What is the dumbest thing you have ever heard someone say?

"People aren't animals, we're too smart!"
It's not a matter of how smart we are really. Even as a primary school kid, we've (at least the schools in my area) been repeatedly told human beings are mammals.

Let's check mammal's basic characteristics:
Warm-blooded, checked for human
The female produced milks for young, checked.
Have hairs on their bodies, umm... semi checked
Reproduce by giving birth, checked (Yes I'm aware of platypus as exceptions to this but that's another topic altogether)
Are vertebrates, checked
Sweat glands, checked

Now name a me mammal characteristics human beings don't have and I'll consider why humans are not mammals.

On topic, pretty much any statement that blames the victim in an incident. "You got beaten up because you provoked them first!". Seriously, can we just stop letting victim blaming be a practice already?
[DOUBLEPOST=1432928860,1432928806][/DOUBLEPOST]Dammit, I suck at quoting posts!
From "It's not a matter off..." till the end are my own words and not quoted...
 
Umm... TBH, my biology and zoology knowledge is somewhat limited. Mind enlighten me on the difference between the 2? I checked wikipedia but it also says mammals belongs to Animal Kingdom. I'm really confused now.

This is what I learned in school: Animals divided into vertebrates and invertebrates. And vertebrates are subdivided into mammals, birds etc... So following that chain, mammals are a subgroup of animal isn't it? Mind kindly clarifying my mistakes?

On topic, no one agrees that victim blaming statements are stupid?
 
I believe Prism meant 'animals' as any creature, not a mammal. I'm just following what I believe is the context.

If he stated it as 'People aren't mammals', then what you replied to the comment with is rather fitting. But because 'animals' was used, there is a lot more possibilities, such as implying that people aren't necessarily the most intellectual beings on this planet (which is what I was following).
 
OK, that clarifies the confusion. I agree, some humans really have IQs below that of animals (Darwin awards has more than you could count with your fingers).

Back to topic. Really, no one finds victim blaming statements stupid?
 
Back to topic. Really, no one finds victim blaming statements stupid?

It really depends on the situation. For example, whether or not the victim could have easily avoided the incident to begin with and knows they could have avoided it.

But yes, generally speaking, 'victim blaming statements' are a bit off.
 
Scientifically speaking, sure. I was never arguing against that though. But again, depends on the context. The dictionary also defines the world 'animal' as any such living being from the first definition other than humans. In the majority of times people are talking about animals, they aren't talking about humans at all. Otherwise, the RSPCA's name would make little sense for what they do.
 
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