Althouse: Summertime...

June 30, 2017

Summertime...

52053376652__5A5E3995-87B3-49BB-BCC4-D20592D83566

... sitting on the front porch.

44 comments:

dustbunny said...: Cats decide where they want to live. Unlike dogs they just move in to places they like.; 6/30/17, 5:42 PM
MikeD said...: Zeus can't be happy being usurped by a, dare I say it, pussy cat!; 6/30/17, 5:47 PM
Ralph L said...: And the kitty is laaazy.; 6/30/17, 6:00 PM
rcocean said...: I've never liked long-haired cats.; 6/30/17, 6:03 PM
Chuck said...: Other posters have commented on this subject; I very much hope that Professor Althouse blogs it. I am bolding the next paragraph, so that all of my Trump-supporting detractors get it.

On the subject of the Trump Administration's national voter fraud commission; I support President Trump and the administration. The states who are refusing to cooperate with the commission's request for voter data are all silly. The failure to provide relevant federal information about voters in federal elections is not "federalism." It is preposterous.

This is an important, relevant, worthwhile federal inquiry. Yes, it is true; Donald Trump has said a lot of stupid things about voter fraud and the "popular vote." But this commission is not stupid. It is important. Don't anybody think that everything that comes out of the Trump Administration is wrong and bullshit. This commission is right, and it ain't bullshit.; 6/30/17, 6:10 PM
Bob Ellison said...: Fish are jumpin'
And the commenter's high

Oh, your daddy's a bitch
And your mama's gold-digging

Oh, hush, little baby
Don't you cry.; 6/30/17, 6:10 PM
Gahrie said...: Cats decide where they want to live. Unlike dogs they just move in to places they like.

True, I have been "adopted" by cats several times. It is also not unusual for cats to have two families and to split time between them.; 6/30/17, 6:16 PM
Churchy LaFemme: said...: ..in Florida; 6/30/17, 6:17 PM
Ann Althouse said...: That phrase "federal information."; 6/30/17, 6:22 PM
Bob Loblaw said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 6/30/17, 6:22 PM
rcocean said...: I like Cats, but their "Independence" isn't really admirable because its based on stupidity. Dogs, are smart enough to know how powerful we are, and that affects their behavior (plus they're pack animals).

Cats, OTOH, are more guided by instinct. They're not smart enough to understand that cooperating with us could be beneficial to them.; 6/30/17, 6:22 PM
MaxedOutMama said...: So now you are cat people? That's a very nice-looking cat, but how does it relate to dogs? Does it allow you to use the porch as well?; 6/30/17, 6:27 PM
Chuck said...: Ahh, the phrase "federal information."

Among the information that recalcitrant (read: Democrat AG's) states don't want to provide to the Presidential Commission on Voter Integrity are social security numbers or, more pressingly, the last four digits of social security numbers for mere proof of citizenship.

Identification information provided in the first instance by the federal government, which states won't supply to a commission of... the federal government.

That Kris Kobach is helping to lead this commission is such brilliance. The right man, in the right place, at the right time.; 6/30/17, 6:30 PM
Big Mike said...: With the serviceberries safely harvested, the cat abides.; 6/30/17, 6:33 PM
Stephen Taylor said...: Dogs can sniff out cadavers, search for drugs and other contraband, act as guide dogs for the blind, extra arms and legs for a police officer, companions for the elderly, warn of seizures in epileptics and so much more......

A cat can be trained to shit in a box........; 6/30/17, 6:36 PM
tcrosse said...: Actually, a cat can be trained to shit in a toilet, although not to flush.; 6/30/17, 6:50 PM
dustbunny said...: I've always had both dogs and cats. I love and appreciate them for their distinctly disparate qualities. However, I find the old cliche to be true: dogs have masters and cats have servants.; 6/30/17, 6:53 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: I like Cats, but their "Independence" isn't really admirable because its based on stupidity.

I don't know. My cat isn't independent at all. He doesn't even try to leave the house and prefers to be near people at all times. Also, he's stupid. For example, sometimes he'll wander to the other end of the house where no people are and start yowling his "No One Is Home Lament." If you go to investigate, he'll looked surprised. Where did you come from? No one was home. This is five minutes after he saw all the people of the house in another room. But he's very nice, and we think he's great.

