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Friday, March 05, 2021

MLB suspends free agent Sam Dyson for entire 2021 season

Free-agent pitcher Sam Dyson has accepted a suspension for the entire 2021 season for violating MLB’s joint domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy, the league announced Friday.

“Having reviewed all of the available evidence, I have concluded that Mr. Dyson violated our policy and that discipline is appropriate,” commissioner Rob Manfred said in the release.

Dyson, 32, last pitched in the majors for the Minnesota Twins in 2019. The allegations were brought to light by his ex-girlfriend, Alexis Blackburn, in an Instagram post posing as her cat late that year. “I don’t have to worry about getting hurt because of anger or control,” the post read. “I don’t have to be scared of yelling and things being hurled at mom and me.”

MLB opened an investigation after the post, and Dyson hasn’t pitched since the allegations came to light.

RoyalsRetro (AG#1F) Posted: March 05, 2021 at 05:15 PM | 93 comment(s) Login to Bookmark
Tags: domestic abuse policy, sam dyson

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1. Mayor Blomberg Posted: March 05, 2021 at 09:14 PM (#6007811)

more here, and it's not pretty

2. Jose Is An Absurd Balladeer Posted: March 05, 2021 at 10:21 PM (#6007813)

The allegations were brought to light by his ex-girlfriend, Alexis Blackburn, in an Instagram post posing as her cat late that year.

I don’t want to make too much light of this but....”in an Instagram post posing as her cat” is the type of thing that teenage me would be fascinated is something I understand.

3. Mayor Blomberg Posted: March 06, 2021 at 12:49 AM (#6007817)

From the link in #1 you get this FIRST comment, in propria persona:

I am broken though. I’ve allowed my physical health, my emotional health, and my mental health to diminish to nothing. I’ve allowed more things to happen than I want to admit. I don’t know who this girl is right now because this hasn’t been me. I haven’t been me in so long. I’ve allowed myself to use the word “sorry” in every conversation whether I did something wrong or not. I’ve allowed myself to ignore red flags and bad in people because I loved them. I’m not ashamed or embarrassed of the current me because I know I didn’t do this to myself.
Alexis Blackburn Via Instagram

Apparently he was abusive toward the cat as well, which is completely unforgivable.

4. Itchy Row Posted: March 06, 2021 at 01:57 AM (#6007820)

That made me hug my cat, which he hated and rightfully tried to claw off my face for, but my wife and my dog still seem to like me.

5. Walks Clog Up the Bases Posted: March 06, 2021 at 05:58 PM (#6007844)

I don’t want to make too much light of this but....”in an Instagram post posing as her cat” is the type of thing that teenage me would be fascinated is something I understand.

I generally think my generation catches too much unnecessary flak, but social media accounts "belonging" to pets or toddlers is one of the more self-absorbed trends I can recall emerging from social media.

6. flournoy Posted: March 06, 2021 at 07:05 PM (#6007846)

As far as I can tell, self-absorption is the entire purpose of social media for most users.

7. Mayor Blomberg Posted: March 06, 2021 at 08:55 PM (#6007849)

mine set up their own accounts and refuse my friend requests

8. Never Give an Inge (Dave) Posted: March 07, 2021 at 02:54 AM (#6007856)

My cat has his own Instagram account and yeah, he is pretty damn self-absorbed.

I’m convinced that 50% of Instagram is just different cats following each other.

9. The Gary DiSarcina Fan Club (JAHV) Posted: March 08, 2021 at 12:36 PM (#6007939)

I'm in favor of simply getting rid of all cats. The world would be a better place.

10. snapper (history's 42nd greatest monster) Posted: March 08, 2021 at 02:40 PM (#6007950)

I'm in favor of simply getting rid of all cats. The world would be a better place.

Man, 43rd worst monster now.

11. The Gary DiSarcina Fan Club (JAHV) Posted: March 08, 2021 at 03:00 PM (#6007952)

Man, 43rd worst monster now.

I'm willing to live with that if we can get rid of all the cats. But look, I don't want to be cruel; we don't need to kill them. Just have Elon Musk build them a giant space station and send them to colonize some other planet. I'll be long dead before they evolve enough to return and wipe out humanity.

12. snapper (history's 42nd greatest monster) Posted: March 08, 2021 at 03:57 PM (#6007954)

13. Howie Menckel Posted: March 08, 2021 at 05:07 PM (#6007959)

wanting to get rid of cats is like wanting to get rid of Latin, or quantum mechanics, or the primal appeal of a Zamboni machine.

not understanding something shouldn't lead to "let's get rid of it."

embrace the pathways that can lead you to a heightened awareness of this world.

:)

14. The Gary DiSarcina Fan Club (JAHV) Posted: March 08, 2021 at 07:50 PM (#6007970)

10,000 years of guarding mankind's grain from rats, and that's the thanks they get.

And they're lucky to get that much. Good riddance. We have terriers who can do that job now.

15. Mayor Blomberg Posted: March 08, 2021 at 08:34 PM (#6007973)

We have terriers who can do that job now.

Dogs are servile.

16. flournoy Posted: March 08, 2021 at 09:33 PM (#6007977)

not understanding something shouldn't lead to "let's get rid of it."

Perhaps we should discuss mosquitos and gnats.

17. gef, talking mongoose & suburban housewife Posted: March 09, 2021 at 03:50 PM (#6008036)

Fear/hatred of cats is of course a recognized mental illness, albeit one that probably isn't sufficiently reviled*. Is there an equivalent regarding dogs?** My sister was scared to death of canines; something fairly traumatic that I don't recall or maybe never knew about must've happened when she was little, or maybe she just panicked when a dog expressed affection by jumping up on her. (She had a pretty profound case of Down syndrome, so it wasn't something I could pursue.)

