Authorities are looking into a viral Internet video that shows a man kicking a squirrel off what appears to be the edge of the Grand Canyon. The 15-second video posted on YouTube purports to show a man putting food in a line to the edge of the Grand Canyon for a waiting squirrel. Once the squirrel reached the edge, he then kicks it off the edge as what he thinks is a hilarious joke.
The rangers at the Grand Canyon agree that the site appears to match one of the overlooks but that they are still trying to identify the two men shown wearing cowboy hats and shorts. The man, if found, could be charged with disturbing or harassing wildlife — a federal petty offense that carries a maximum six months in jail and/or a $5,000 fine. Notably, the more obvious charge of animal cruelty is not being considered because such state charge would require them to retrieve the squirrel and prove that it was injured or had died. However, rangers say that they still are unable to identify the man despite a $16,000 bounty from PETA on any information leading to his arrest.
As an advent hiker and animal lover, this type of film leaves me as confused as it does depressed. Assuming that this video is real, I just cannot understand why anyone would enjoy killing an animal in this way or think that it was funny. What is clear is that this guy lacks a very basic element of humanity and empathy that distinguishes our species. That makes him not only grotesque but dangerous. If you find killing defenseless animals funny, there is a great deal of cruelty that you would equally enjoy.
Hopefully, someone moronic enough to do such an act will brag about it to enough people to result in his identification. Certainly the Internet community is helping by posting these images.
Source: Washington Post
randyjet – you’re kidding? You can toss a squirrel out of an airplane and it will land safely?
Karen S I suggest you learn some simple physics. Please have the simple decency to find out the facts and go on line to find out about the terminal velocity of squirrels. It makes no difference if the squirrel falls from 50′ or 5 miles. I object to two things. One is that in my part of the country we consider squirrels food and can hunt them at all seasons with no limit. Two, that people think the squirrel dies from the fall which is an outright LIE. Then the other thing is that some folks would like to kill the person because he kicked the squirrel, which is a stupid over reaction and hardly humane either.
Those who would kill or advocate killing a human being over such a thing should not be allowed out in public or own firearms.
randyjet – no one, that includes you, have listed the terminal velocity of a squirrel. At best, wannabeascientist has said they will not be hurt if dropped from a ‘reasonable’ height. The friggin Grand Canyon is not a ‘reasonable height.
Personally, I wish he had lost his balance and fallen over the edge. If he thinks this is fun and funny, how does he feel about child and spouse abuse? Jerks who do things like this do even worse things we don’t see.
Squirrels from the west are tough – I bet this one survived. Beach boys wrote a song about them: “I wish they all could be California squirrels”.
I’m glad they don’t arrest anyone for killing ants. I’d get a long jail term.
This guy should be convicted and sentenced to 6 months of working for the National Park Service.
Anonymouly Yours
Does this guy have the Dahlmer Mentality….
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I think it is the Dahlmer amygdala … the Dahlmer tastes.
Some comments are instructive:
Anonymously Yours
Are y’all talking the 4 legged squirrels or the two legged kind?
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One thing at a time AY.
Don’t cornfuse them.
Huh! They have an ordinance in Denver about not putting your hat on your lap? Naaaaah!
To see that kind of behavior magnified all you have to do is google ‘killed kitten with high heels’ to read about more subhuman behavior toward innocent creatures. I am appalled by those actions. At our home we feed the groundhogs, the squirrels, the chipmunks, the birds, the cats, the dogs, the fish, the rabbits. Each of them has a personality. They respond to their human counterparts, they show emotion, they feel pain. To brutally extinguish life so cavalierly and laugh about the result is barbaric at best and shows a streak that can only be called inhuman..
Oh, and one more and I will shut up:
A Small Observation??
An Irish Poem by Squeeky Fromm
There once was a guy on a bench.
‘Neath the hat in his lap he did clinch
What must have been small
‘Cause he covered it all
With a one gallon hat, ergo hence.
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
Ewwww. I didn ‘t want to learn about that, truly. But you can’t unring an Irish Poem:
John, See Stetson???
An Irish Poem by Squeeky Fromm
There once was a guy with a hat.
Who was smiling sooo strange as he sat.
‘Cause there in his lap
He was pulling some crap,
And I don ‘t want to talk about that!
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
Squeeky – that would be a waste of a perfectly good cowboy hat.
A cowboy hat jerkoff employs the hat as cover when he is sitting on the park bench and jerking off. It is so common in Denver that they have an ordinance against it. Most guys who wear cowboy hats do not have cows or horses. If you are of the female human variety and some guy with a cowboy hat on his lap is smiling at you — well, keep walking.
Beldar – Denver has all those liberals from the East pretending to be cowboys. They are all hat and no cattle.
The site establishing the immunity of squirrels from falls is: http://thewannabescientist.com/death-by-fall-not-for-a-squirrel/
Note that the blogger does state this is NOT an excuse to engage in squirrel-tossing.
Bruce – read the site. Author does not include the terminal velocity of a squirrel. Actually, shows no real evidence for the statement he makes other than they have fluffy tails so they don’t fall as fast, but does not follow it up with film or calculations.
Are y’all talking the 4 legged squirrels or the two legged kind?
Assuming a reasonable height, the squirrel would survive, assuming a 5200 foot drop, maybe not so much.
There was a mis spulling: its “hat” jerkoff. Y’all know what a cowboy hat jerkoff is.
Remarker: I don’t give a rat’s arse about your life and if you and cowboy had jerkoff were up on the canyon edge I would kick you both off the edge.
Paul – I hope the squirrel landed on one of those ledges!
Karen, It took me all of five seconds to find the terminal velocity of a squirrel on the internet. You CANNOT kill a squirrel by throwing it off a high place, no matter how high.
randyjet – you still have not given us the terminal velocity of a free falling squirrel. Of course the height is only a problem if it attains terminal velocity. And at the Grand Canyon that would drop as you dropped since you are dropping in altitude.
BarkinDog – I have lived in the West my entire life and I do not know what a cowboy hat jerkoff is. Could you enlighten us? Is this some Eastern or Midwestern term that Westerners don’t normally use?
Darren;
What’s more germane (and disheartening) is that the lack of publicity usually results in lack of motivation of authorities to
do their job (correctly)!
Somehow I doubt the park service would devote such investigative resources to the killing of a squirrel unless it was publicized as much as this case. Interesting how publicity motivates enforcement priorities.
Darren, That guy did NOT kill the squirrel. I have seen squirrels jump to the ground from pretty high and simply run off. Their terminal velocity is so slow that they suffer no damage no matter the height. It is in no way similar to a human or other large animal falling from the same distance. It makes no difference if the squirrel falls from 1 or10miles high. Once terminal velocity is reached, the object cannot fall any faster. In fact if you jump out of an airplane at high altitude in free fall, you will actually SLOW DOWN as the air density increases.
randyjet – what is the terminal velocity of a squirrel? I asked you before. And whether the guy killed the squirrel or not depends on where he kicked the squirrel off. If a sky diver hits 195 mph at terminal velocity, what is the terminal velocity of the free falling squirrel?
Does this guy have the Dahlmer Mentality….