this morning, while spasdically channel surfing, mike and i lingered on what appeared to be wolves tearing apart their prey. and indeed, they were - a pack of wolves being observed by a couple in Idaho in the mid-90's. For some reason, while i am not a nature buff or self-proclaimed animal lover, i was intrigued - as was mike, and we spent the next hour or so watching this documentary unfold. Each wolf was "named" by the couple - which isn't as silly as it may sound. Apparently, there is a definitive heirarchy to wolf packs, with the dominant male - or "Alpha" - leading the pack through the wilderness. I found the class system and social behavior of these beautiful creatures fascinating. Far more involved than simply "hunt" & "survive", it seems that wolf instincts involve leadership, commitment, loyalty, and fierce protection. The least dominant male in a wolf pack becomes the "Omega" - virtually the scape goat for the pack, not allowed to eat with the others, and picked on by the rest. Even more fascinating was the dynamic relationship between the "Alpha" & "Omega" in this pack - they were brothers from the same litter, and while the Omega was on the bottom rung of the hierarchy, he was also the larger of the wolves, but still deferred to his brother. As the show progressed, I found i was highly introspective of myself, and caste systems in general. it would seem to me that there are "Alpha"s and "Omega"s in every social circumstance. It seems an inherint part of nature.

perhaps to move forward as a society, and even as a species, we need to take a closer look at the sociology of animals.

it was moving in an odd way - i think because i identified with the Omega wolf.
now that's some food for thought...