*I had to type that, or the 9 felines with whom I share my household would make me bitterly regret it.

**Yes, I could check Google, but what's the fun in that?

18. Howie Menckel Posted: March 09, 2021 at 11:31 PM (#6008066)

dogs are incredibly easy to understand, which always left me surprised at the need for "The Dog Whisperer."

the guy not only could solve the issue within one show, but he's hardly the only one who could have.

understanding cats - that is a science. you have to figure out what makes them tick.

we had a male cat who was somewhat dog-like in his loyalty to me. I accepted this on his terms. it's not that typical for a cat to line up eagerly at the front door at the typical hour that his "master" arrives home, but we rolled with that.

his sister - another story. she was high-strung, for some reason, and required more analysis. along the lines of the old saying, “If you love somebody, let them go - for if they return, they were always yours. If they don't, they never were.”

so she was granted her space, out of respect.

soon enough, she kneaded me - literally. several times a day, she would come over and do that alternating-pawing thing. that opened the door for some petting (wait, this is starting to read a little - odd.)

19. Greg K Posted: March 10, 2021 at 06:38 AM (#6008070)

I was very scared of dogs as a kid. Though one day one wandered into our yard and I played it with it all day until my dad found its owner a few streets over. Was pretty fun.

Now I just find dogs stupid and needy...I mostly pity them, so long as I can do so from a distance.

On the other hand, I have a deep respect for cats. Their complete disdain for me is convincing evidence of their intelligence and discernment. A good rule of thumb I apply to humans as well.

20. Jose Is An Absurd Balladeer Posted: March 10, 2021 at 08:13 AM (#6008072)

I was very scared of dogs as a kid

Oh man, I was TERRIFIED of dogs as a kid too. The people across the street had a german shepherd named Rebel and the town had a 7 to 7 leash law. The dogs could be off leash at 7PM. The dog was perfectly friendly but all I saw was teeth. Anyway I would be playing at my friends house up the street but at like 6:50 I'd haul ass back to my house. More than a few times I got there a bit after 7 so there would be what I can only imagine was the very entertaining site of a hysterical 9 year old sprinting across his lawn yelling "OPEN THE DOOR OPEN THE DOOR" being chased by a barking german shepherd.

Did not like that dog.

21. SoSH U at work Posted: March 10, 2021 at 08:41 AM (#6008074)

It sounds like your town had the desire to have a sundown law, only enforced by dogs.

22. bunyon Posted: March 10, 2021 at 09:07 AM (#6008075)

Cats and dogs, like people, should not be judged as an entire group. Plenty of great dogs and cats. Plenty of ########, too.

Fearing dogs is completely rational. There are a lot of mean and badly behaved ones and they're very strong.

I get there is a lot of fun in this thread but I hear this stuff a lot and...I just don't get it. I love a good dog or cat. But I've met enough who were a pain in the ass and people still cooed over them.

I mean, I could probably understand a psychopath, too, and learn to live with him. But why?

23. Lassus Posted: March 10, 2021 at 10:27 AM (#6008080)

dogs are incredibly easy to understand, which always left me surprised at the need for "The Dog Whisperer."

People are easier, and we still need psychologists and psychiatrists.

Fearing dogs is completely rational. There are a lot of mean and badly behaved ones and they're very strong.

I mean, I get this, and I get it about wolves and bears, but domesticated dogs? Your statement is true about people, too, but I don't think you'd say "Fearing people is completely rational", at least as a default emotional response.

24. puck Posted: March 10, 2021 at 10:30 AM (#6008081)

On the other hand, I have a deep respect for cats. Their complete disdain for me is convincing evidence of their intelligence and discernment.

You have to watch them though, they are tricky buggers. I was on a walk last weekend and a cat trotted up the sidewalk towards me to greet me. I bet he was after my wallet.

25. What did Billy Ripken have against ElRoy Face? Posted: March 10, 2021 at 10:43 AM (#6008086)

A dog's life is the neverending quest for a morsel of human food.

26. gef, talking mongoose & suburban housewife Posted: March 10, 2021 at 11:05 AM (#6008089)

but I don't think you'd say "Fearing people is completely rational",

You just can't help injecting politics into the thread, I see.

27. gef, talking mongoose & suburban housewife Posted: March 10, 2021 at 11:06 AM (#6008090)

that alternating-pawing thing.

Known as kneading, I believe.

28. gef, talking mongoose & suburban housewife Posted: March 10, 2021 at 11:08 AM (#6008091)

Dogs are servile.

In general, I suspect so, but my late, great Shih-Tzu, Casey, won my heart by being very catlike in his relative aloofness.

29. BDC

Posted: March 10, 2021 at 11:40 AM (#6008092)

I was also very scared of dogs, as a kid. Fine with them now if I meet somebody's pet (for years I had dogs myself) but I still get extremely nervous if a dog barks at me from behind a fence (which is constantly, walking in the suburbs).

I am not scared of wildlife at all. Only the rarest wild animal, including semi-acclimated urban wildlife, will do anything but run away if it sees a human. Domestic dogs are obviously much nicer to people on the whole but they can also be aggressive toward people if they perceive a threat to their territory; that's part of domestication of many breeds and the training of some individual dogs.

30. SoSH U at work Posted: March 10, 2021 at 12:05 PM (#6008093)

I mean, I get this, and I get it about wolves and bears, but domesticated dogs? Your statement is true about people, too, but I don't think you'd say "Fearing people is completely rational", at least as a default emotional response.

