Caturday on Sunday
August 12, 2007 8:05 AM Subscribe
Spider cat. Cats in a box. Cat playing with himself. Cat on LSD. Man murdered parents with axe for laughing at cat's death. Rudy gives Winston a vigorous tongue lashing (tender). Winston the cat, blog.
ooh - nickyskye cat post, yay! But family obligations beckon, just peeked under the wrapping. Thanks, nicky - I will look forward to this tonight ;-)
posted by madamjujujive at 8:11 AM on August 12, 2007
posted by madamjujujive at 8:11 AM on August 12, 2007
Uh oh. The Cat on LSD clip was, IIRC, the subject of a massive argument (and eventual removal) here a couple of months ago.
Still, even though I'm a total cat person and have a little grey ball of fluff sleeping on my lap as we speak, I laughed my ass off.
posted by John of Michigan at 8:28 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
Still, even though I'm a total cat person and have a little grey ball of fluff sleeping on my lap as we speak, I laughed my ass off.
posted by John of Michigan at 8:28 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
Uh oh. The Cat on LSD clip was, IIRC, the subject of a massive argument (and eventual removal) here a couple of months ago.
Hey, if we can post clips of animal test videos, why not just post a random link a day from Ogrish.com? Sounds suitable.
posted by taursir at 8:30 AM on August 12, 2007
Hey, if we can post clips of animal test videos, why not just post a random link a day from Ogrish.com? Sounds suitable.
posted by taursir at 8:30 AM on August 12, 2007
Another account of the gentlemen who hacked up his parents mentions that the accused is "a counsellor who specialised in family conflict".
Heh.
posted by BitterOldPunk at 8:41 AM on August 12, 2007
Heh.
posted by BitterOldPunk at 8:41 AM on August 12, 2007
Hey, if we can post clips of animal test videos, why not just post a random link a day from Ogrish.com
Comparing [your favorite type of controversial content] with "a link from [Ogrish/Rotten]" is like the new Godwin.
posted by rxrfrx at 8:49 AM on August 12, 2007 [3 favorites]
Comparing [your favorite type of controversial content] with "a link from [Ogrish/Rotten]" is like the new Godwin.
posted by rxrfrx at 8:49 AM on August 12, 2007 [3 favorites]
Whiskers!
That reminds me: how much roughhousing with a cat (kitten) is too much? I usually like to get a good workout session with mine (just use my hands and arms for her to scratch on, until she gets pissed and starts hissing at me).
posted by hadjiboy at 8:49 AM on August 12, 2007
That reminds me: how much roughhousing with a cat (kitten) is too much? I usually like to get a good workout session with mine (just use my hands and arms for her to scratch on, until she gets pissed and starts hissing at me).
posted by hadjiboy at 8:49 AM on August 12, 2007
nickyskye: I was thinking about giving you a call today:)
posted by hadjiboy at 8:52 AM on August 12, 2007
posted by hadjiboy at 8:52 AM on August 12, 2007
Hi hadjiboy! *waving with big smile*. Am heading out to work. Sparkling sapphire blue here in Hell's Kitchen.
So you have a cat?! That's uncommon for Indians, no?
(When I lived in Tibetan refugee camps in India, discovered that Tibetans couldn't stand cats, a Tibetan neighbor cut off my cat's ear for stealing some of his drying meat, ouch, poor Minou).
Can I ask what you named your scratching rascal? (And don't let your cat scratch you, you can get cat scratch fever or cellulitis. Not good. And give your purrer a gentle ear scratch for me.)
posted by nickyskye at 9:07 AM on August 12, 2007 [2 favorites]
So you have a cat?! That's uncommon for Indians, no?
(When I lived in Tibetan refugee camps in India, discovered that Tibetans couldn't stand cats, a Tibetan neighbor cut off my cat's ear for stealing some of his drying meat, ouch, poor Minou).
Can I ask what you named your scratching rascal? (And don't let your cat scratch you, you can get cat scratch fever or cellulitis. Not good. And give your purrer a gentle ear scratch for me.)
posted by nickyskye at 9:07 AM on August 12, 2007 [2 favorites]
What. the. fuck. Cat?
posted by Astro Zombie at 9:09 AM on August 12, 2007
posted by Astro Zombie at 9:09 AM on August 12, 2007
(yeah, I was in a bit of a dark mood today, guess my cats weren't especially the LOLCAT kind today, more like HISSCAT.)
posted by nickyskye at 9:10 AM on August 12, 2007
posted by nickyskye at 9:10 AM on August 12, 2007
Metafilter: More like HISSCAT.
posted by cmgonzalez at 9:15 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
posted by cmgonzalez at 9:15 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
The "masturbating" cat most likely isn't masturbating.
