Here's what you're missing:

A) it's much less about whether the bear is a bigger threat and much more about how fucking awful men must treat women for the average woman to go "hmmm... Maybe the bear, tbh?" The fact that it's even something women have to think about for more than a split second is a dramatic failure of our society. THAT is the point, and any discussion of "well you don't know about bears then..." is reply-guy shit that misses the entire point and simply serves to further solidify how blind most men are to what goes on in the day to day life of women.

B) An aggressive bear is a known quantity. Is it a threat? Obviously. But it's a threat that we understand extremely well. Like, a quick Google search will teach you everything you need to know about what to do if you see a bear. But a strange, unknown man? Who the fuck knows. They might seem perfectly pleasant and reasonable, act like your friend, and then flip the fuck out when the woman refuses to sleep with him that night in return for all that manly protection he provided during the day or whatever. THAT is why women pick the bear: a known problem is often preferable to uncertainty that could lead to being extremely vulnerable against a really smart attacker.

Remember, the question wasn't "would you rather be in a locked room with a bear or a man?" It was "would you rather be stuck on an island with a strange bear or a strange man?"

And to your final question, why can't we just respect other humans? Great fucking question, but the misogynists should be the ones facing that inquiry, not the people on the internet trying to point you towards them. It may be more uncomfortable and even dangerous to confront them, but don't take the easy way out by asking victims and their allies to be "nicer" instead

Why can’t we all just fucking respect other humans?

Exhibit A: The internet.

Exhibit B: Social Media.

I rest my case your honour. No further questions. I object.

It’ll bring you a clarity of mind and a knowledge of complete vulnerability that you can’t really find outside of other imminently life-threatening situations.

Thanks to that experience now you know how women feel very often, sometimes multiple times in the same day. It's something they learn to live with their whole lives.

It's not hyperbole. They're not making light of the danger. When women say "I'd rather meet a bear" they really mean it. It's the same feeling, but it would happen extremely rarely instead of daily.

That whole thing is not to be taken literally and if you do you are missing the point by a mile.

I think the question here is, if the bear attacked - would people believe the woman that she was attacked? Would they blame her for what she was wearing?

a bear will kill you, perhaps horribly.

a bear will not kidnap you, rape you, and keep you in a cage.

I'm frankly amazed I have to keep explaining the order of magnitude difference in the horror of wildlife vs. horrible humans.

I'm pretty sure that almost none of the men who were offended have spent time in an enclosed area with an angry human who is a foot taller and 100 pounds heavier than they are.

I think you hit on something that is a pretty big part of the problem: Men taking it personally. As far as I know, no specific man is mentioned, but a lot seem to insert themselves into the situation.

I try to do my best in life to be a good person, to be a good man, but I completely get why a woman would be worried about being in the middle of nowhere with a strange man, even if that man was me, because they don't know what that person is capable of.

Punching up and punching down are extremely different and your comparison is deeply disingenuous.

Black men don't hold positions of power in society simply by being black. Black men don't get off with nothing but a slap on the wrist for serial sexual assault because "we don't want to ruin the promising life he has ahead of him".

Knock it off with the false equivalence.

Same, this comment section is an amazing collection of why