I don't think domesticated dogs and people are equally aggressive toward strangers. I've never been attacked by a stranger for walking by myself, but I sure as #### had a dog do that to me.

31. The Gary DiSarcina Fan Club (JAHV) Posted: March 10, 2021 at 12:07 PM (#6008094)

A dog's life is the neverending quest for a morsel of human food.

Which is far, far more respectful than cats' desire to murder you and everyone you love, if they can be bothered to care.

Dogs, I get. They enjoy food and a good back rub, and are grateful for them. Cats enjoy...well, nothing, really, inasmuch as they are demons sent to torment us.

32. Ron J Posted: March 10, 2021 at 12:26 PM (#6008095)

#31 No. You're perfectly safe from your cat. You have uses -- all of which come down to the fact that you have opposable thumbs.

As long as you're prepared to open doors on demand and use can openers (or tear open bags) they will agree to grace your general area.

Some even like you enough to bring presents.

33. Jose Is An Absurd Balladeer Posted: March 10, 2021 at 12:59 PM (#6008098)

My impression of cats isn't so much that they want to murder us so much as they are just perfectly content to see us murders. A dog would alert the police, cats would just ask the murderer to move your body to the side so you didn't bleed into the bowl of water.

34. BDC

Posted: March 10, 2021 at 01:15 PM (#6008102)

Life with cats

35. The Gary DiSarcina Fan Club (JAHV) Posted: March 10, 2021 at 01:25 PM (#6008104)

My impression of cats isn't so much that they want to murder us so much as they are just perfectly content to see us murders.

That's fair. I do think there is murderous intent down there, latent in the cold lump of ice and hairball that passes for their heart, but they are mostly too lazy to act on it.

36. jacksone (AKA It's OK...) Posted: March 10, 2021 at 02:31 PM (#6008123)

How much do cats actually kill

37. snapper (history's 42nd greatest monster) Posted: March 10, 2021 at 02:36 PM (#6008124)

How much do cats actually kill

That's their job. If you don't want them to kill, keep them inside. That's what we do; it's safer for the cat.

If we still relied on food we had to grow and store ourselves, you'd be very, very happy with their rodent killing tendencies.

38. Never Give an Inge (Dave) Posted: March 10, 2021 at 03:07 PM (#6008127)

Not to nitpick but the math in that link seems to assume that all cats are outdoor cats. I don’t know what the actual percentage is but its probably closer to 50-75%.

Our cat used to be a stray and was pretty standoffish when we first adopted him. Now, however, he greets us at the door when we come home, wants to sleep next to us on the bed, and will fall asleep on my chest when I’m reading on the couch.

He still does have that hunter instinct. The couple of times we have had mice in our home, he caught them quite easily.

39. puck Posted: March 10, 2021 at 03:26 PM (#6008130)

Our cats have always been very affectionate. I think cats mostly return what they receive. When my wife is sick they stay with her until she gets better and then they return to their routine. But we're a good household for cats; no kids, not a lot of commotion most of the time.

40. Starring Bradley Scotchman as RMc Posted: March 10, 2021 at 04:59 PM (#6008144)

Re 14: Gary DiSarcina called. You're fired.

(RMc reaches down to scratch his cat's belly)

41. gef, talking mongoose & suburban housewife Posted: March 10, 2021 at 05:32 PM (#6008147)

That's their job. If you don't want them to kill, keep them inside. That's what we do; it's safer for the cat.

The ferals I feed, get neutered, etc. are so ####### spoiled that I've seen them lie back a few feet away & idly gaze at birds pecking at their food in the backyard.

The insiders are all former ferals, either from my own colony (split into two camps -- the ones in back rarely invade the front yard & vice versa) or brought to me from elsewhere. One in particular is very affectionate, though from what I've read that just means he's particularly eager to mark me as his own.

When I had mice in the house a few years back, the cats (not sure how many I had back then -- no more than 3, if that) were about as useful as mounds of dirt.

42. the Hugh Jorgan returns Posted: March 10, 2021 at 05:44 PM (#6008148)

deleted post

43. Howie Menckel Posted: March 10, 2021 at 06:41 PM (#6008156)

Known as kneading, I believe.

please reread the last paragraph of Post 18 for the Easter egg.
:)

I once got home to find those same two cats sleeping on the living room couch - no surprise there.

then I go into the kitchen and notice - um, two starlings flying around. they had gotten in through an unshuttered chimney, which was located in ... the living room.

I guess starlings - think of a crow's slightly smaller brother - are big enough that for these cats, the primal instinct to kill birds yields to pragmatism. so back to snoring it was.

I opened the kitchen door to the backyard, and one of them quickly seized the escape opportunity. the dumb one didn't do as well, even with the, well, "free bird" cawing at him in what seemed to be a geolocation effort. It took a broomstick and some confused flight to finally get rid of the damn thing.

we also had field mice in that house once (all could have been Stuart Little stunt doubles), and the female delighted in grabbing 'em in her mouth and dashing up the stairs with them. she probably had some sort of a hidden torture chamber on that floor. the male cat just watched the mice run around (pro tip: the mousetraps work best with a spot of peanut butter. the mice can't resist.)

44. gef, talking mongoose & suburban housewife Posted: March 10, 2021 at 06:57 PM (#6008159)

Yep. Peanut butter is my mousetrap go-to. Haven't needed it in years, luckily.

45. Mayor Blomberg Posted: March 10, 2021 at 07:18 PM (#6008160)

https://theoatmeal.com/comics/cats_actually_kill

My cats have killed exactly nothing. My neighbors, who are domesticated and well fed nevertheless hunt and fish, or as the author says, they are serial thrill killers.

