Death by Misadventure

[Red]

I really do love the British, even if I don't even speak their language.

Could someone from the other side of the pond decode the nuances of "Death by Misadventure" for me? It has to be one of the best phrases I've ever heard. I've always though American's didn't lead adventurous enough lives. Now I'm sure of it!

British coroner Suzanne Greenway announced today that the 27-year-old suffered a "death by misadventure" on July 23, and that her passing was an "unintended consequence" of accidental alcohol poisoning.

British coroner Suzanne Greenway announced today that the 27-year-old suffered a "death by misadventure" on July 23, and that her passing was an "unintended consequence" of accidental alcohol poisoning.

http://www.eonline.com/news/amy_winehouses_cause_of_death/271628

[Phinnaeus Gage]

Also, by Death of Misadventure:

Amy Winehouse died from drinking too much alcohol, according to coroner's officials in London.

In her case, though, one could easily say she died an Ironic Death of Misadventure.

[Red]

In her case, though, one could easily say she died an Ironic Death of Misadventure.

LMAO!

[Phinnaeus Gage]

In her case, though, one could easily say she died an Ironic Death of Misadventure.

LMAO!

But, if her (Amy Winehouse) passing was seen beforehand, it'll be a Sagacious Ironic Death of Misadventure.

Feel free to chime in to make the phrase longer.

[repentance]

It basically means that it was unintentional and didn't involve a negligent or criminal act on the part of another.  It's a bit of a relic from the days when suicide was illegal and insurance companies wouldn't pay out for deaths resulting from suicide, so at one time it was a useful legal distinction. Even now, it's a ruling which probably gives some measure of comfort to families as it explicitly excludes suicide.

[genjix]

We use it to mean a youngster that was acting like an idiot and got themselves killed.

[Red]

Thanks! I was wondering what the connotations were.

I really had no idea if it was like, "Joe died in a hang glider crash." Or more like, "Joe died in a horrible Russian Roulette accident."

We tend to use the generic term, "overdosed" which left unqualified means they were a substance abusing idiot of one kind or another.
Otherwise it might be an "accidental overdose" which would connote some sort of potential tragedy. (i.e. Michael Jackson, Elvis—Dr's fault defense)

[Phinnaeus Gage]

In her case, though, one could easily say she died an Ironic Death of Misadventure.

LMAO!

But, if her (Amy Winehouse) passing was seen beforehand, it'll be a Sagacious Ironic Death of Misadventure.

Feel free to chime in to make the phrase longer.

...and if somebody served Amy Winehouse all that booze, it'll be a Sagacious Ironic Assisted Death of Misadventure. (feel free to rearrange the adverb(s) and adjective(s) to make it more grammatically correct)

[Phinnaeus Gage]

http://www.amazon.com/Death-Misadventure-Estelle-Thompson/dp/0373280033/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1320026454&sr=8-1

[Red]

Cool! Fictional Sagacious Ironic Assisted Death of Misadventure... 

[Phinnaeus Gage]

Cool! Fictional Sagacious Ironic Assisted Death of Misadventure... 

Not to be outdone: http://www.amazon.com/Death-by-Misadventure/dp/B000BRUHFU/ref=sr_1_34?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1320034757&sr=1-34

Copyright 1961 with no author, book cover, synopsis, etc. So what we have here is (?--I get lost after 4-5 adv. and/or adj. Help me out here)

[yogi]

I think Amy's death is strange. No drugs in her system and the levels of alcohol in her blood suggests that she drank the equivalent of one and a half bottles of wine.

Can one and a half bottles of wine kill a seasoned drinker?

[Phinnaeus Gage]

I think Amy's death is strange. No drugs in her system and the levels of alcohol in her blood suggests that she drank the equivalent of one and a half bottles of wine.

Can one and a half bottles of wine kill a seasoned drinker?

Only if she gulped in a short period of time for her size to weight ratio. But, I thought I read her AC was 4X's over the legal limit.

[repentance]

I think Amy's death is strange. No drugs in her system and the levels of alcohol in her blood suggests that she drank the equivalent of one and a half bottles of wine.

Can one and a half bottles of wine kill a seasoned drinker?

How are you calculating that?  The guidelines I found say that one standard drink (defined as about 10gms of alcohol in Australia) raises a woman's blood alcohol concentration by approximately 0.03% and that the liver metabolises alcohol at the rate of between 3/4 and 1 standard drink an hour. 

A standard drink of 11.5% wine would be 150 mls, so one and a half bottles of wine would have put her at 0.24% maximum before allowing for it being metabolised.  Given that at least some of what she consumed had probably been metabolised (I'm pretty sure there were reports of her being drunk earlier in the day), she likely consumed at least 16 standard drinks. 

Being a seasoned drinker doesn't make your liver metabolise alcohol faster - it can actually impair the process if your liver is already damaged.  Tolerance does mean that you have to drink more to feel the same effects (both positive and negative), though, and that can easily lead to people consuming potentially lethal levels.

[yogi]

It would not be possible to determine exactly the quantity she drank without knowing her body weight, metabolism, etcetera. So my number is a shot in the dark.

How much do you think she drank?

Some media are reporting alcohol withdrawal, while others state alcohol poisoning. Either of which, in order to kill her, would had have to had led to organ failure.

Which organ?