# Floater, WTH is WRONG with you??!?!?!?! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 11, 2011, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638 "2011-11-11T20:59:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2011, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/21 "2011-11-11T22:26:29Z")
And I’m just going to add - I have dissected a cat, in a high school biology class. Though it wasn’t certainly the **intent** , I would describe the end results of much of that dissection as amounting to a mutilation of the cat’s body. A precise, clinical one, mind you. Nevertheless, there is indeed a time and a place for everything. The photos at the link would certainly be appropriate in certain threads, with a content warning. I think the moderator response was insufficient (at least delete the link), and that it was definitely a threadshit. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2011, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/22 "2011-11-11T22:26:50Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > It was a nasty dick move and a threadshit, but the response seems…disproportionate to me. I sorta agree given the ATMB thread. This is hardly a bannable offense IMHO, unless it were part of a pattern. I do think it deserved a warning, though. I dissected a mink in comparative anatomy, rather than a cat ( which are commonly used ), but the principle is the same. So I’m not overly grossed out by such things. However it _was_ a blatant threadshit + a failure to follow NSFW linking rules. One or the other and I’d say an admonishment would be fine. The two together I’d consider formal warning territory. I get people get annoyed by cooing pet threads and cat threads in particular. But venting your annoyance by being an asshole is juvenile bullshit. Just man up, grumble to yourself about how much you hate cat owners, and move along. It’s not that hard. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2011, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/23 "2011-11-11T22:30:49Z")
> [@Ogre](#): > > Eh, look. Yes, it was an egregious threadshit. But your burger looks a lot like those pics during its manufacture. I doubt I’ll be back to check on this thread, because I’m certain I’ll be called all sorts of names, but really, protein is protein. Cats are food animals in a lot of places. Do you think the OP of that thread would seriously consider suggestions that he eat the cat, and that’s the sort of response he was looking for? Clearly it was a posted just to be a dick, and it’s apparently graphic enough (I didn’t look) to justify needing a warning and two click rule. I mean, if the guy went into a “I found a wandering 6 year old in my yard, how should I handle this situation” and someone comes in and links to an erotica story about pedophile rape would you come here defending him saying “well, it happens!”? Or are you just trying to pre-emptively get in with a “YOU PEOPLE CARE TOO MUCH ABOUT YOUR PETS” statement? ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2011, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/24 "2011-11-11T22:52:25Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > I sorta agree given the ATMB thread. This is hardly a bannable offense IMHO, unless it were part of a pattern. > > I do think it deserved a warning, though. I agree, on both counts. I’m a cat lover _and_ a vegetarian, and while i think that **Floater** was clearly threadshitting and breaking the “Don’t be a jerk” rule, and deserves a warning for that, i can’t quite get on board with all the hysterical bleating about the content itself. The animal wasn’t being tortured. It was dead, and was being prepared in the way that dozens of different types of animals are prepared for consumption every day. It was just meat. ---
**Author:** ![SnakesCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@SnakesCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnakesCatLady)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2011, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/25 "2011-11-11T22:58:44Z")
I’m a cat lover, not a vegetarian, had to dissect a cat in high school, and used to help my grandfather turn pig into pork. It’s not the content per se, it’s the no-warning-that-I-was-about-to-see-a-cut-up-cat that pisses me off. If I’d have had any idea of what was in the link, I wouldn’t have clicked it. It’s the ruin-someone’s-day dickishness of it. ---
**Author:** ![Lady\_of\_the\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e19adc/32.png) [@Lady\_of\_the\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lady_of_the_Lake)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2011, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/26 "2011-11-11T23:01:47Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > Do you think the OP of that thread would seriously consider suggestions that he eat the cat, and that’s the sort of response he was looking for? Clearly it was a posted just to be a dick, and it’s apparently graphic enough (I didn’t look) to justify needing a warning and two click rule. I’m the OP, and you are correct. It was incongruous. He posted after I’d updated with taking the cat to the vet and keeping it. I didn’t understand his purpose. Like Dane Cook, it was offensive, yet missed out on actually being _funny_. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2011, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/27 "2011-11-11T23:25:51Z")
To the disingenuous assholes: stop being disingenuous. Posting pictures of a cat dissection is categorically dissimilar from posting pictures of a dissected cow or other animal. Cats are pets in America. There is a taboo against mutilating and eating them. Whether you agree that it’s a valid one, you can’t pretend you don’t know of its existence. And who the fuck adopts a pet cow from under their porch, anyway? All the false equivalences are giving me a headache. But I’m most disgusted by the moderators defending the mindset. This isn’t somethingawful, where similar threadshits can often be funny. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2011, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/28 "2011-11-11T23:39:59Z")