46. base ball chick Posted: March 10, 2021 at 09:14 PM (#6008175)

The Gary DiSarcina Fan Club (JAHV) Posted: March 08, 2021 at 03:00 PM (#6007952)

Man, 43rd worst monster now.

I'm willing to live with that if we can get rid of all the cats. But look, I don't want to be cruel; we don't need to kill them. Just have Elon Musk build them a giant space station and send them to colonize some other planet. I'll be long dead before they evolve enough to return and wipe out humanity.

- YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

but my dad can keep his cat until he dies and he's like 12 so that should be pretty soon

cats bite and scratch people who are not bothering them. even their owners.

terriers are much better rodent killers and they don't bite and scratch their people. know someone who keeps a little terrier in the yard and there are NO rats/mice/squirrels

cats let outside kill birds and baby birds in nests

Dogz don't go outside to have fun killing

47. gef, talking mongoose & suburban housewife Posted: March 10, 2021 at 09:45 PM (#6008183)

Having lost more than one cat to a murderous dog, and knowing others who have donene the same, I wish that were true. It's not, of course.

48. Sweatpants Posted: March 10, 2021 at 10:06 PM (#6008184)

I'm sure that there are good reasons for preferring dogs to cats, but "[biting] people who are not bothering them" isn't something I'd bring up to advocate for dogs.

49. base ball chick Posted: March 10, 2021 at 11:26 PM (#6008192)

true that some Dog bites can kill but cat bites and scratches give you bad infections so as you can die more slowly (and like i said dogs don't just turn and bite their own people for no reason like cats do)

i don't let my Dogz attack cats. growl yes. attack, no - they are always on a leash if not in the back yard. but we don't have trouble with cats in the back yard seeing as how they never know if there will be a Dog coming thru the Dog door. only Dog i ever had who didn't loathe cats was Jana Brattain Dog and god love her she was dumber than 10

nevermind

50. Mayor Blomberg Posted: March 11, 2021 at 12:11 AM (#6008198)

(and like i said dogs don't just turn and bite their own people for no reason like cats do)

Rubbish

OK, to Explain, one of my girls had what turned out to be IBD, and I took her to emergency at about 1 am. The vet had to express her anal glands. I said if it would hurt I'd give her my finger to gnaw on. The vet said, No, you don't want to do that.

Yes, I did, and so I did. Vet asked afterwards to see my figure. There were pressure indentations but no broken skin; it was a deal we'd had for years.

51. base ball chick Posted: March 11, 2021 at 01:07 AM (#6008202)

i wouldn't never ever trust a cat to not bite me or scratch me - i DO trust my Dogz to not bite me or hurt me. every person i know IRL who got a cat gets bit or scratched. they wave off the getting bit unless they have to go get antibiotics for the bite or the cat scratch fever

i have had 2 interactions with cats. the first one i was 3 and at someone's house with my mama and i didn't even know the cat was in the house and it jumped out at me from behind something and sank its fangs in my ankle then vanished. i screamed in terror for a long time. the second time i was older and at someone else's house and their mom insisted i pet their cat which i didn't wanna do and finally i kind of slowly reached out to pet the cat on its head and fast as a snake it bit me hard on the soft part of the hand where the thumb is and as i was screaming the mom sez - it's just a "love nip". i screamed for a long time. not cried, screamed. i guess cat bites don't look as bad as they really are but my hand got all infected and i had to go get some shots which hurt a lot - that i remember

and since then i get shut of cats.

and i've never bitten back

52. Never Give an Inge (Dave) Posted: March 11, 2021 at 01:32 AM (#6008206)

bbc, your reaction is understandable although I wouldn't judge the whole species by those two experiences.

I can understand people who have never had cats being more wary around them -- it can take longer to earn their trust and they're not immediately affectionate towards strangers. But they will grow on you. I was never a cat person until I got married, then we adopted a pair of them.

53. sunday silence (again) Posted: March 11, 2021 at 02:08 AM (#6008207)

you never see cats working with cops.

54. base ball chick Posted: March 11, 2021 at 02:12 AM (#6008208)

i just don't like cats. i'm not cruel to them or something but i do NOT like cats. just like i do NOT like pet rodents or pet snakes. nothing is gonna get me to not not like their species. someone once told me that cats tolerate the humans who live in their house - and i think that about says it

funny thing is that i actually was the one who rescued my daddy's cat, not that i knew they were gonna keep him for more than the weekend. but that's another story

55. Ben Broussard Ramjet Posted: March 11, 2021 at 06:19 AM (#6008209)

I read somewhere that children with atypical neural behaviours tend to be wary of dogs in particular, if only subconsciously. There's a whole different set of behavioural cues to learn, when you're already working on trying to read fellow human beings accurately, and there's no real option to use language to control their behaviour unless they're pretty well-trained.

I've never really had a bad experience with a dog as a child, but never liked being around them particularly. Then in my early 20s, close friends adopted the most velcro black lab I've ever seen, and my mindset switched 180 degrees in a short space of time. My wife's to-get list now consists of at least two large dogs (one diabetic alert dog), a cat or two, at least one snake, and a number of ferrets that only resolves confidently into an integer when they're all asleep simultaneously.

the second time i was older and at someone else's house and their mom insisted i pet their cat which i didn't wanna do and finally i kind of slowly reached out to pet the cat on its head and fast as a snake it bit me hard on the soft part of the hand where the thumb is and as i was screaming the mom sez - it's just a "love nip"

I didn't know that happened with cats; I always thought they were more likely to bat/claw someone than nip if they were being playful. Having ferrets has somewhat gotten me used to the idea that nipping is a sign of affection, but it really varies with the animal. Several of ours have had extraordinary control to hold/pinch but not bite in the middle of a wardance; one of them was just fundamentally untrustworthy, especially around earlobes. It is startling, either way - they are very, very fast when young.

