Taomeow Posted August 1, 2007 (edited) Humans aren't predators. Humans are opportunistic feeders, which places us in gustatory company with raccoons and opossums. Find something an opposum won't eat. Actually, pack predators, never hunted alone until we invented particularly deadly weapons, always in large packs throughout pre-history. The closest picture I've seen that gave me an idea of how our ancestors did it was a documentary of a pack of baboons harassing and ultimately overpowering and killing a cheetah. One on one no baboon has a chance against a cheetah. One on one no human had a chance against large prey either, but in a group, they were efficient and deadly. High level of cooperation (that's what we developed a large brain for)... Anthropologist Desmond Morris also thinks we were loud as hell as a group and could use high noise levels to scare and disorient our prey. Some tribes in Africa and in India hunted this way as recently as the nineteenth century. The whole village would gang up on a lion or a tiger, respectively, everybody screaming at the top of their lungs, yelling, roaring, shrieking, beating pots and pans and drums, and then the armed hunters would attack with spears. Dogs, domesticated early, also chimed in and helped. (Cats would have no part of it of course, what with being worshipped as gods in Egypt for over a thousand years, with a household's failure to provide a meat dish for the cat while the whole family does have meat punishable by death!) Nutritionally speaking, however, according to real science (not junk science that always has a ball in this type of discussions), as well as the whole history of the species' existence, the technical term for the kind of creature we really are is "obligatory omnivore." Meaning we need it all. Just an evolutionary twist. A koala can't eat anything but eucalyptus leaves, he is an obligatory monofoodist, and dies promptly on any diet whatsoever that isn't eucalyptus leaves. We're on the opposite end of the evolutionary spectrum. One of the reasons I'm fascinated with Chinese culture is that they take this evolutionary situation to its logical conclusion -- there's absolutely nothing edible, whether growing in the field, running in the forest, crawling in the underbrush or swimming in the river, that they don't eat. Edited August 1, 2007 by Taomeow Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
beancurdturtle Posted August 1, 2007 One of the reasons I'm fascinated with Chinese culture is that they take this evolutionary situation to its logical conclusion -- there's absolutely nothing edible, whether growing in the field, running in the forest, crawling in the underbrush or swimming in the river, that they don't eat. Don't I know that. It's amazing what you can find in an open food market, or on a street vendor's grill, in China. I really miss Chou Dofu. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Christoph Posted August 1, 2007 taoist, look at the the teeth of a crocodile or of a tiger and then re-evaluate your statement. Those animals are carnivore's not omnivore's like us human animals....that is an important distinction,also a croc is basically a dinosaur. People eat bad food everyday including vegetarians so if the vegans and veggies want a crusade it should be against un-healthy foods not just meat. And I would also point out that the longest lived people only have one thing in common and its not food...its a positive mental outlook and family/community involvement. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mYTHmAKER Posted August 1, 2007 And I would also point out that the longest lived people only have one thing in common and its not food...its a positive mental outlook and family/community involvement. Also those who eat less end to be healthier and live longer Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