It probably has crystals in its urine and might even have an infection.
posted by Dillenger69 at 9:21 AM on August 12, 2007
It probably has crystals in its urine and might even have an infection.
posted by Dillenger69 at 9:21 AM on August 12, 2007
Comparing [your favorite type of controversial content] with "a link from [Ogrish/Rotten]" is like the new Godwin.
... And then they came for the LSDCats, and I didn't speak up because I was a PotCat.
posted by taursir at 9:24 AM on August 12, 2007 [3 favorites]
... And then they came for the LSDCats, and I didn't speak up because I was a PotCat.
posted by taursir at 9:24 AM on August 12, 2007 [3 favorites]
Minou, awwww, that's so cute (mine's "pepper"--the sis named it).
You're right about the cat thing; most of the pet-owners in my neighbourhood have dogs, but I like cats too.
And thanks for the cellulitis/scratch fever warning. Yikes!
posted by hadjiboy at 9:28 AM on August 12, 2007
You're right about the cat thing; most of the pet-owners in my neighbourhood have dogs, but I like cats too.
And thanks for the cellulitis/scratch fever warning. Yikes!
posted by hadjiboy at 9:28 AM on August 12, 2007
Yeah that LSD cat clip sucks. It's presented without any context so that the only way you can enjoy it is if you're a heartless bastard who is into harming animals.
The whole clip, with the original audio, and perhaps some information like dosage etc. would make it somewhat more palatable. That cat looks like it just got slammed with a half milligram of intravenous mindfuck. Ouch.
posted by polyhedron at 9:28 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
The whole clip, with the original audio, and perhaps some information like dosage etc. would make it somewhat more palatable. That cat looks like it just got slammed with a half milligram of intravenous mindfuck. Ouch.
posted by polyhedron at 9:28 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
if you're a heartless bastard who is into harming animals.
You mean, like a cat?
posted by kid ichorous at 9:34 AM on August 12, 2007 [2 favorites]
You mean, like a cat?
posted by kid ichorous at 9:34 AM on August 12, 2007 [2 favorites]
Feeding frenzy for 130 cats, slow to load, ad included, but worth it.
posted by StickyCarpet at 9:56 AM on August 12, 2007 [3 favorites]
posted by StickyCarpet at 9:56 AM on August 12, 2007 [3 favorites]
That reminds me: how much roughhousing with a cat (kitten) is too much? I usually like to get a good workout session with mine (just use my hands and arms for her to scratch on, until she gets pissed and starts hissing at me).
You want to be careful: if you roughhouse with a kitten, it will learn inappropriate behavior and grow up into a cat that scratches and bites too hard when it plays with you, because it doesn't know better.
More Here
posted by sebastienbailard at 10:01 AM on August 12, 2007
You want to be careful: if you roughhouse with a kitten, it will learn inappropriate behavior and grow up into a cat that scratches and bites too hard when it plays with you, because it doesn't know better.
More Here
posted by sebastienbailard at 10:01 AM on August 12, 2007
O HAI. I can has FPP?
posted by Ceiling Cat at 10:03 AM on August 12, 2007 [2 favorites]
posted by Ceiling Cat at 10:03 AM on August 12, 2007 [2 favorites]
Here, to rebalance my karma for liking the LSD freak-out cat.
Kittens fighting! Awwwwwww.
posted by John of Michigan at 10:12 AM on August 12, 2007 [3 favorites]
Kittens fighting! Awwwwwww.
posted by John of Michigan at 10:12 AM on August 12, 2007 [3 favorites]
Something tell me that the dosage per kilogram for kitty was way, way higher than what people take. It was having trouble controlling its muscles, not just reacting to random tracers.
I wonder if that cat ever recovered.
posted by adipocere at 10:17 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
I wonder if that cat ever recovered.
posted by adipocere at 10:17 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
If my cat ever got too rough as an adult I made sure to hit him on the head hard enough that it hurt. Not so hard he freaked out and was really hurt, but hard enough for it to register in his little walnut sized brain that if he didn't calm down he was going to have to fight a 200 lb angry monkey.