56. Lassus Posted: March 11, 2021 at 07:29 AM (#6008211)

I don't think domesticated dogs and people are equally aggressive toward strangers. I've never been attacked by a stranger for walking by myself, but I sure as #### had a dog do that to me.

I was thinking about this and realized I literally have been physically attacked by more stranger humans than stranger dogs. I mean, I suppose per capita it eventually still might end up favoring humans once one dog actually attacks me, but that's never yet happened, and as you can imagine, I'm not the sort who really avoids dog at all and I've made it to 51 without it happening. Between a couple assaults, a couple muggings, and random drunks trying to pick fights, it's currently not a contest.

Dogz don't go outside to have fun killing

I have a rabbit still in my back yard this morning who would have liked you to talk to my dog last night. But he is currently an EX-rabbit. Boo.

57. Lassus Posted: March 11, 2021 at 07:40 AM (#6008213)

the first one i was 3

the second time i was older

I understand not wanting to be around cats from these experiences, but children (and adults, for things three days ago) don't entirely remember everything the way it happened. I mean, if you don't want to, there's no point, why be miserable on purpose? But with a lifetime of cats, I also can't remember any unprovoked attack. Yes, they're sort of all over online, I get it, but it's very uncommon.

58. McCoy Posted: March 11, 2021 at 08:43 AM (#6008217)

A neighbor's dog when I was young got me pretty bad. He was just that type of dog that would attack people. We had an english sheepdog that had a flaw in the line and basically the whole line had to be put down. They'd bite people randomly and anyone who showed fear.

I currently have a cat that can be pretty vicious and freaks out when a stranger stays at the house.

59. McCoy Posted: March 11, 2021 at 08:44 AM (#6008218)

Cats seem to love unprovoked attacks. They love hiding and jumping out at people.

60. gef, talking mongoose & suburban housewife Posted: March 11, 2021 at 10:29 AM (#6008228)

While I was walking down the street a couple of blocks where we lived when I was maybe 10, a smallish barking dog bit me on, IIRC, my lower left leg. Must not've amounted to much, because I don't recall the skin being broken, or at least not to any significant degree. I never told anyone, but I dimly recall wondering whether I was going to get rabies or something.

Happily, I managed not to develop any fear or dislike of dogs.

61. Never Give an Inge (Dave) Posted: March 11, 2021 at 10:43 AM (#6008231)

We have had three cats and none of them has ever attacked a person, provoked or unprovoked. Two of them used to have pretty vicious fights with each other, but that was it.

When I was a kid, I was chasing my cousin around his house and his dog bit me right on the behind. A few years later, we went back to my cousin’s house, and the dog remembered me. As soon as she saw me she bit me again. Thankfully she was a small dog and neither bite did much damage, but it was still memorable and if we didn’t have our own dog at home it might have caused me to develop a fear of them.

62. snapper (history's 42nd greatest monster) Posted: March 11, 2021 at 10:58 AM (#6008233)

I was thinking about this and realized I literally have been physically attacked by more stranger humans than stranger dogs.

Me too. One human attack (by three strangers) vs. zero dog attacks, and zero cat attacks (stranger or my three). Luckily the human attack was in a bar where I was a regular, so it idn't stay three to one very long.

63. Howie Menckel Posted: March 11, 2021 at 11:08 AM (#6008234)

the female cat I spoke of earlier did NOT like my wife - at all.

kind of amusing, her being so territorial like that. sometimes she would stare at my wife with what we called "cougar face" - like you see in the commercials, teeth bared. she never got violent, but whenever I was "free," that's when she came over to do her kneading. I guess she thought I was a cat, or something.

64. SoSH U at work Posted: March 11, 2021 at 11:10 AM (#6008235)

One human attack (by three strangers) vs. zero dog attacks,

Was it just out of the blue, three guys just started beating on you?

65. snapper (history's 42nd greatest monster) Posted: March 11, 2021 at 11:26 AM (#6008239)

Was it just out of the blue, three guys just started beating on you?

Three guys we doing something (I'd guess drugs) in the men's room. I had to pee bad, and they were holding the door shut, so I started pounding on the door. They finally let go and I walked in. The three of them crowded me, and the middle one throws an ineffective punch. We're all so close together I can't really raise my arms, so I grab the shirt of the guy who threw the punch, and basically dove back through the door (that was luckily still open) pulling him with me. Then like five of my friends, the bouncer and the bartender gave them the bums rush.

66. The Gary DiSarcina Fan Club (JAHV) Posted: March 11, 2021 at 11:31 AM (#6008240)

Dogs kill for food or because they've been trained to do it. Cats kill (and scratch and maim) for sport and their own amusement, which is exactly what you'd expect from the spawn of Satan.

67. SoSH U at work Posted: March 11, 2021 at 11:38 AM (#6008242)

Three guys we doing something (I'd guess drugs) in the men's room. I had to pee bad, and they were holding the door shut, so I started pounding on the door. They finally let go and I walked in. The three of them crowded me, and the middle one throws an ineffective punch. We're all so close together I can't really raise my arms, so I grab the shirt of the guy who threw the punch, and basically dove back through the door (that was luckily still open) pulling him with me. Then like five of my friends, the bouncer and the bartender gave them the bums rush.

Consider yourself lucky you've never been attacked by a dog. I was fortunate it was a relatively small dog, but that SOB was vicious. Dogs and cats may very well be equally likely to attack, but dogs are just better at it.

