# maniac - or legitimate rage?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976
**Category:** The BBQ Pit
**Created:** [January 5, 2014, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976 "2014-01-05T22:04:11Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 2
### Author:  [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/21 "2014-01-06T03:40:00Z")
I’m confused. Why did you even answer the jerk? The advice to call the police is spot on. You could even drop my your local cop shop and report the incident so the police can discuss legal and illegal behavior with him.
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### Author:  [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/22 "2014-01-06T03:46:18Z")
> [@Monty](#):
>
> I’m confused. Why did you even answer the jerk? The advice to call the police is spot on. You could even drop my your local cop shop and report the incident so the police can discuss legal and illegal behavior with him.
The other option is to try to turn it around. I had some tell me about something very similar. She was walking a dog and as she went past someone’s house he came storming out yelling and screaming at her about how it’s illegal to not pick up after her dog etc etc etc. No matter how many times she tried to assure him that the dog didn’t go on his lawn AND that she had bags did nothing to calm him down so eventually she just walked away. My suggestion was to say “I didn’t do anything illegal, if you think I did, call the police, I’ll wait here until they show up”. I’m guessing this person probably had a problem with finding dog crap in their yard. I’ve had that happen a few times and for the following weeks kept a close eye on dogs that walked over my grass, but I wouldn’t go yelling at every dog owner that walks past my house.
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### Author:  [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/23 "2014-01-06T03:55:44Z")
Sounds like Dad is on a holiday visit from The Home. Or about to move in there. The conversation usually starts, “Dad, we’ve given this a lot of thought and we can’t have you scaring the neighbors…”
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### Author:  [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/24 "2014-01-06T04:02:52Z")
> [@Peaton\_of\_peat](#):
>
> Just a heads-up, but the font here puts the hook on the letter ‘g’ on the left side, and titles are underlined, so it looks a lot like a ‘p’ at first glance. Led me to expect something completely different.
lepitimate rape?
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### Author:  [@epbrown01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epbrown01)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/25 "2014-01-06T08:51:06Z")
> [@LilyoftheField](#):
>
> I’m nonplussed. I’m bewildered. I just do not expect to come across maniacs in my normal everyday life.
>
> I mean…he was a maniac, right?
Nah, just old. You’re thinking about one instance,but from his perspective this - pardon the phrase - crap has been going on for decades. Heck, considering his strong feelings on the subject, I think he did pretty good asking if you had a bag before blowing up at you.
Considering how cranky most people on the internet are, it’s puzzling when folks are surprised the elderly - who’ve been dealing with the same crap far longer - are even more fed up.
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### Author:  [@sandra\_nz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sandra_nz)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/26 "2014-01-06T11:06:57Z")
Please report this to the police. Whether you believe he was genuine or just nutty, he threatened to kill your dog. Please report it, not just for the safety of you and your dog, but for all other owners and dogs in your neighbourhood.
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### Author:  [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/27 "2014-01-06T14:48:11Z")
> [@Stoid](#):
>
> lepitimate rape?
Jeez **Stoid**!
You look like a complete doofus for bringing this up 5 hours after it was explained.
The only way you could be more of a doofus is if you chastised someone 16 hours after they were a doofus and…and… never mind.
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### Author:  [@HookerChemical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HookerChemical)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/28 "2014-01-06T19:23:17Z")
“Do you have a plastic bag in your pocket?”
“Ye…I mean no. No, I do not. I don’t have any nitrile gloves or duct tape either. I certainly don’t have any chloroform or a windowless van. Nothing creepy at all. I’m just walking my dog. You’re perfectly safe around me. Yeah…That’s it. Just walking my dog.”
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### Author:  [@Soylent\_Juicy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Juicy)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/29 "2014-01-06T20:47:44Z")
> [@sandra\_nz](#):
>
> Please report this to the police. Whether you believe he was genuine or just nutty, he threatened to kill your dog. Please report it, not just for the safety of you and your dog, but for all other owners and dogs in your neighbourhood.
As much as I hate involving the police for seemingly minor things, I fully agree with this. That encounter was wack. I would definitely go to the local cop shop and file a report, just so there’s paperwork on him.
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### Author:  [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/30 "2014-01-06T20:52:36Z")
The correct response would have been to continue walking without engaging. The better response would have been to respond to his question by casually telling him to fuck off without changing pace or direction in your walk.
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### Author:  [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/31 "2014-01-06T22:22:02Z")
What has it got in its pocketses?
Actually, the best response is 'No, I don’t - fetch one at once, and be quick about it!"
Regards,
Shodan
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### Author:  [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/32 "2014-01-06T22:28:22Z")
> [@Bone](#):
>
> The correct response would have been to continue walking without engaging. The better response would have been to respond to his question by casually telling him to fuck off without changing pace or direction in your walk.
The _best_ response, however, would be dropping your own trousers and taking a giant steaming dump on his loafers.
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### Author:  [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/33 "2014-01-06T22:32:55Z")
I met one of those once but it was a woman who kept screaming that her kids didn’t like playing near dog shit. BUT I had the dog bag with dog shit in it in my hand. Not sure anything defuses crazy.
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### Author:  [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/34 "2014-01-06T22:34:34Z")
> [@Shodan](#):
>
> What has it got in its pocketses?
>
> Actually, the best response is 'No, I don’t - fetch one at once, and be quick about it!"
>
> Regards,
> Shodan
I do have a plastic bag in my pocket, AND I’m glad to see you.
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### Author:  [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)
#### Post date: [January 6, 2014, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/35 "2014-01-06T23:01:20Z")
As an aside - I don’t let my dog shit on other’s people’s property, even if I have a bag. I walk on the street to make sure they don’t go even accidentally. There is no way to clean all the residue and leaving trace amounts of shit seems rude. I’m fortunate that there are public parks or other areas that my dogs can shit. But the primary spot is my own yard. If someone let’s their dog shit in my yard, I don’t like it and silently curse them.
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### Author:  [@Athabasca](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athabasca)
#### Post date: [January 7, 2014, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/36 "2014-01-07T05:17:46Z")
Lily,
Dude sounds like a crazy maker. Wants to stir it up for the sake of stirring something up. Tomorrow it will be photocopier toner, or some shite like that.
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### Author:  [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)
#### Post date: [January 7, 2014, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/37 "2014-01-07T11:24:09Z")
> [@Athabasca](#):
>
> Lily,
>
> Dude sounds like a crazy maker. Wants to stir it up for the sake of stirring something up. Tomorrow it will be photocopier toner, or some shite like that.
Yup. Dump toner on his yard tomorrow.
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### Author:  [@watchwolf49](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/watchwolf49)
#### Post date: [January 7, 2014, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/38 "2014-01-07T13:14:16Z")
Cats … implanting thoughts … in our brains … can’t … can’t … ARRRRGH …
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### Author:  [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)
#### Post date: [January 7, 2014, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/39 "2014-01-07T14:42:23Z")
It’s possible that just before you walked up, he had the remarkably unpleasant experience of scooping up dogshit with the snowblower and having it atomized by the impeller, and was still furious about that. Not that it excuses his maniacal behavior, but it could explain why he was so pissed off at that moment.
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### Author:  [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)
#### Post date: [January 7, 2014, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maniac-or-legitimate-rage/677976/40 "2014-01-07T15:27:43Z")
> [@sandra\_nz](#):
>
> Please report this to the police. Whether you believe he was genuine or just nutty, he threatened to kill your dog. Please report it, not just for the safety of you and your dog, but for all other owners and dogs in your neighbourhood.
Many police departments have online forms for reporting things that you don’t think are worth a phone call.
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