I only had to bop him a couple of times. In the wild, animals show their dominance by hurting each other. If you refuse to dominate your pet, it will never show you the kind of respect you want. I'm not saying to beat your animals mercilessly, but if an animal does something egregious just getting cross is probably not enough to keep it from happening again.
posted by polyhedron at 10:19 AM on August 12, 2007 [2 favorites]
I only had to bop him a couple of times. In the wild, animals show their dominance by hurting each other. If you refuse to dominate your pet, it will never show you the kind of respect you want. I'm not saying to beat your animals mercilessly, but if an animal does something egregious just getting cross is probably not enough to keep it from happening again.
posted by polyhedron at 10:19 AM on August 12, 2007 [2 favorites]
I wonder if that cat ever recovered.
There was a story some years ago about a toddler on Long Island who ate a whole bottle, like hundreds, of LSD tablets his uncle left lying around. He went into a coma-like state and came out of it several days later. I'd like to hear the follow-up on that one.
posted by StickyCarpet at 10:28 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
There was a story some years ago about a toddler on Long Island who ate a whole bottle, like hundreds, of LSD tablets his uncle left lying around. He went into a coma-like state and came out of it several days later. I'd like to hear the follow-up on that one.
posted by StickyCarpet at 10:28 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
I know a small dog that ate 5 hits of acid once. It sniffed at things that weren't there and acted generally freaked out for half a day. After that, it's been fine.
posted by BeerFilter at 11:00 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
posted by BeerFilter at 11:00 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
that's funny... protest the video of the kitty freakout, but no controversy about the story of the guy that that axes his parents.
posted by sxtxixtxcxh at 11:01 AM on August 12, 2007
posted by sxtxixtxcxh at 11:01 AM on August 12, 2007
It's not funny at all, sxtxixtxcxh, it's fairly reasonable.
It's difficult to "protest" the actions of someone insane. They generally get one shot at the ax murder and then its off to the nuthatch. It's an unpredictable event. "NO AX FOR MAX," perhaps, in your picket sign. Like a guy who kills his mom for laughing at the death of a pet.
What one, or many, protest are the methodical, calm actions of, say, a government or a large organization. Like, say, putting a cat on LSD.
posted by adipocere at 11:09 AM on August 12, 2007
It's difficult to "protest" the actions of someone insane. They generally get one shot at the ax murder and then its off to the nuthatch. It's an unpredictable event. "NO AX FOR MAX," perhaps, in your picket sign. Like a guy who kills his mom for laughing at the death of a pet.
What one, or many, protest are the methodical, calm actions of, say, a government or a large organization. Like, say, putting a cat on LSD.
posted by adipocere at 11:09 AM on August 12, 2007
I like cats. Cats are funny. May I present Kitten vs. Frontrow.
posted by dammitjim at 11:22 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
posted by dammitjim at 11:22 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
They overdosed that cat. Too much of anything is usually bad (arguably excepting money, love and happiness). It's propaganda (not to mention animal cruelty) to show an overdose case and call it "the effects of lsd". One could simillarly strap a firehose to a puppy's mouth and report the resulting explosion as "the effects of water".
Just wanted to point out that bit of intellectual dishonesty.
As for the very controversial case of the guy who axed his parents, I say it's a bad thing. Back to you, sxtxixtxcxh.
posted by modernerd at 11:56 AM on August 12, 2007 [2 favorites]
Just wanted to point out that bit of intellectual dishonesty.
As for the very controversial case of the guy who axed his parents, I say it's a bad thing. Back to you, sxtxixtxcxh.
posted by modernerd at 11:56 AM on August 12, 2007 [2 favorites]
She laughed when his cat died.
Unlike the LSD experiments, that's arguably justifiable.
posted by Faint of Butt at 12:41 PM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
Unlike the LSD experiments, that's arguably justifiable.
posted by Faint of Butt at 12:41 PM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
Most misspellings I can handle, but people who misspell masturbate make me want to claw my eyes out. I guess it's because it's a pretty good shibboleth for telling the folks who are pretty enlightened about sex from the huh-huh-that's-dirty crowd.
posted by nebulawindphone at 12:49 PM on August 12, 2007
posted by nebulawindphone at 12:49 PM on August 12, 2007
It should be noted that the catonacid bit is from "Thomas Pynchon: A Journey into the Mind of P."
The soundtrack, natch, is by The Residents. Worth seeing if you can find a copy - the catonacid bit is put into context, but no less controversial in the movie.
posted by OrangeDrink at 1:13 PM on August 12, 2007
The soundtrack, natch, is by The Residents. Worth seeing if you can find a copy - the catonacid bit is put into context, but no less controversial in the movie.
posted by OrangeDrink at 1:13 PM on August 12, 2007
Masturbating cat is watching you, ceiling.
posted by imperium at 1:47 PM on August 12, 2007 [3 favorites]
posted by imperium at 1:47 PM on August 12, 2007 [3 favorites]
but no controversy about the story of the guy that that axes his parents.
