A tragic situation, but they did what had to be done

When donald trump becomes president.

nice meme.

Danks.

Granted, there's blame to throw everywhere especially on the mother, but I would never risk the life of a little boy just to protect a gorilla. Just my two cents...

I blame the mother, considering anyone who's child does that is gonna be blamed though. Killing an endangered animal wasn't needed, none of it would've happened if she had just payed attention to her child.

Completely true, it falls on the mother. They should definitely charge her with reckless endangerment after what that child went through.

Unless it was bad luck Brian's parents, obviously they would have been shouting "shoot the boy, shoot the boy!"

It's definitely the mother's fault, but the little boy I feel is more important than a gorilla. This meme says it all, if it was your kid you would have done the same.

If the gorilla's family could have spoken, don't think they'd say the opposite of what you did, also no need to kill a gorilla when you can just tranq it.

Tranquilizing the gorilla takes more than a few seconds, it's not just a "bam-fall" type of thing. The kid would be traumatized for life

The kid probably would be even more traumatized now because he witnessed a creature being killed and it would be his fault in his eyes.

it seems that all lives matter only to us. Thats what separates us from everything else. We don't see sharks worry about gorillas or anything else like that, Humans are the only species on this planet who cares about all the other animals. This was such an unfortunate even, especially when this could have easily prevented. The kid WAS in mortal danger, tranquilizing the animal could have angered it more plus the time factor involve, too many variables. Its sad on so many levels!!

Bravo... VERY well said. It's funny to read and hear all the comments of perfect parents who know exactly where each child is 100% of the time.

Thanks! People think with their emotions way to much. They're irrational, and thats exactly what kind of mess you get!!

That and they tend to assign human characteristics and emotions to animals. I blame Disney.

I actually heard one idiot crying, "Since Harambe had a child, now there's a baby gorilla without a dad!!!"

Mind blowing isn't it.

I know, right?

Nope, in fact thankfully I do think we are I the majority! :)

Ha ha! Yea, Disney didn't help for sure!! And the people who call pets their "Kids!" Plz!!! Yea, people forget that animal are quite violent!! Life isn't like "The Lion King!" Lol

Washoe was a chimp raised in captivity. She was taught about 350 words of ASL, some of which was told to her adopted son Loulis. one of her main workers lost many weeks off work after she had a miscarriage. This is a recount of Roger Fouts, one of her workers:
People who should be there for her and aren't are often given the cold shoulder--her way of informing them that she's miffed at them. Washoe greeted Kat [the caretaker] in just this way when she finally returned to work with the chimps. Kat made her apologies to Washoe, then decided to tell her the truth, signing "MY BABY DIED". Washoe stared at her, then looked down. She finally peered into Kat's eyes again and carefully signed "CRY", touching her cheek and drawing her finger down the path a tear would make on a human (Chimpanzees don't shed tears). Kat later remarked that one sign told her more about Washoe and her mental capabilities than all her longer, grammatically perfect sentences

Washoe lost two of her own children, from heart defects and infections.

Washoe was seen as the most capable ape ever to be studied at such a scale, making many deep connections with humans.

Dont you ever dare say that because something doesnt look like you or have half a brain (Like you), it is not as human as you are. Why is it never the children like you that fall into the cages huh?

I know the chimp you're mtalking about, i agree that people definitely underestimate intelligence on, well, just about everything! Just look at elephants, you know they know whats going on. I spent 2 weeks at a friends ranch in Texas turned into and elephant sanctuary. One, they're freaking huge! 2,: just in that little time i did spend with them,i could see their personalities and just observe them, and i have to say , they feel like equals, they know what the hell you're up to! Freaky! I understand where you're coming from, im very sarcastic and sometimes it doesn't come through on paper,mso to speak! :)

I too, have gone and seen the native elephants in Thailand. But heres the amazing thing - The guy touring us (There was like a cart thing attached to back of the elephant) asked for me to come forward onto the head. He then walks back, over the back of the elephant and asks would we like our photos taken. Of course wesaid yes, and they he just jumps off. Now, the real point here is, the elephant didn't throw me off or even look spooked, I just rubbed the ears and he trudged along, he photos being taken as we walked along the path.

Now, I was only 10 years old at the time. The amount of trust the creature put into me was incredible. i will never forget this. I was not a good, expensive thing with many workers. Just about ten or so people giving elephant rides on rickety corrugated steel platforms attached by a thin rope.

That elephant just remained calm and was not even worried that his trainer was walking away and he was still moving. Animals can always be trained to do this obviously, but there was a soul in there. And I like to think he trusted me.

Well in real sense, how does a shark even know what a gorilla is? And I do understand where you come from, being that kid being in perhaps some danger. But when a creature, one that is already in threat is killed for a life of something with seven billion inhabitants as to about only 100,000, the risk of endangered life, a problem we as humans have caused, is so much more meaningful.

Maybe we could have tossed in another by-stander as a distraction???

*goes Monty Python on them* "And now for something completely different..."

This has nothing to do with this sad, tragic, awful story. But it IS funny. :)

These were good memories. Do elementary schools still utilize them?

chaquetaqua, I seriously doubt it. Honestly, I think schools these days are pussifying kids at an alarming rate. Most of the cool shit we had as kids is long gone...

Like bumper cars...

Thanks! That is pretty funny.

I don't think it's right to say that the lives of all living things matter equally.

No, that's not what I'm saying.

I'm saying some living things should be valued more than others in certain contexts - that's not the same as saying that living things like dogs and cats don't matter at all.

If not every living thing mattered equally, then the balance of life would be off, if one animal goes extinct, more begin to starve. After a few decades or so, animals that needed that animal would too, so all living things lives should matter equally. Every animal has a purpose as to why it even exists, as do plants of course. Carnivores/Omnivores help control populations as well.

Okay, I get what you're saying about how living things have interconnected and have relationships with each other. But that doesn't mean they're all equally important in all contexts.

So, say kill a maggot. No big deal right? Say I crush a cockroach. Still, minority. Say I shoot a gorilla. The vote is half half, because the gorilla doesn't specifically help mankind, but it is rare and part of the ecosystem, holding abalance we alone cannot control through barriers or walls. Back to smaller things. say I kill a mosquito. No big deal. Say that mosquito has the ability to cure cancer, bipolar and leprosy, but there are over 10 billion of them. Does not matter on the scale. Now say that there are only five in the whole world. One fith of the population dies because self negligence.

Now, lets say the mosquito does not cure any disease, but does not transmit any form of disease at all. Now, in you're opinion, it does not matter how many I kill because it stands the minority towards human capacity.

So something in you're opinion is judged by whether it helps in a way that benefits you rather than others?

I think I smell a seven sin...

No, thats EXACTLY what you are saying.

Primates are kind and loving animals

XD

Not completely sure if it's gorilla's side or kid's side, but it is funny!

There's the argument that a tranquilizer could have been used. But then the kid would have been trapped in there for hours. It would have scarred the kid for life. Killing the gorilla was the right thing to do