Meh. A spoiler with a note to the effect of “weak stomachs stay away” seems sufficient to me. I understand that you might not want to see pictures of a dissected cat at breakfast. (Doesn’t really bother me, but I’m aware that not everyone is that awesome.) But, let’s not lose our heads about this. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2011, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/29 "2011-11-11T23:55:48Z")
> [@Ogre](#): > > Probably not, but if it were a thread about finding a stray cow, hey, maybe. I’ll remember this the next time you freak out over dead baby jokes. (And I’m not saying cats=babies. More like the difference between making jokes vs. posting graphic photos) ---
**Author:** ![chiroptera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@chiroptera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chiroptera)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2011, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/30 "2011-11-11T23:56:01Z")
I’m just glad I saw the ATMB thread first, and have no plans to click on the link now. I dont see the point of posrting something like that in a thread where the OP is posting about a PET cat and how to care for it, not “meat” or “science experiments.” > [@](#): > > But your burger looks a lot like those pics during its manufacture. I doubt I’ll be back to check on this thread, because I’m certain I’ll be called all sorts of names, but really, protein is protein. Cats are food animals in a lot of places. Yeah but cows are not pets, they are herbivores and therefore edible animals by food-chain definition. In this society, cats and dogs are companion or working animals, cats in particular are apex predators and carnivores, not meat animals, and most pertinent: **Lady of the Lake** ’s thread was referring to the cat as a pet and something she cared about, not a burger. People are protein too and some people eat them, does that mean it would be OK to drop a link of dead babies or dissected humans into a thread about people? ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2011, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/31 "2011-11-12T00:02:13Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > Meh. A spoiler with a note to the effect of “weak stomachs stay away” seems sufficient to me. I understand that you might not want to see pictures of a dissected cat at breakfast. (Doesn’t really bother me, but I’m aware that not everyone is that awesome.) But, let’s not lose our heads about this. But why even post it all in a thread about a rescued cat? What was the goal? What was he trying to achieve? It was simply to shock people and make some happy cat lovers unhappy. Why the hell do that? ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2011, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/32 "2011-11-12T00:02:17Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > Meh. A spoiler with a note to the effect of “weak stomachs stay away” seems sufficient to me. I understand that you might not want to see pictures of a dissected cat at breakfast. (Doesn’t really bother me, but I’m aware that not everyone is that awesome.) But, let’s not lose our heads about this. There was no warning when it was originally posted. That was edited into the post, hours after the fact, by the second moderator to look at it (the first, Ellen, just put it behind spoiler tags). When that post was originally posted by **Floater** , it was just an open link. No warning, no spoiler. That is the… meat… of my complaint. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2011, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/33 "2011-11-12T00:08:15Z")
> [@rachelellogram](#): > > There was no warning when it was originally posted. That was edited into the post, hours after the fact, by the second moderator to look at it (the first, Ellen, just put it behind spoiler tags). When that post was originally posted by **Floater** , it was just an open link. No warning, no spoiler. **That is the… meat… of my complaint**. I’ve bolded your joke. How can you _joke_ about this? :eek: 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2011, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/34 "2011-11-12T00:10:49Z")
Jesus Christ. All you people defending him just don’t understand the issue. It’s not “OMG How dare people kill cats!!?? That is the worstest thing ever!!1” It is not simply the content of what he posted. Had it been a thread about eating cats, or medical dissection, or the meat industry, or how other cultures revere animals that we eat in America, _no one would have blinked an eye._ It is that there is absolutely no other reason for posting that link\* in that thread\* with no warning of what he was linking to except that he was trying to be a jerk. That’s it. He didn’t even try and make a joke about it, he just dropped the link into the thread and said not one word about it. His only motivation seems to have been “These people like cats. Let’s see their reactions when they look at _this_!” ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2011, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/35 "2011-11-12T00:15:44Z")