It's sad when poor little cats are harmed. For some people, there pets are more important than children. I would never dream of making fun of the death of a fellow primate or pet. Humans are worthless, but animals are special.
posted by Gnostic Novelist at 2:01 PM on August 12, 2007 [2 favorites]
It's sad when poor little cats are harmed. For some people, there pets are more important than children. I would never dream of making fun of the death of a fellow primate or pet. Humans are worthless, but animals are special.
posted by Gnostic Novelist at 2:01 PM on August 12, 2007 [2 favorites]
Darn. There/Their, wev
posted by Gnostic Novelist at 2:02 PM on August 12, 2007
posted by Gnostic Novelist at 2:02 PM on August 12, 2007
Humans are worthless, but animals are special.
I think they are taking a valid line of reasoning ad absurdum.
Humans are animals. Only the human mind is special. If someone were to write a sophisticated AI (e.g. HAL9000, Roy Batty, etc) that demonstrated human-level cognition and self- and social-awareness, it should be an act of murder to switch it off. It would, by the definitions that matter, be human. Humanity is not DNA, it's a state of mind.
I think we tend to treat other lifeforms ethically to the degree that their intelligence and socialization matches up to ours; ants don't really matter ethically, other mammals do to varying degrees.
Cats are a conundrum to me. If cats and mice do indeed have social intelligence, the cat's proclivity for torturing the mouse strikes me as sadism. If they do not, and they're merely instinctual beasts, I see no real need to treat them ethically - after all, we don't punish people for stepping on ants. The only other case is where cats are intelligent, but their prey are not. But if cats are sufficiently intelligent to warrant ethical treatment, why not mice and rats?
posted by kid ichorous at 2:45 PM on August 12, 2007
I think they are taking a valid line of reasoning ad absurdum.
Humans are animals. Only the human mind is special. If someone were to write a sophisticated AI (e.g. HAL9000, Roy Batty, etc) that demonstrated human-level cognition and self- and social-awareness, it should be an act of murder to switch it off. It would, by the definitions that matter, be human. Humanity is not DNA, it's a state of mind.
I think we tend to treat other lifeforms ethically to the degree that their intelligence and socialization matches up to ours; ants don't really matter ethically, other mammals do to varying degrees.
Cats are a conundrum to me. If cats and mice do indeed have social intelligence, the cat's proclivity for torturing the mouse strikes me as sadism. If they do not, and they're merely instinctual beasts, I see no real need to treat them ethically - after all, we don't punish people for stepping on ants. The only other case is where cats are intelligent, but their prey are not. But if cats are sufficiently intelligent to warrant ethical treatment, why not mice and rats?
posted by kid ichorous at 2:45 PM on August 12, 2007
polyhedron: "so that the only way you can enjoy it is if you're a heartless bastard who is into harming animals."
Here I am! Over here! *waves hand*
That was the only link in the FPP that interested me enough to click, and I enjoyed it immensely! In fact I watched it twice. Does anyone know where I could find the rest of the video? What does a cat look like when spaced on heroin? Or cocaine?
I'm not much of a cat fan. I like watching them bang their head into sliding glass patio doors and then pretend they didn't just do that. Cracks me up every time. There's a book called "101 Things To Do With A Dead Cat" which is one of the best books ever in the history of anything.
I also don't much care for censorship. I think more footage of animals as lab experiments should be made public, in order to bring more attention to just how (some) human beings treat animals in the name of science, or corporate greed, or "for kicks," or a myriad of reasons. Maybe then those of you who care about animals could get something done to stop it, and in the meantime, heartless bastards like me can have a good laugh.
What do rabbits look like on LSD? Can they even hop? Do they end up clinging to the ceiling fan screaming about the crawling watermelons in their apothecaries?
posted by ZachsMind at 3:25 PM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
Here I am! Over here! *waves hand*
That was the only link in the FPP that interested me enough to click, and I enjoyed it immensely! In fact I watched it twice. Does anyone know where I could find the rest of the video? What does a cat look like when spaced on heroin? Or cocaine?
I'm not much of a cat fan. I like watching them bang their head into sliding glass patio doors and then pretend they didn't just do that. Cracks me up every time. There's a book called "101 Things To Do With A Dead Cat" which is one of the best books ever in the history of anything.