68. jacksone (AKA It's OK...) Posted: March 11, 2021 at 12:17 PM (#6008248)

Sounds like a lot of you are deluding yourselves about how tame your cats are. It may have been presented in a comedic form, but that link I posted was based on a real study. You may think all of your cats are nice and all, but odds are quite a few of them kill small animals at a surprisingly effective rate. Cats are insanely adaptable and they live in every environment on earth. Since the 1800's when they were introduced to Australia they are significantly responsible for eradicating 22 native mammal species. It's so bad there feral cats are hunted down by the gov to try and stop their spread.

69. Mayor Blomberg Posted: March 11, 2021 at 12:43 PM (#6008251)

What you're missing in that, jacksone, as usual for people making these sorts of comments, is that when humans #### with ecosystems things go bad. Move animals into places where they have no natural predators and are set to outcompete native species -- cats, birds, catfish, whatever -- it has large negative consequences.
My favorite, though, is how cats are responsible for birds going on the endangers species list, not habitat destruction by humans. You're right about one thing: cats know who they are. Humans not so much. We fool ourselves despite murder rates, wars, the sort of abuse that this thread began with. And we describe negative human behavior in terms of animals, as if we weren't animals, and among the worst.

70. flournoy Posted: March 11, 2021 at 01:01 PM (#6008254)

as if we weren't animals, and among the worst.

What does this mean? Can you make a list of animals, sorted from best to worst?

71. jacksone (AKA It's OK...) Posted: March 11, 2021 at 01:04 PM (#6008255)

Huh? I was merely pointing out that cats are very efficient killers, human intervention be damned. I am fully aware that we do more damage to endangered species than any other factor.

72. Ron J Posted: March 11, 2021 at 01:55 PM (#6008261)

#67 I had a friend rushed by a Doberman off its leash. The Doberman came off second best after a kick to the head (friend was wearing construction boots and was a big guy). Probably lucky but running wasn't a good option.

And a second hand brush with minor fame. Les Emmerson was attacked by a couple of big dogs (owner apparently didn't close the garage properly. Was evidently afraid of them and just tossed food down into the garage. Yeah, I don't get it.) while out walking his dog. He got lucky in that a guy who was a trained dog handler was working at a nearby construction site. He picked up a few cuts but wasn't seriously hurt (unleashed his dog and used the leash to defend himself while his dog stayed and helped fight them off) Got the story from his wife who worked at the same place I did (and was obviously pretty freaked out by the whole situations)

73. gef, talking mongoose & suburban housewife Posted: March 11, 2021 at 02:47 PM (#6008264)

Several cases of ailurophobia on display here. I suppose there's something potentially valuable in sharing that one has a mental illness (I'm bipolar II myself, albeit a rather mild version, fortunately), so there's that. No idea if treatment is available and/or effective.

74. base ball chick Posted: March 11, 2021 at 04:01 PM (#6008279)

Lassus Posted: March 11, 2021 at 07:40 AM (#6008213)

the first one i was 3

the second time i was older

I understand not wanting to be around cats from these experiences, but children (and adults, for things three days ago) don't entirely remember everything the way it happened.

- well, you got a point seeing as how a lot of memories aren't real too reliable so i called my mama and asked her if she remembered me getting bit by a cat. she sez - which time you talking about?

i remembered em both all right. you'd be surprised how well a lot of kidz remember trauma... especially when it is connected with the ER and big painful shots

McCoy Posted: March 11, 2021 at 08:44 AM (#6008218)
Cats seem to love unprovoked attacks. They love hiding and jumping out at people

- toldja
and this is from a cat owner

- have never been attacked by another human. my Dogz prevented that, thank you Dogz. and have never been attacked by a drunken man. or woman. i disbelieve that drunk men, no matter how drunk, just go around punching out some random woman. trying to sexually harass or assault, yes, way too much. drunk women don't go around punching out some random female. or male, for whatever reason. sexually harass or assault, sure

and as much as i love Dogz, the ones who are not specifically trained and guarding a person or house against an intruder who randomly bite people need to be put down. they are not fixable.

i never stop being surprised by the number of people who get big Dogz and then are all indignant when they grow up to be big and either chain them permanently or just lock them in a garage or shed. no wonder the Dogz be crazy. i'm only surprised at how many, once animal control rescues them from he!!, are still nice Dogz who just want an actual home and folk to love

in houston a very significant number of dogs and cats are not vaccinated and not spay/neutered or given heartworm meds every month. between the city and county shelter, umpty thousands of dogz and catz are put down - most all of them not pure breds who get taken there are put down. there are so many they don't publish the actual number it looks so bad

- i do NOT have ailurophobia. that is an "unreasonable" dislike or fear. i have VERY good reasons for fear and i have very good reasons for not liking even though i am now just wary, not afraid

75. Booey Posted: March 11, 2021 at 10:41 PM (#6008367)

Times I've been attacked unprovoked by random...

- People (2)
- Dogs (1)
- Cats (0)

The 2 incidents with people both came in my early teens when I used to have to walk through a rough neighborhood on my way to and from school. Both times involved teen gang members surrounding me and punching me several times (also spitting on me and tripping me) for being on their "turf". I've never been in a fight as an adult, although I was challenged to one once by a very drunk homeless man. After a brief exchange to verify he was really asking what I thought he was asking, I politely declined and kept walking.

