Free Republic

Poor Harambe. The gorilla murdered at the Cincinnati Zoo after a child wandered into its enclosure has now essentially suffered a second, equally odious death: this time at the hands of humorless University of Massachusetts residential advisors who told students to stop making Harambe jokes. These jokes "are not only derogatory but also micro-aggressions," two RAs wrote in a letter to the UMass-Amherst students who live on their floor. Failure to desist could even be a violation of Title IX, they suggested. You're probably wondering what's going on here. Some background: Post-death, Harambe has become a popular internet meme. "Harambe...

I hate grays.

Destroying Human Exceptionalism By Creating Human/Chimp HybridsI just don't understand the emotional stake some people invest in convincing us that humankind is nothing special in the universe. Indeed, some, such as University of Washington psychology professor David P. Barash, are willing to go to extraordinary lengths to knock us off the pedestal of exceptionalism. This includes, as he urges in this piece published in the LA Times, creating human/chimp hybrids to prove that we are just a bunch of apes. (This is not the first time I have seen such advocacy.) And, bonus of bonuses, Barash believes, such a hybrid...