I also don't much care for censorship. I think more footage of animals as lab experiments should be made public, in order to bring more attention to just how (some) human beings treat animals in the name of science, or corporate greed, or "for kicks," or a myriad of reasons. Maybe then those of you who care about animals could get something done to stop it, and in the meantime, heartless bastards like me can have a good laugh.
What do rabbits look like on LSD? Can they even hop? Do they end up clinging to the ceiling fan screaming about the crawling watermelons in their apothecaries?
posted by ZachsMind at 3:25 PM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
The one story I'd heard about a cat given LSD ended with the cat being so traumatized that it would stay in one place for the rest of it's life, and not move unless it had to eat or go to the litter box. Any reference to LSD and cats makes me more unhappy than hearing about an LD-50 test.
posted by BrotherCaine at 3:27 PM on August 12, 2007
posted by BrotherCaine at 3:27 PM on August 12, 2007
spider cat, spider cat, does whatever a spider-cat does, can he fly, no he can't, unless I fling him...
posted by lodurr at 3:45 PM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
posted by lodurr at 3:45 PM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
I've yet to hear any argument that could convince me that cat wasn't having fun.
It may have been in a psychotropic hell, sure. But could it have been enjoying itself? Sure. Damn inscrutable kitties.
posted by OrangeDrink at 4:15 PM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
It may have been in a psychotropic hell, sure. But could it have been enjoying itself? Sure. Damn inscrutable kitties.
posted by OrangeDrink at 4:15 PM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]
It also could have been independently deriving Schroedinger's wave equations. But I doubt it. Most likely it was utterly terrified.
Remember that to animals, the unexpected is not a good thing. In terms of their everyday environment, "unexpected" is too often synonymous with "I get injured" or "I don't eat." Humans have a pretty privileged relation to the unexpected that most animals don't have the luxury of sharing.
posted by lodurr at 4:20 PM on August 12, 2007
Remember that to animals, the unexpected is not a good thing. In terms of their everyday environment, "unexpected" is too often synonymous with "I get injured" or "I don't eat." Humans have a pretty privileged relation to the unexpected that most animals don't have the luxury of sharing.
posted by lodurr at 4:20 PM on August 12, 2007
ZachsMind: it's not the content that is offensive to me, though you can argue about the morality of testing drugs to lethal doses in animals . It's the presentation. It turns a scientific study into a snuff film.
If you think I'm arguing for censorship you're way off base. This sort of research was conducted for a real purpose.
I do find your lack of concern for a living, vertebrate, social animal a little unsettling. As enlightened beings we as human should grow beyond the primitive disdain you show for animals you don't like. Animals are a resource that should be utilized AND protected.
posted by polyhedron at 4:24 PM on August 12, 2007
If you think I'm arguing for censorship you're way off base. This sort of research was conducted for a real purpose.
I do find your lack of concern for a living, vertebrate, social animal a little unsettling. As enlightened beings we as human should grow beyond the primitive disdain you show for animals you don't like. Animals are a resource that should be utilized AND protected.
posted by polyhedron at 4:24 PM on August 12, 2007
cats have really a bizarre psychology that often gets anthropomorphized into a blend of obstinate bitchiness and endless curiousity, but it's actually quite alien. Bizarre, even. next time you see a cat do something weird, look at it again; its seemingly inexplicable behavior is probably quite in line with the cat's disposition.
i am academically curious as to how lsd affects a creature that doesn't have the advanced symbol-structure we upright big-headed primates have, though. i'll bet the reptile-survival and mammal-territorial circuits get all randomly imprinted and fucked up on a tripping cat; it'd explain how one might elect never to move from a single spot again after tripping. the cat in the lucite box from the video likely never had a normal life again; being trapped in a confined space is already super-traumatizing to the feline brain, and can often cause a healthy cat to do irrational things like stop eating or start sleeping in its dirty litterbox.
posted by maus at 4:28 PM on August 12, 2007
i am academically curious as to how lsd affects a creature that doesn't have the advanced symbol-structure we upright big-headed primates have, though. i'll bet the reptile-survival and mammal-territorial circuits get all randomly imprinted and fucked up on a tripping cat; it'd explain how one might elect never to move from a single spot again after tripping. the cat in the lucite box from the video likely never had a normal life again; being trapped in a confined space is already super-traumatizing to the feline brain, and can often cause a healthy cat to do irrational things like stop eating or start sleeping in its dirty litterbox.
posted by maus at 4:28 PM on August 12, 2007
What do rabbits look like on LSD? Can they even hop?