I was not clear. I meant to say that if he had posted the link in a spoiler with the warning, I wouldn’t have had a problem with it. As it stands, I would support a warning, but really, I think all he needs is a “For reals, dude? Don’t be a douche.” This is a discussion on the internet. Sometimes people post the online equivalent of an armpit fart. Make a cup of tea and take a deep breath but there’s no need to string him up and use his guts for garters. ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2011, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/36 "2011-11-12T00:25:14Z")
That’s an ugly damn website. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2011, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/37 "2011-11-12T00:29:14Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > I’ve bolded your joke. How can you _joke_ about this? :eek: 😛 🙂 I just don’t like the assumption that, because I care enough about the rules of the board to make an ATMB post about it, that I must be some crazy cat-hoarding bitch who has no sense of humor about shit that happens on the internet, you know? I don’t even own a cat! \>:[ I mean fuck, I’m a goon. I make hilarious mspaint contributions. I’ve trolled anonymous with the best of them. I’m so hip I can’t see over my pelvis, and all that shit. But none of that prevents me from recognizing, like any long-time poster SHOULD, that there is a time and a place for gory threadshitting. And I/we didn’t expect to see what he posted at that time or that place, and it’s not goddamn cool. I don’t troll SA or 4chan from work, for a very good reason. If \*\*Floater \*\*had done that on another site, it might have been fucking comedy gold. But since he did it here, that is truly not relevant. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2011, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/38 "2011-11-12T00:29:42Z")
> [@janis\_and\_c0](#): > > SRLY?!! That was the worst threadshit I’ve ever seen! I have NEVER pitted another poster. That was a cruel, unspeakable thing you did. Unconsionable. > I don’t even have the words. Cat got your tongue? ---
**Author:** ![SnakesCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@SnakesCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnakesCatLady)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2011, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/39 "2011-11-12T00:31:31Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > I was not clear. I meant to say that if he had posted the link in a spoiler with the warning, I wouldn’t have had a problem with it. As it stands, I would support a warning, but really, I think all he needs is a “For reals, dude? Don’t be a douche.” > > This is a discussion on the internet. Sometimes people post the online equivalent of an armpit fart. Make a cup of tea and take a deep breath but there’s no need to string him up and use his guts for garters. Yes, there is. What do we have to do to teach manners to people like that? You are telling everyone not to get upset about it. Can you tell me why someone would do that? What is going on in their twisted little mind that they possibly think it’s funny? Meanspirited, cruel people need to be taught how to behave and how not to behave in polite society. I guess this guy lacked education in consideration for others. Am I frothing at the mouth? Not quite, but this kind of behavior really pushes my buttons. Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should. If you are the kind of person who enjoys upsetting others you need to keep yourself away from normal people. ---
**Author:** ![Kolga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e56c9b/32.png) [@Kolga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolga)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2011, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638/40 "2011-11-12T00:40:27Z")
> [@SnakesCatLady](#): > > Yes, there is. What do we have to do to teach manners to people like that? You are telling everyone not to get upset about it. Can you tell me why someone would do that? What is going on in their twisted little mind that they possibly think it’s funny? There is a small percentage of the population that are simply trolls, that seems to enjoy pissing innocent people off, and laughing at the result, both in real life and online. For some reason, for these people it is amusing to them to find a situation in which things are going along just dandy, and come in and fuck it up or deliberately offend people, then sit back and laugh. They don’t have any real reason for it other than it amuses them to upset people (as opposed to genuinely disagreeing with what’s going on). Like any trollish behavior, it gives the person a sense of power to be able to disrupt other people’s existence. I’ve heard it referred to as “stirrin’ the puddin’” a couple of times. I call it “being a immature mouth-breathing basement-dwelling douchebag.” When it occurs in real life, I just raise an eyebrow and walk away, and try my best to never speak to or interact with them again, since they’ve proven themselves to be incapable of adult interaction. I separate these people from people who may genuinely feel that the object of their behavior needs to be taken down a peg or two, or deserves to be humiliated or upset. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/floater-wth-is-wrong-with-you/602638.md?page=3)