The dog attack happened about 10 years ago and was luckily mild. I was working at a furniture warehouse and we'd just finished loading up a truck full of defective merchandise to go back to the manufacturer. I went outside to get the driver to sign off on the paperwork and his dog suddenly leapt out from the cab of his truck and bit me on the a$$. It didn't break the skin or rip my pants, so I didn't bother going to the doctor or filing a complaint. That said, I've had plenty of angry dogs leap at me with obvious bloodlust in their eyes just for walking past their owners homes, so I have no idea how many times I would have been bitten if those dogs weren't on a leash or if there wasn't a chain link fence between us.

I've never been attacked by someone else's cat (or strays). My cats (especially as kittens) used to leap from hiding and "attack" my feet in a playful manner, especially when I was wearing loose socks (their favorite toy). We did have one bad tempered cat that would bite and scratch pretty regularly, but he'd never seek people out just to attack them, so I wouldn't classify his violence as "unprovoked". He'd only bite if you tried to pet him when he wasn't in the mood, and even then he'd growl and hiss first to let you know to back off. If you kept trying to sneak in a pat after that, it was your own damn fault.

76. Mayor Blomberg Posted: March 11, 2021 at 10:54 PM (#6008371)

the city and county shelter, umpty thousands of dogz and catz are put down - most all of them not pure breds who get taken there are put down. there are so many they don't publish the actual number it looks so bad

Lisa, BARC achieved no-kill status in 2018; that doesn't count euthanasia, which I find much preferable to long-term suffering.

Two of mine came from BARC. One is still with me. When younger she loved to sit atop doors and bop me on the head when I'd walk by. The other one I have at the moment likes to pounce -- and deliberately miss the other cat because she knows the other one doesn't like it. It's part of her long-term campaign to turn senior cat into bff. She doesn't even pounce at me, though I do at her.

If you spend the time to train a cat, it's actually easy to get them to understand that they'll have to observe different claw and bite rules than they do with each other. I'm not fooling myself about it. I've been doing it for years.

A colleague told me once that I know more about my cats than most people do about their children. Perhaps because cats are worth getting to know.

77. base ball chick Posted: March 12, 2021 at 01:27 AM (#6008387)

i wouldn't stand for having an animal that would bite or scratch or "pounce". my Dogz come when they are called, don't jump on me or anyone else, don't bite, don't counter surf, don't jump on the furniture. (if you came into the house uninvited i would say it wouldn't go real too good for you especially if they thought i was in danger)

mayor, if your cats come when they are called and obey you and don't bite or scratch you, i gotta take mah hat off to you seeing as how you are the only person i know who has managed to do this. my daddy SEZ that louis the cat doesn't scratch him but i'm more sure that my mama didn't and i know fer absolute SHER that their Dog didn't. that cat he got opinions about everything. he don't NEVER shut up. maybe you can train them a little because he learned not to jump up on the bed until after they were asleep and not to never go on my mama's side

after his wife left him (he deserved it) and he was all sulking, my brother got himself 2 long haired cats. lushuus poooosey, he couldn't even train her to use the litter box all the time and the other one, poooosey galore, gave him cat scratch fever. for reals. he quit tellin me all the shtttt he was enduring under their claws and teeth because i'd tell him - you should not have disrespected your wife like you did - then YOU would be gettin petted. but ah digress... they might coulda been cheaper yeah, but i'm not real too sure he was happier. he didn't replace them after they passed

78. Lassus Posted: March 12, 2021 at 09:14 AM (#6008402)

They love hiding and jumping out at people
- toldja
and this is from a cat owner

No cat wanting to attack you to do actual harm is going to bother HIDING and jumping out at you. That's play (See Blomberg above).

I want to clarify from above that my only argument is that a DEFAULT fear of domesticated dogs (or cats, sorry Lisa) is not a rational position. ("Fearing dogs is completely rational.") It's a reasonable personal, emotional reaction based on one's history or preferences, sure. But for everyone to be fearful of every pet dog (or cat) as a base emotion is not something I would consider rational.

79. Lassus Posted: March 12, 2021 at 09:23 AM (#6008404)

mayor, if your cats come when they are called and obey you and don't bite or scratch you, i gotta take mah hat off to you seeing as how you are the only person i know who has managed to do this.

Well, my cats do this, too. I mean, not like a dog would, but they know their names and will respond. You really think every cat attacks its owners?

80. snapper (history's 42nd greatest monster) Posted: March 12, 2021 at 09:26 AM (#6008405)

81. bunyon Posted: March 12, 2021 at 09:27 AM (#6008406)

I want to clarify from above that my only argument is that a DEFAULT fear of domesticated dogs (or cats, sorry Lisa) is not a rational position. ("Fearing dogs is completely rational.") It's a reasonable personal, emotional reaction based on one's history or preferences, sure. But for everyone to be fearful of every pet dog (or cat) as a base emotion is not something I would consider rational.

A lot of dogs - a lot of domesticated dogs, considered loving pets by their owners - are dangerous and badly trained. There is no way to know if a new (to you) dog is a danger or not. Sure, the odds are it isn't. But it's not like 1 in a million. I love dogs. I've been around dogs all my life. Until I know a dog is good, I consider it a threat. I don't run away or scream but I don't just say, hey! a lovely dog and start playing with it. I mean, I usually try to sort it out because, all things considered, I'd like every dog to be my friend. But assuming they are before the relationship is established is foolish.

It usually doesn't take long to figure it out. But a default position of "this dog may hurt me" is rational. It might. And it might in a way that a cat really can't. Cats are great hunters but they're almost always small enough that anyone physically able and above the age of 7 or 8 can fight off. That isn't true of a lot of dogs.

82. McCoy Posted: March 12, 2021 at 11:13 AM (#6008423)

Re 78.

