Monday, August 15, 2005

Strange doings with Koko the Gorilla

It's stories like this one that make me doubt the existance of intelligent life on Planet Earth.

Two former caretakers for Koko, the famous gorilla who communicates with humans using sign language, say they were continually pressured to show Koko their breasts or face the consequences.

N.A. and K.K. (Editor: I don't think it's right to use non-public figures real names) are suing Koko's primary caretaker, Dr. F.P., because she allegedly asked them to "perform bizarre sexual acts with Koko" — namely, taking off their tops — to bond with the five-foot-tall, 280-pound female gorilla.

"Dr. P. would interpret certain hand movements made by Koko as a 'demand' to see exposed human nipples," the suit alleges. "[Dr. P.] made it known to K and A that if [they] did not indulge Koko's nipple fetish, their employment with the Gorilla Foundation would suffer."

They are seeking more than $1 million in damages for sexual discrimination and wrongful termination, among other claims, and say they were fired after reporting "filthy and dangerous" working conditions to state health officials.

The women were expected to file a second amended complaint this week, emphasizing details of Koko's alleged "nipple fetish" and Dr. P.'s indulgence of the ape's sexually aggressive behavior, when it appeared that Koko's camp agreed to enter into negotiations.

If you REALLY need to know more, you can find the story here.

http://www.courttv.com/people/2005/0812/koko_ctv.html

Note that Koko is a FEMALE gorilla (whew, imagine the damages they would be asking if it were male!). So what do you think, evidence of homosexuality in the animal kingdom or an overactive imagination on the part of the caretaker?

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