[5xman]

Your comment and the parent really surprise me. Passing such moral judgements based on the diet of a species seems a bit 'youtubish'. Using the same logic one could argue that humpback whales are the real assholes since they protect those seals and sea lions so they can prey on those tiny, little penguins which are the cutest.

(Seals even rape them :'( http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20141117-why-seals-have-sex-w...)

[Dylan16807]

> Passing such moral judgements based on the diet of a species

Causing harm to social intelligent species, such as by eating them, is objective. In theory another species could eat plants and also attack mammals for fun all the time. That species would also be assholes. This isn't a judgement based on 'diet', it's a judgement based on how they interact with others.

> since they protect those seals and sea lions

That's not the same logic. The same logic might lead you to call seals and sea lions assholes, but it wouldn't extend to the whales.

[5xman]

(Please, excuse my english)

I think I agree with you 100% based on what I think your comment reveals about your ideas. The point I was trying to make is that it's too often that we judge animal behavior based on our mental constructs, when I think it makes no sense at all even for the most intelligent of the animal species. Somebody pointed out that we are not so different from animals, and so it shouldn't be a big stretch to apply our labels to animal behavior. But I think we are so far from animal behavior that it makes it very difficult to analize/understand it without a really big effort and a long time of study. Scientists get very close, but internet comments are too often narrow-minded. Orcas are not 'killers', at least not more than any other predator. They are very intelligent and gregarious, and they eat other animals. Jumping from this to 'they are assholes' was, in my opinion, not called for. In what 'interaction with others' was this based on? I think a real judge would have a hard time trying to distill intent from animal interactions.

Your second point is completely right. But as a matter of fact, I think that both whales, seals, sea lions and all animals in general are all fine gentlemen. I have my doubts about that monkey pulling the legs (literally, and the tails) of two tigers, though.

[jontas]

Your english is perfect, nothing to excuse.

[dhimes]

In theory another species could eat plants and also attack mammals for fun all the time.

I think I know a species that does that.

[Digit-Al]

Jesus! Those penguins definitely won't have 'happy feet' :-/

[leephillips]

Chop last character of the url to get there.