Dear Santosh, A perfunctory google disputes your claim. I am no sociologist but am aware of many documented types of cannibalism which do not involve nutritional deficiency.
The following quotes from this link seem adequate in explanation but the inquisitive are encouraged to read the entire paper. http://www.assemblage.group.shef.ac.uk/issue9/cole.html http://www.assemblage.group.shef.ac.uk/issue9/cole.html#link3 "We cannot begin to presume that the reasons for a chimpanzee cannibalism attack would correspond to those of our hominin ancestors nor indeed our anatomically modern selves. What is important here is more the fact that the instances of cannibalism occur throughout nature from the most base level to the most complicated (both biologically and socially). Therefore, the fact that cannibalism is evident within our evolutionary past should not be surprising nor disturbing as it would appear to be a natural, and in some cases an integral part of the world in which we live." http://www.assemblage.group.shef.ac.uk/issue9/cole.html#link13 "What I have tried to do is present a sample of the evidence illustrating this point clearly. I have also attempted to show that not only is cannibalism an important part of hominin behaviour, but a wholly natural act in the animal world, of which humans are still very much a part." Sincerely, Kevin Saldanha Mississauga, ON. ========================= Date: Sat, 3 Nov 2007 12:56:55 -0700 (PDT) From: Santosh Helekar <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: Re: [Goanet] David vs Goliath Hi Selma, How come Gilbert donates blood for consumption by others? Doesn't he follow the moral precepts of Leviticus and Deuteronomy? Your most recent point regarding Hitchens is well taken. Now as far as cannibalism is concerned, the evolutionary and archeological records show that while it has being practiced by humans and hominids throughout the ages, these have been very rare occurrences. It is a rarity even among other mammals. It is virtually unheard of among non-human primates. Only a few instances have been recorded among wild chimpanzees, all involving infanticide. Cheers, Santosh -- It is forgetting, not remembering, that is the essence of what makes us human - Jorge Luis Borges