Are you familiar with the genre Trip-Hop?
posted by kid ichorous at 4:31 PM on August 12, 2007
Are you familiar with the genre Trip-Hop?
posted by kid ichorous at 4:31 PM on August 12, 2007
There was a story some years ago about a toddler on Long Island who ate a whole bottle, like hundreds, of LSD tablets his uncle left lying around. He went into a coma-like state and came out of it several days later. I'd like to hear the follow-up on that one.
Hopefully the child fared better than this child acid user
posted by kigpig at 5:11 PM on August 12, 2007
Hopefully the child fared better than this child acid user
posted by kigpig at 5:11 PM on August 12, 2007
*watches video of 130 cat feeding frenzy*
*thinks about it*
You know what? I don't think I'm ever going to complain about my four cats whining for food again. Because, it obviously could be a lot worse.
They could ping-pong off of one another.
posted by quin at 6:49 PM on August 12, 2007
*thinks about it*
You know what? I don't think I'm ever going to complain about my four cats whining for food again. Because, it obviously could be a lot worse.
They could ping-pong off of one another.
posted by quin at 6:49 PM on August 12, 2007
I loved the cats in a box. I sent it to all the cat lovers I know, including the one that sent me this email (click a link, feed a cat. or dog).
posted by ilsa at 10:02 PM on August 12, 2007
posted by ilsa at 10:02 PM on August 12, 2007
Oh, and point taken ModerNerd but to be fair to the heartless bastards who overdosed the cat on LSD, if they'd given the cat the proper dosage, it'd just zone out and wouldn't look quite as interesting on camera. We weren't just witnessing a cat on LSD, we were witnessing a cat on LSD having a bad trip, which gives much more reason to record the camera.
Remember, this was 1957, and film actually cost money back then. It wasn't all digital like it is today, so if you're gonna film a cat on major hallucinogens, you gotta give him enough to actually get the shakes going. Otherwise you might as well not waste the film.
Is there any experimental footage of long-tail cats in rooms filled with rocking chairs? I bet I could watch that for hours if I had enough popcorn. How about footage of experiments were you strap buttered toast to a cat's back and then throw it off the edge of a ten story building? There's your Perpetual Motion machine right there.
posted by ZachsMind at 2:48 AM on August 13, 2007
Remember, this was 1957, and film actually cost money back then. It wasn't all digital like it is today, so if you're gonna film a cat on major hallucinogens, you gotta give him enough to actually get the shakes going. Otherwise you might as well not waste the film.
Is there any experimental footage of long-tail cats in rooms filled with rocking chairs? I bet I could watch that for hours if I had enough popcorn. How about footage of experiments were you strap buttered toast to a cat's back and then throw it off the edge of a ten story building? There's your Perpetual Motion machine right there.
posted by ZachsMind at 2:48 AM on August 13, 2007
ZAchsMind, what's your point? Are you arguing for transparency to prevent cruelty? Then don't be dense about the methods.
For example, remember, this was 1957. Some people in 1957 understood that the effective dose for LSD in humans was exceedingly small. Some people didn't trust those people. And hardly anybody had a handle on what the effective dose was in non-human animals. Case in point, the infamous Jolly West once dosed a zoo elephant with so much LSD that it had to be put down. Was he trying to kill it? No, he just had no fucking clue.
In other words, he was being brutally and criminally cavalier, but he wasn't giving it more acid because it would look better on film.
The same was probably true of this "experiment": They had no clue what an effective dose would be. And they would never be able to get a clue, given the methods and instrumentality of the time, because they'd have nothing to observe -- which is related to your point: Since cats can't talk, and they didn't have MRIs, they probably just upped the dosage until they got an effect. Again, brutally cavalier, and very questionable method, but not the same as upping the dosage (of an expensive experimental substance) to save money on film.
posted by lodurr at 3:33 AM on August 13, 2007
For example, remember, this was 1957. Some people in 1957 understood that the effective dose for LSD in humans was exceedingly small. Some people didn't trust those people. And hardly anybody had a handle on what the effective dose was in non-human animals. Case in point, the infamous Jolly West once dosed a zoo elephant with so much LSD that it had to be put down. Was he trying to kill it? No, he just had no fucking clue.
In other words, he was being brutally and criminally cavalier, but he wasn't giving it more acid because it would look better on film.
