The link sucked. On edit, I added “upon reflection” and now I recognize that I should have removed the link altogether.
What I meant to say is that automatically ascribing human motivations to animals is non-scientific. If it’s all “let’s just pretend” this critique does not apply. And I concede that a lot of serious researchers are actively considering the possibility that non-primate mammals experience something that might be called an emotion.
I hope that clarifies.
If I may, it was implicit in your “getting some therapy” suggestion.
The Jews. You called the Jews mentally ill.
Asshole. You know exactly what I’m talking about. Why don’t you cut the disingenuous crap and get straight to explaining how “Getting some therapy and learning how to live and interact with others as real human beings,” isn’t calling someone mentally ill.
Not particularly, no. How is that harmful? Are you equating “non-scientific” with “harmful?” That seems… rather foolish, to put it mildly.
Suggesting that someone get some therapy is not the same as saying they’re mentally ill. Most people who get therapy are not mentally ill. What I was suggesting was that they have some emotional issues, and that therapy is probably a better way to deal with them than escaping into fantasy.
It might not be harmful to others, but it’s not particularly condusive to a successful integration into society.
It’s not really about deviation from the norm though.
Put on a pair of nose glasses and people laugh. Bunny suits though have a much narrower context which is socially acceptable.
I’d like to draw a line between amusement and derision. Those who act silly should expect to be taken less seriously. If they can’t handle that (up to some point) then I’d say that it’s time to grow a thicker skin.
Sorry, DtC, but this OTOH, is either contemptuous or presumptuous. But is it appropriate?
I’m guessing that plenty of furries are reasonably well adjusted. I can’t comment on extreme cases (or even majorities) given my ignorance of the subject.
So, “How much deviation from the norm is allowable before one can no longer expect to be treated with respect?” One can be expected to not be treated with respect if… one thinks that one’s actions performed under certain circumstances will not be respected. Deviation from the norm isn’t the main criteria.
That said, what people do behind closed doors is their business. And I’ll add that I haven’t minded any of STG’s posts. I disagree with her lifestyle choice, but I’d defend to death… well, maybe not.
C’mon DtC, it sounds like you’re making a dubious generalization regarding most furry hobbyists. Just throw in a “some furries” or “too many furries” (that’s my favorite qualifier, since “one is too many.”)
Fantasy is one thing.
Erroneously projecting human characteristics into animals -as a matter of belief- can lead to all manner of misplace priorities.
I don’t know exactly where the line would be, but just about anything that involves getting dressed up in a silly costume would qualify as ok to be mocked.
You can, of course, take the position that everyone is worthy of respect no matter what they do, and making fun of someone is so disrespectful as to be off limits. I disagree and hope I never live in a world where that is the common stance on the issue.
Agreed, but kindness and decency favor poking fun over derision.
And your evidence for this is…
Sure, but that’s not really the issue. Every interest and hobby has an appropriate or inappropriate context. If someone is wearing a fursuit for a court appearance, then that person has a problem. But wearing a Sharks jersey to a courtroom appearance would also be a sign that the person has a problem, too, even though there’s nothing objectively wrong with being a hockey fan. But what’s an appropriate context for being a furry? I’d suggest that someone starting an MPSIMS thread to talk about their interests is practicing their hobby in an appropriate context. Someone coming in the thread solely to say they think the hobby is ridiculous, as the OP of this thread did, is being a dick. Someone who comes in and tells them that they need therapy to get over their hobby, as Diogenes did, is being a dick.
I agree with you there. I don’t think what we’re seeing here exactly counts as simple “amusement,” though.
Well, you’re a dick, then. You can, however, take comfort in the fact that we are unlikely to ever live in a world where the sentiment, “That’s guy’s different. Let’s get him!” will ever go out of vogue.
“That’s guy’s different. Let’s get him!” is not something I said. “Look at that guy, that’s hilarious” would be more accurate. I wonder why you would use a phrase that makes it sound like we’re planning to beat the person and throw them in a ditch.
If it makes me a dick to think that behaving in a ridiculous manner is humorous than so be it. I see no reason why we need to treat people like fragile little children. If you’re being bizarre, it’s not going to kill you to hear someone tell you that. Being that sensitive about a hobby is not a healthy reaction, and if someone telling you that dressing up as a tiger with wings is weird upsets you that much, you need to grow a thicker skin.
I enjoy shooting and watching sports. It’s not at all uncommon for people to come into threads about these subjects to tell everyone that guns are evil or sports are stupid. however, I don’t find the need to seek validation from everyone in the world in order to enjoy my hobbies.
Are you suggesting there might be some sort of Mouse Problem?
Damn right. If you’re going to dress up like a fox and fuck someone dressed up like a cat who has a crusty hole in the crotch of his/her costume to allow said access, I’m sorry, but I’m going to laugh. And laugh. And laugh. And convulse. Then point and laugh some more.
There’s also that nagging feeling in the back of my mind that many furries are, at any given time, roughly four beers away from fucking their pets.
ETA: and as far as whether or not furries are hypersensitive about being made fun of, it is worth noting that they developed their own dumbass word (“fursecution”) for it.
…and I’ll add that the morally alert have an obligation to render aid under the latter circumstance, without consideration of the discretion of the victim or the awkwardness of the intervention.
Somone who goes around in a blue panda suit with wings pretending to be a blue panda with wings, of course. Personally I think that duping fat Americans into dressing up like sideshow prizes and then arguing that it’s a valid lifestyle choice is a subtle Japanese revenge for Hiroshima.
Leave me out of this. If you keep this list thing up you’ll get smacked for trolling. Is that clear enough?
DtC, Ivan, you both were in fact threadshitting in the other thread. Read the title of the thread, numbnuts: Furry Dopers, come out!. Not Tell us what you think about furries!. You’re both being deliberately obtuse, and you’re both being jerks.
Ivan, you’re no longer a newbie here: no excuse. And Diogenes, you definitely know better; I think you’ve just gotten a bit fuller of yourself than usual.
Both of you, cordially fuck off.
Like steam-cleaned crystal. I’ve got it narrowed down to ‘furfagfan’ and pompous, overbearing pricks, now. Thanks for the support though.
Listen, if I’d been going through the thread saying, “Your tiger’s wings are crap.”, “Your tails not even stuck on proper!”, “How do you have a piss wearing that thing?”, or any of many other possibly inappropriate remarks, I could understand the ire and outrage of some of you. But, what I did was the equivalent of walking through a public mall containing a group of adults in fancy dress, enthusing about each others qualities, and … doing what I did, shaking my head in bemusement. Get some perspective, gang.
Who needs support from a moron like you?
Ivan is obviously a gamerqueer. Neutral means not evil, good, lawful, or chaotic, for those of us who are above such meaningless shit.