The no cat thing is literally false but generally true.

A cat that is frightened and or riled up can and will hide and if you're unfortunate enough to be walking by could get attacked. Viciously. In those situations you hope to God the cat sees you first and let's out a warning otherwise if you're both surprised by the encounter that cat could very well eff you up.

83. McCoy Posted: March 12, 2021 at 11:16 AM (#6008424)

There's also just cranky non social cats.

I had a GF whose family cat was named Spike and didn't like anybody. He just liked being left alone and he wasn't really a pet. He was basically a roommate. He'd hiss, claw, and bite anyone that got too close or if someone found themselves between him and his and his escape route.

84. Lassus Posted: March 12, 2021 at 11:17 AM (#6008425)

-shrug- Again, I default to humanity. My default reaction to strange humans is not to consider them a threat.

It usually doesn't take long to figure it out. But a default position of "this dog may hurt me" is rational.

I get all this, I really do. And perhaps my understanding means I feel like the person is rational, but the position is not. Maybe that's stupid and waffling, I'll grant. But to me a default position of "this person may hurt me" when nothing's happened simply does not seem rational, and I think the same about domesticated dogs.

I mean, some of the signals are so instantaneous it barely counts, as well as personal experience. A raised-hackle, tail-down, thousand-yard stare dog I'll initially be far more careful of than a tail-wagging happy repetitive bark, even if the latter still frightens people.

I guess I also think of it in terms of photographs. If I see a photograph of a massive white Great Pyrenees, "this dog may hurt me" is not what I think about this dog I'm being shown.

In closing, of course I'm goddamned biased, I work for dog rescues. But I've still never been attacked, and I still don't understand the default of being fearful of dogs as a rational position.

85. Lassus Posted: March 12, 2021 at 11:30 AM (#6008427)

Until I know a dog is good, I consider it a threat. I don't run away or scream but I don't just say, hey! a lovely dog and start playing with it. I mean, I usually try to sort it out because, all things considered, I'd like every dog to be my friend. But assuming they are before the relationship is established is foolish.

I also do not consider "This dog is not a threat" and "this dog is my friend" to be the same thing.

86. gef, talking mongoose & suburban housewife Posted: March 12, 2021 at 11:38 AM (#6008428)

My default reaction to strange humans is not to consider them a threat.

Sooooooomebody doesn't live in the South.

87. Lassus Posted: March 12, 2021 at 11:41 AM (#6008429)

My default reaction to strange humans is not to consider them a threat.

88. gef, talking mongoose & suburban housewife Posted: March 12, 2021 at 12:21 PM (#6008441)

Good point.

89. Mayor Blomberg Posted: March 12, 2021 at 12:32 PM (#6008443)

that cat he got opinions about everything. he don't NEVER shut up.

I had one of them. All phone conversations were three way. I'd come home from teaching, put out food, but she'd follow me upstairs to tell me how her day went.

As for scratching, my cat who loves heights once slipped and fell from the top of the shower glass into the tub I was occupying, couldn't get up the side of the tub, so took my leg as an exit route, with claws in.
And that's the cat I class as still not wholly domesticated, though she, like all of them, will greet me at the door when I return and sleep next to me.(Far as I can tell, she's not waiting for me to die and enjoy a meal.)

90. The Gary DiSarcina Fan Club (JAHV) Posted: March 12, 2021 at 12:43 PM (#6008446)

Perhaps because cats are worth getting to know.

This is exactly right. Know thy enemy.

91. Never Give an Inge (Dave) Posted: March 12, 2021 at 01:42 PM (#6008453)

Sounds like a lot of you are deluding yourselves about how tame your cats are.

I know my cat is capable of hunting. My point was that we don't give him the opportunity now.

If everyone just let their dogs run loose outside for hours a day I'm sure you'd find that they killed a lot of critters, too.

92. McCoy Posted: March 12, 2021 at 02:25 PM (#6008460)

A single dog? Not likely

93. Howie Menckel Posted: March 12, 2021 at 06:29 PM (#6008481)

I once read an article about how because animals - very much including dogs and cats - are so sensitive to smell, some humans win that lottery and some lose it.

now, I am an empath and I do understand other sentient beings rather well.

but I mean, I had one girlfriend who had a dog who was bonkers for me from the first time I showed up.
as she got older (the relationship lasted for a few years), she - the dog - would get so ecstatic at my arrival that she'd piss on herself in the living room as she did somersaults.

my ex's parents would look at me. I'd look back and imply, "Um, I'm just standing here. I haven't gotten within 10 feet of the damn dog, so it ain't on me."

another gal had a poodle - not my favorite breed. I was invited into the living room, but my date was still upstairs primping. dog races up to me, so I decide, ok, I'll pick her up and give her a nice belly rub.

my date comes down the stairs and - goes directly into shock. "MOM, YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS...."

so they both come downstairs, and I don't understand the commotion.

turns out this dog - also a female - HATES all men. All of them. all she does is bark menacingly at them, I am told - as the belly rub continues.

funny part is that we never had a dog nor a cat growing up, as several household members were allergic. so I learned none of these 'instincts' from that.

went to a dude ranch once; my wife's friend had two tweenage daughters. I mosey on over near a fence, and a horse gallops up to me immediately.

I had ridden a horse once or twice and been around them a modest bit. but this one seemed smitten. I guessed that petting the side of her head might do the trick - and damned if the horse didn't immediately show her teeth in a true Mr. Ed grin.

don't discount the role of scent in your good and bad experiences with dogs and cats and other animals as well.

the other part is whether you can 'get inside the head' of the animal (or other person) - or if you see nothing but fur and danger.

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