Hey, I'm just going to hell is all. But while I wait, here are a few thoughts.
Those quick thinkers who just had to see the contraption to decide it wasn't funny? What, the name didn't give it away for you? Squirrelapult. Yup that's going to be a squirrel using a catapult to fire acorns at the dog, for sure
It's probably a pretty good assumption that the vid was made by teenage boys, no? Perhaps they
didn't think about the morality of potentially injuring squirrels. That's one of the last bits of maturity to be acquired. Maybe the more the clip is viewed the more hatemail they get and the lesson is hammered home? Maybe they did the squirrels a favor by scaring them away from humans? Humans with guns and the like. Yes, people shoot squirrels here. Or shoot at them. I doubt they always bother to see if they're dead or just dying slowly and painfully.
Or maybe, they don't consider squirrels important. For some people squirrels are vermin and rate similarly to mosquitos on the "how much do we care if they get hurt" scale. They chew powerlines, nest in roofs, fall off overhead powerlines onto cars, steal bird food, trash veg gardens......
A large number of the population do not consider all living things equal. Possibly even the majority. Many believe that there comes a point when some things do not have a right to live or die with dignity. Mosquitos, for example. They probably fall below most people's line. Spiders are maybe a little higher up. Mice. Many people have mice well down on their list. Your point of view is no more valid than anyone else's. The line you draw is not likely to be the same as everyone else's.
But if it makes you feel better to come over all superior about your morality and try to browbeat people into agreeing with you -have at it. I certainly won't be building a squirrelapult and didn't show the vid to my impressionable children. Count me off as a victory, you sure changed my mind, I'll never laugh at anything I know I shouldn't again..... So after that burst of responsibility, I'm off to look for clips of torturous flytraps. To report them to the appropriate authorities. Of course. No laughing will be done.