Some forces in the universe are too immense to try to oppose. You can’t stop a tidal wave, for instance. Celestial bodies can’t avoid being sucked into black holes.

On the Internet, there’s a phenomena nearly as powerful as the black hole — animal cams.

I may not fully understand the swirling vacuum-like allure of animal cams, but the people have spoken with their clicking little fingers — they love ‘em.

At a party recently, a friend discussed how a “puppy cam,” linked through the Sacramento Bee Web site, has generated tens of thousands of hits. The puppy cam, started by a San Francisco couple who wanted to keep track of their Shiba Inu puppies while they were at work, has attracted millions of online visitors.

“Dey’re so cute. Don’tcha just wanna wook at dem all day long?” Especially while you’re at work and reeeeally don’t want to dive into that report.

Not long after hearing about the puppy cam, I witnessed this phenomenon in my very own home. My wife and I were watching the Turtle Bay Eagle Cam on separate computers when suddenly I heard her shriek with delight. I looked over to see her dancing up to her tippy toes with clappy hands. “Oh, the other eagle just flew into the nest! I can’t believe it!”

I was frustrated because my laptop seemed to have a bad connection and I didn’t get to see the other eagle swoop in. I was looking at static. Finally, after rebooting, sure enough, two eagles right there in the nest.

I felt like such a voyeur. Don’t these eagles have any rights? What if they want to have an intimate moment? Fortunately, the eagle cam shuts off at night. I wonder if these poor birds can sense that hundreds (possibly thousands) of eyeballs are watching them at any given minute throughout the day.

Isn’t reality TV a bad enough trend all on its own? Now everyone is wiling away the time watching puppies and eagles and warthogs, oh my.

A part of me wants to rail against these people. However, I just remembered, I checked eagle cam today. I’m telling you, I think that nest is bigger.

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