The phrase was mentioned in an odd animation. I was wondering what exactly it was. Googling did not enlighten.
I think it may simply mean a ‘shield’ made of people/animals. I’ve heard ‘meat shield’ in that context. Also for some reason the words ‘tax shelter’ sprang to my mind, but who knows what that’s about.
I haven’t seen said animation, but in online roleplaying games the warrior character, who’s job it is to absorb damage while protecting the other players is known as a meat shield or beef shield.
And lo, no one has yet mentioned “condom.”
I’m impressed.
The context was that a dog trapped in a guitar and the dog was hungry. The protagonist said to the dog that he could not fit a beef shield in there and advised the dog to eat the guitar strings.
Well, traditionally that would be a “sheep shield” anyway.
Perhaps a particular kind or cut of meat then? I dunno.
That’s a “shield of sheep”, not a “shield for beef”. Just two different points of view, I guess. How about “beef shield of sheep”? This is starting to sound like chicked fried steak.
Really heavy-duty beef curtains?
Bump?
A burger?
It makes a lot more sense if it’s a typo for “beet sheild.”
surrealist whoosh
When the USDA grades beef they stamp a shield on the meat, perhaps there is some relationship there? Beyond that I haven’t got the foggiest what it could mean in the context you describe.
Some answers here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sock_(Flash_cartoons)
Apparently, the animation in question was based on nonsensical non-scripted dialogue:
“In fact, for this episode, Firth completely improvised the dialogue and built the animation around it.”
I don’t think it means anything. Example - just before the guitar scene:
“The main character returns home, and dreams of “Organs in Mains” (although neither the main character nor the watcher knows what this means).”
Immediately followed by:
“Then a robotic eyeball informs the main character of the fact there is a dog trapped inside his guitar, who complains “Oh shit, I’m trapped in your guitar, like.”, until the main character reminds him that dogs can’t talk. The dog is hungry, but he can only eat the guitar strings in front of him. A woman is then seen pretending her cat is a machine gun.”
Just surreal dreamy nonsense words and images.
Perhaps the writer saw Slug Signorino’s illustration for the column about poisonous cat poop. A mugger in the picture is threatening a pregnant woman with a cat, which he is holding as a gun.
http://straightdope.com/columns/060127.html