Gorilla killed

[Catholic_Lady]

The kid sounds like one of those adhd kids who are constantly running off, ignoring directions, and getting into everything. I've been around kids like that and they are just awful.

[LastPoet]

Well my rationale is that if the animal isn't actively torturing the kid, then maybe take nonlethal action. We don't know what's going through the gorilla's mind. I don't like the idea of killing something because "maybe", or "what if".

I don't think other animals think like we do and they were not brought very young into the basic human rule of society. We can't allow the risk for a young human life that is just doing what kids do, and in these ages, its almost impossible to keep track of them 100%.

I was 4 and ended up getting under my own uncle's truck. I started to learn about being stupid early on. He had no fault in this neither my mom. Being a 4 year old ninja.

[abaris]

And yet... it's easy to stand from a distance and proclaim your idea of what's right and wrong for someone else's loved one when the potentially horrific consequences would be to someone else's life instead of your own. 

Me, I'm extremely pissed off and saddened by what happened. I think, the zoo took the only avenue available to them at that kind of situation. They're not at fault. I just hope there will be consequences for the mother - after careful evaluation of what really happened, of course. If she was japping away at her phone or something like that, make her feel the pain and sue her guts. If she paid attention and the boy somehow escaped her care, which can happen with 4 year olds, let her off the hook.

[downbeatplumb]

So apparently,  that enclosure has existed as it is for almost 40 years without a single incident. No one else has fallen or even almost fallen in.  The enclosure is not the problem.

A small child managed to bypass all measures and get in.
This should not have been possible.
Kids are dicks and will do this sort of thing now and then. The fact the no one had done it before is not an excuse to carry out simple safety precautions.

Now if a fully fit 20 year old had managed to get in I would agree that it is possible for an adult to circumvent reasonably fool proof systems, but a toddler!

[Minimalist]

[Aroura]

So apparently,  that enclosure has existed as it is for almost 40 years without a single incident. No one else has fallen or even almost fallen in.  The enclosure is not the problem.

A small child managed to bypass all measures and get in.
This should not have been possible.
Kids are dicks and will do this sort of thing now and then. The fact the no one had done it before is not an excuse to carry out simple safety precautions.

Now if a fully fit 20 year old had managed to get in I would agree that it is possible for an adult to circumvent reasonably fool proof systems, but a toddler!

I disagree.  There are safety precautions in place, but the zoo does rely on people to also behave responsibly.  
I've read @15 people per year are killed at zoos.  Mostly handlers, but sometimes patrons.  In most cases the zoos re not charged, because they have adequate safety measures in place. Adequate does not mean foolproof not impenetrable.  

The only way to make it 100% safe is to not have the animals in the zoos in the first place.  Second would be full enclosures, but those went out in the 70's and 80's because they are unnecessarily cruel.  They still exist, but they shouldn't.  You see those primate exhibits where the animals face a wall all day?  Super bad.

if literally MILLIONS of people have passed by this enclosure without incident.  Other witnesses nearby claim mom was not paying attention to a child who was pulling away from her and proclaiming loudly he wanted to get into the enclosure. 

Kids ARE dicks, that is why parents need to be on full alert when at near an open enclosure with a 450 lb gorilla inside.  This mom apparently wasn't.

We cannot protect people from themselves entirely, no matter how hard we try.  There has to be a balance where some responsibility is given over to people behaving responsibly, no just being bubble wrapped everywhere they go.

[Divinity]

A small child managed to bypass all measures and get in.
This should not have been possible.
Kids are dicks and will do this sort of thing now and then. The fact the no one had done it before is not an excuse to carry out simple safety precautions.

Now if a fully fit 20 year old had managed to get in I would agree that it is possible for an adult to circumvent reasonably fool proof systems, but a toddler!

Exactly.  This isn't like the Little Rock Zoo incident, where the kid got in directly by result of the actions of the parents. This was a four year old who escaped from his mother and managed to get inside without the help of anyone else.  I don't think it'd be fair to blame anyone for this happening--sometimes there's no blame to be had.  The child wasn't old enough to understand it was dangerous, the mom lost sight of her child for maybe a minute, Harambe didn't know what the child was or how to react to it, and the zoo had no reason to think that their enclosure wasn't good enough (Now they do)  and had to make a tough decision on how best to save the child.  

They now have good reason to believe that it's not good enough.  Security measures are always good enough, until they aren't.

[Aroura]

I also read that there is a petition for a new law that would require people be held accountable when their negligence causes an innocent endangered animal to die.

"To ensure this never happens again, we would like to enact Harambe's Law, that if at anytime this shall occur, the negligent party and or party's be held financially and criminally responsible for any harm and or loss to an animal, specifically when said animal is Critically Endangered."

What do you guys think of this proposed law? It reminds me of how hikers and climbers are now charged if they need to be rescued and it is deemed they acted irresponsibly. It seems reasonable, but I don't know if it would have any unintended negative consequences.

[downbeatplumb]

I also read that there is a petition for a new law that would require people be held accountable when their negligence causes an innocent endangered animal to die.

"To ensure this never happens again, we would like to enact Harambe's Law, that if at anytime this shall occur, the negligent party and or party's be held financially and criminally responsible for any harm and or loss to an animal, specifically when said animal is Critically Endangered."

What do you guys think of this proposed law?  It reminds me of how hikers and climbers are now charged if they need to be rescued and it is deemed they acted irresponsibly.  It seems reasonable, but I don't know if it would have any unintended negative consequences.

Possibly the law would be ok but I don't see the relevance here, the zoo had an enclosure able to be breached by an unaided 4 year old.

The zoo was at fault, clearly the precautions they had were inadequate.

[Catholic_Lady]

A small child managed to bypass all measures and get in.
This should not have been possible.
Kids are dicks and will do this sort of thing now and then. The fact the no one had done it before is not an excuse to carry out simple safety precautions.

Now if a fully fit 20 year old had managed to get in I would agree that it is possible for an adult to circumvent reasonably fool proof systems, but a toddler!

I disagree.  There are safety precautions in place, but the zoo does rely on people to also behave responsibly.  
I've read @15 people per year are killed at zoos.  Mostly handlers, but sometimes patrons.  In most cases the zoos re not charged, because they have adequate safety measures in place. Adequate does not mean foolproof not impenetrable.  

The only way to make it 100% safe is to not have the animals in the zoos in the first place.  Second would be full enclosures, but those went out in the 70's and 80's because they are unnecessarily cruel.  They still exist, but they shouldn't.  You see those primate exhibits where the animals face a wall all day?  Super bad.

if literally MILLIONS of people have passed by this enclosure without incident.  Other witnesses nearby claim mom was not paying attention to a child who was pulling away from her and proclaiming loudly he wanted to get into the enclosure. 

Kids ARE dicks, that is why parents need to be on full alert when at near an open enclosure with a 450 lb gorilla inside.  This mom apparently wasn't.

We cannot protect people from themselves entirely, no matter how hard we try.  There has to be a balance where some responsibility is given over to people behaving responsibly, no just being bubble wrapped everywhere they go.

I agree completely. I hate the attitude that every time an accident of some sort happens, we immediately blame the establishment or whatever for not being "safe enough". People need to start learning how to take personal responsibility, and also understanding that sometimes accidents do happen. Immediately looking to put blame on someone every time something bad happens can be silly.