The same was probably true of this "experiment": They had no clue what an effective dose would be. And they would never be able to get a clue, given the methods and instrumentality of the time, because they'd have nothing to observe -- which is related to your point: Since cats can't talk, and they didn't have MRIs, they probably just upped the dosage until they got an effect. Again, brutally cavalier, and very questionable method, but not the same as upping the dosage (of an expensive experimental substance) to save money on film.
posted by lodurr at 3:33 AM on August 13, 2007
Ordinarily, vids posted here and elsewhere don't really bother me. Things gross, funny, or otherwise. The cat on lsd, well that just made me a little sad inside. Poor thing.
posted by wehrlebyrd at 9:33 AM on August 13, 2007
posted by wehrlebyrd at 9:33 AM on August 13, 2007
The guy who killed his parents snapped. It wasn't just about laughing when his cat died. It was a lifetime of abuse that did it. They probably criticized his Mefi posts, too.
The cat on LSD bugs me because the animal wasn't exactly given a choice, but I am not losing sleep over it. If I were the one responsible for giving the cat LSD, I would have trouble living with it:
While I was cleaning out his cage, my son's pet mouse, rolling around in his plastic hamster ball, rolled out of sight. My son, who was watching him, saw him fall, plastic ball and all, into the pool. I ran outside and, before my spouse heroically rescued him, saw the little mouse scrabbling his poor little feet frantically, water filling up the sphere, with this look of utter terror on his face.
*shudders*
Seriously, I had nightmares (the mouse was okay after we dried him off and warmed him up in a fluffy towel).
posted by misha at 1:25 PM on August 13, 2007 [1 favorite]
The cat on LSD bugs me because the animal wasn't exactly given a choice, but I am not losing sleep over it. If I were the one responsible for giving the cat LSD, I would have trouble living with it:
While I was cleaning out his cage, my son's pet mouse, rolling around in his plastic hamster ball, rolled out of sight. My son, who was watching him, saw him fall, plastic ball and all, into the pool. I ran outside and, before my spouse heroically rescued him, saw the little mouse scrabbling his poor little feet frantically, water filling up the sphere, with this look of utter terror on his face.
*shudders*
Seriously, I had nightmares (the mouse was okay after we dried him off and warmed him up in a fluffy towel).
posted by misha at 1:25 PM on August 13, 2007 [1 favorite]
About once or twice a month, I see roadkill in my neighborhood. Dog. Cat. Squirrel. Something I can't determine. I drive by it on the way home. Somebody hit it before me. Nothing I can do about it. I don't celebrate: even the cats, and I really don't like cats for a list of reasons. Roadkill in general does just makes me sad.
A cat on an LSD trip? That's funny, and a hell of a lot better fate than being pancaked by joyriders in pickup trucks at 3 in the morning not paying attention to where they're going. A bad trip on LSD might make a cat wish it were dead for awhile, but heavy machinery just makes it dead. Guess it depends on one's perspective.
I've noticed in recent years that every once in awhile, an animal will purposefully run or fly in front of my car. At first I thought it was an accident, but it happens more and more frequently nowadays. I'm driving a residental area at 15 or 20, and a dog runs in front of my front tires forcing me to slam on the brakes. The dog looks back at me, trotting on down the road, as if he were a surfer disappointed in the ocean's waves. It's really crazy when a bird does it - flies in from the side as if attempting to land on the front bumper but then chickens out at the last second. It's like they're auditioning for X-Treme Sports or something.
I swear I think animals get something akin to what we call adrenaline rushes, and they're doing it for the kicks! I slam on the brakes when it happens, and thus far no casualties. If ever I'm not fast enough on the brakes and a thrillseeking wildmutt bites it on my grill? I'm not gonna lose sleep over it.
posted by ZachsMind at 8:56 PM on August 14, 2007
A cat on an LSD trip? That's funny, and a hell of a lot better fate than being pancaked by joyriders in pickup trucks at 3 in the morning not paying attention to where they're going. A bad trip on LSD might make a cat wish it were dead for awhile, but heavy machinery just makes it dead. Guess it depends on one's perspective.
I've noticed in recent years that every once in awhile, an animal will purposefully run or fly in front of my car. At first I thought it was an accident, but it happens more and more frequently nowadays. I'm driving a residental area at 15 or 20, and a dog runs in front of my front tires forcing me to slam on the brakes. The dog looks back at me, trotting on down the road, as if he were a surfer disappointed in the ocean's waves. It's really crazy when a bird does it - flies in from the side as if attempting to land on the front bumper but then chickens out at the last second. It's like they're auditioning for X-Treme Sports or something.
