# Let's talk about cannibalism **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 1, 2009, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448 "2009-01-01T06:34:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/1 "2009-01-01T06:34:45Z")
Just as a thought experiment, I’m wondering where people would place themselves on the cannibal scale in the event of a devastating famine, or being trapped in the mountains or some similar extreme circumstance. Let’s say 1 is “you’d die before you’d ever consume human flesh” and 100 is “your partner starts looking kinda juicy when they sleep in too long.” I think I’m about an 80 - I don’t look forward to consuming human flesh, but meat is meat, and you gotta eat. I’m also curious - do you think cannibalism has occurred in all famines? I do. ---
**Author:** ![Todderbob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@Todderbob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Todderbob)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/2 "2009-01-01T06:43:10Z")
I’m about a 100. Meat’s Meat. I’d _prefer_ not to kill them for it, but if it’s them or we both starve to death, it doesn’t make sense for us to **both** starve. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/3 "2009-01-01T06:43:35Z")
I’d probably be about a 99. I don’t think I’d be particularly bothered by it if the person was already dead and there was no alternative. I’ve always been an adventurous eater. It would put me one up on Andrew Zimmerman. ---
**Author:** ![Savannah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Savannah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Savannah)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/4 "2009-01-01T07:24:19Z")
I think I’m about a 50. I would probably do anything to survive, and if my fellow survivors were already dead, well… On the bright side, I’m fat, so I’ve got quite a bit of stored resources to help me postpone the first meal of long pig. As for cannibalism during famines… well, it’s probably occurred, but so taboo, I imagine people are reluctant to confess to it. That would be a fascinating anthropological study, though. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 7:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/5 "2009-01-01T07:30:53Z")
I’d be the first in line to carve up someone who was already dead, but I’m not sure I could kill someone for food. I suppose I might try amputating a volunteer’s leg or something, but that’s kind of an awkward subject to raise, isn’t it? Put me down for an arbitrary 70, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/6 "2009-01-01T07:36:34Z")
100 all the way. For serial! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/7 "2009-01-01T07:38:19Z")
I’ll eat you if I have to. ---
**Author:** ![T.Slothrop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3e96dc/32.png) [@T.Slothrop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/T.Slothrop)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/8 "2009-01-01T07:41:03Z")
The Onion had an article about some people rescued from being stuck in an elevator between floors. This is the headline: “In Retrospect, I Guess We Might Have Resorted To Cannibalism A Bit Soon.” ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/9 "2009-01-01T14:41:56Z")
Once as a child I had a dream in which my leg was a Kentucky Fried Chicken drumstick, which I ate, leaving me very upset for it left me hobbling about on a bone. ---
**Author:** ![Stauderhorse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@Stauderhorse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stauderhorse)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/10 "2009-01-01T14:46:06Z")
Probably about a 55. I wouldn’t have any problems (intellectually) if the person was already dead, but I’d probably have a very strong visceral reaction to even the idea of eating human meat. Once I forced myself to do it (and probably puked some back up), I’d be ok. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/11 "2009-01-01T15:14:45Z")
I’d be 70-75: I’d have to be sure there was no other way, beyond the point I think I could be sure in any normal circumstances in this country. If I was in the Andes and was one of the few survivors of a plane crash, though, or was in similarly hopeless straits, that surety would come a lot easier. I rank myself so high because I doubt I’d have much of a problem with it once I’d decided to do it, and I wouldn’t regret it afterwards. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/12 "2009-01-01T15:21:44Z")
I think I could do it if they were already dead, but I dont’ think I could take someone out in order to save myself. Not sure where that puts me on the scale. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/13 "2009-01-01T15:27:07Z")
A 50 I guess. I would sooner die than murder someone to eat them, but if they were already dead I think I’d get over the ‘‘ick’’ factor and chow down. ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/14 "2009-01-01T18:32:42Z")
Could it be a vegetarian? I understand that carnivores don’t taste very good… 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/15 "2009-01-01T18:40:06Z")
Hard to imagine a scenario where ALL the cattle were gone, ALL the bears, rabbits, squirrels, deer, rodents, lizards, snakes, chickens, turkeys, fish, etc, were gone, and ALL the crops were gone, but ok, if I’m stuck in the mountains for some unfathomable reason and the guy’s already dead, let’s dig in. It would bother me, but not as much as dying of starvation would. So, I guess, extreme acute environmental conditions, yes. Run-of-the-mill famine of biblical proportions, I’m going out in the woods and regressing to a paleolithic hunter/gatherer lifestyle. Humans aren’t particularly good or efficient to eat, which is why we’re no one’s natural prey. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/16 "2009-01-01T19:07:37Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Hard to imagine a scenario where ALL the cattle were gone, ALL the bears, rabbits, squirrels, deer, rodents, lizards, snakes, chickens, turkeys, fish, etc, were gone, and ALL the crops were gone, \ Maybe if we had a big blow-up in Yellowstone. 🙂 > [@](#): > > \ Humans aren’t particularly good or efficient to eat, which is why we’re no one’s natural prey. What we lack in flavour and texture we make up for in abundance. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/17 "2009-01-01T19:10:08Z")
> [@featherlou](#): > > What we lack in flavour and texture we make up for in abundance. But we’re hard to kill, and prone to revenge. ---
**Author:** ![BarnOwl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BarnOwl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnOwl)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/18 "2009-01-01T19:19:15Z")
I’m a 1. I can’t even eat anything that’s been on someone else’s plate, much less contemplate consuming human flesh, whether it’s a relative, partner, stranger. I would rather die. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/19 "2009-01-01T19:21:19Z")
Could you use a boob as a hat? Or maybe just a yarmulke? ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2009, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448/20 "2009-01-01T19:26:34Z")
I’m another 1. I wouldn’t want to live in a world where eating humans was acceptable, or neccessary. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-cannibalism/479448.md?page=2)