thanks to social media and the hype that comes from viral posts, people have taken to going bigger and more extreme with their ventures.
It takes just a cursory glance at YouTube to find insane videos like the one that follows:
Apropos to the various reports, that particular video was posted in 2012 and features a man scaling the Seven Sisters in Moscow.
Similar videos and images feature people scaling off-limit landmarks and constructions sites to take photographs and images.
As we are now learning, the practice can have deadly ramifications.
We might as well echo what should be truly unnecessary warnings for those who can't help but toe the line of death when traveling.
Please, just stop.
Your regular images are satisfactory and come with the advantage of not garnering an untimely death.
Simply, take heed and be aware of your surroundings when holding out the smartphone for a snapshot of the moment.
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