I swear I think animals get something akin to what we call adrenaline rushes, and they're doing it for the kicks! I slam on the brakes when it happens, and thus far no casualties. If ever I'm not fast enough on the brakes and a thrillseeking wildmutt bites it on my grill? I'm not gonna lose sleep over it.
posted by ZachsMind at 8:56 PM on August 14, 2007
/off-topic
Years ago, I had a friend who related a story to me; he was driving to his dad's farm late one night, down a narrow dirt road. Off in the distance he noticed something fairly big in the road, as he got closer, it swung around and he saw these two giant eyes. Just as he was about to hit it, it opened it's wings and gave one good flap, or perhaps it just used the air pressure from the front of the car, but it floated right over the vehicle, effortlessly clearing it by mere inches.
Ever since that night, he no longer liked owls, because they were evil freaky animals who liked to fuck with him.
Oddly, that became exactly the reason that I started to like them.
posted by quin at 9:07 PM on August 14, 2007
Years ago, I had a friend who related a story to me; he was driving to his dad's farm late one night, down a narrow dirt road. Off in the distance he noticed something fairly big in the road, as he got closer, it swung around and he saw these two giant eyes. Just as he was about to hit it, it opened it's wings and gave one good flap, or perhaps it just used the air pressure from the front of the car, but it floated right over the vehicle, effortlessly clearing it by mere inches.
Ever since that night, he no longer liked owls, because they were evil freaky animals who liked to fuck with him.
Oddly, that became exactly the reason that I started to like them.
posted by quin at 9:07 PM on August 14, 2007
Sorry, that wasn't meant to sound quite so random. I was thinking of ZM's extreme birds, and the owl's actions seemed very much like that of an animal who knew what it was doing because it had done it before.
posted by quin at 9:14 PM on August 14, 2007
posted by quin at 9:14 PM on August 14, 2007
Zachsmind: that's a really remarkably anthropomorphic reading of those animals' actions. You're saying it looks like extreme sports to you; you have no actual clue what it's liek to the dog or the bird or the cat. Those dogs and birds who dive at your bumper? Sounds like territorial aggression, to me -- that makes a lot more sense than "animal extreme sports."
And there's a lot of false dichotomy, there, too; for example, the cat doesn't get a choice of being pancaked or tripping, it just gets dosed. Some human made that choice for it.
And I still don't know what your point was. Are you defending the cat-trip "experiment"? Are you criticising animal research? are you defending your taste in entertainment? Make up my mind.
posted by lodurr at 8:41 AM on August 15, 2007
And there's a lot of false dichotomy, there, too; for example, the cat doesn't get a choice of being pancaked or tripping, it just gets dosed. Some human made that choice for it.
And I still don't know what your point was. Are you defending the cat-trip "experiment"? Are you criticising animal research? are you defending your taste in entertainment? Make up my mind.
posted by lodurr at 8:41 AM on August 15, 2007
"Sounds like territorial aggression, to me -- that makes a lot more sense than 'animal extreme sports.'
You say potayta. I say potahta.
Have you not seen the Battle at Kruger? Territorial aggression IS X-Treem Animal Sports! I'd sell tickets and popcorn to it if I could!
"And I still don't know what your point was."
...I had a point? Wotan forbid!
I don't have points. Points are for grad students. I'm a college dropout. I just look for the funny... and the occasional beer.
Being appauled at the injustices of the world is in the realm of the Angry Young Man. Things like human beings doping up cats to see if they get the munchies ..happen. Angry young men try to stop such things. Angry old men have long since stopped trying to stop such things (cuz you can't), and we're all the better for letting go of the things we can't change.
Angry young men make angry old men laugh.
posted by ZachsMind at 8:44 PM on August 16, 2007
You say potayta. I say potahta.
Have you not seen the Battle at Kruger? Territorial aggression IS X-Treem Animal Sports! I'd sell tickets and popcorn to it if I could!
"And I still don't know what your point was."
...I had a point? Wotan forbid!
I don't have points. Points are for grad students. I'm a college dropout. I just look for the funny... and the occasional beer.
Being appauled at the injustices of the world is in the realm of the Angry Young Man. Things like human beings doping up cats to see if they get the munchies ..happen. Angry young men try to stop such things. Angry old men have long since stopped trying to stop such things (cuz you can't), and we're all the better for letting go of the things we can't change.
Angry young men make angry old men laugh.
posted by ZachsMind at 8:44 PM on August 16, 2007
Well, OK, then. Since it's all just pointless animal extreme sports and stuff that "just happens" -- including your comments -- I now know that nothing I or anyone else has to say can have any point except as a shadow on the wall of the cave of ZachsMind...
posted by lodurr at 2:12 AM on August 17, 2007
posted by lodurr at 2:12 AM on August 17, 2007
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Damn
posted by Gnostic Novelist at 8:08 AM on August 12, 2007 [1 favorite]