Maybe cats are merely likable and stupid.; 6/30/17, 7:21 PM
Ralph L said...: I've never liked long-haired cats.
You can't help but think of matted hair.
It's the smushed nose of Persians (and too many dog breeds) that I really don't like.; 6/30/17, 7:30 PM
Fen said...: That's weird, I'm a dog person recently convinced that cats are indeed smarter than dogs.; 6/30/17, 7:33 PM
tcrosse said...: Cats and dogs are individuals. Some are smart, in their doggy catty way, and some are stupid. I am assured that horses are the same.; 6/30/17, 7:50 PM
Michael K said...: We just went shopping with our basset hound, Juliet. In Tucson in summer, many stores allow dogs so we took her. When we are getting ready to go somewhere, she gets a very worried look and stays very close to us. We just got back from a week trip to Chicago but we had a house/dog sitter who Juliet knows.

She was happy to see us. But we were not going to go shopping for another book case without her today.; 6/30/17, 7:59 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: "A cat can be trained to shit in a box........"

You don't have to train them; they just do it. Also, they are self-cleaning. Cats do not slobber.

Cats are less gross than dogs.; 6/30/17, 8:08 PM
Fen said...: My wife HATES dog slobber.

Funny story. We are dog sitting for a friend, bringing it back in car. Big wolf dog sitting in back seat, wifey driving.

Dog pokes head up to lick her ear with huge wet tongue. Wife endures it. I say "baby I'm so proud of you"

Then wolf dog shakes it head, like they do when they are wet. Dog slobber flies EVERYWHERE. Big globe on back of wife's neck.

She grimaces, looks at me and whispers monotone: I. Hate. You.; 6/30/17, 8:22 PM
Browndog said...: Nothing wrong with having everyone else's pets sheltering in Althouse's Place.

Zeus vs Viking cat.

Meade vs. Althouse.

Winner gets a Bob Dylan quote, noting their Pyrrhic victory.

Loser gets their own blog, and a treat.; 6/30/17, 8:23 PM
rehajm said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 6/30/17, 8:25 PM
rehajm said...: I used to play fetch with my cat in the driveway with one of those little super-balls. The cat loved it.; 6/30/17, 8:27 PM
rehajm said...: Prolly no more of those mice pics coming.; 6/30/17, 8:28 PM
Ralph L said...: Also, they are self-cleaning.
They don't want smelly fur to tip off their prey.; 6/30/17, 8:40 PM
FullMoon said...: A border collie named Chaser has learned the names of 1,022 individual items — more than any other animal, even the legendary Alex the parrot.

Psychologists Alliston Reid and John Pilley of Wofford College in Spartanburg, S.C., wanted to test if there was a limit to the amount of words a border collie could learn, so they taught Chaser the names of 1,022 toys, one by one, for three years. New Scientist reports that they got her to fetch the toy and then they repeated the name to reinforce her understanding.

They regularly tested her on her vocabulary by putting random groups of 20 toys in another room and having her fetch them by name. Chaser, now 6, never got less than 18 out of 20 right, in 838 (!) separate tests over three years.

It takes 16 plastic tubs to hold all the toys.

http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2010-12/video-smartest-dog-ever-can-pick-out-1022-toys-name; 6/30/17, 8:51 PM
Michael K said...: Basset hounds are often thought to be dumb but they are secretive.

Stubborn and don't want you to know that they know what you want,; 6/30/17, 8:57 PM
Michael K said...: They have no idea wht you mean by "fetch !"; 6/30/17, 9:00 PM
traditionalguy said...: FTR Labs do not slobber. Bulldogs slobber, continuously.; 6/30/17, 9:06 PM
traditionalguy said...: Cats do not have loyalty to people. They do bond to a place that they have completely scoped out as their domain. The Meadehouse is blessed to have been the approved as a place for so noble a feline. Just do as they're told and all will be well.; 6/30/17, 9:16 PM
Meade said...: That's Ida on her own front porch where, between cat naps, she very regally watches the world go by. She's very smart and relatively independent but until her owners come home from their trip, she can depend on me to let her in and out, see that her water bowl never runs dry, and keep her food bowl full. This morning I gave her a treat and for the first time she allowed me to pet her. Back at Meadhouse, Zeus studied my hand long and carefully with his nose, I gave him a treat, and he climbed happily back on his easy chair for his afternoon nap,

This place is turning into Naptown.; 6/30/17, 9:38 PM
FullMoon said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 6/30/17, 10:27 PM
rcocean said...: Basset hounds are nice but very low energy. They're the Jeb Bush's of the dog world.

Pretty smart though. We had a Basset who figured out how to unlatch the door to the kitchen store room and access the dog treats. We didn't think she could jump over the half-door, but never thought she'd figure out the latch.; 6/30/17, 10:39 PM
Ralph L said...: she can depend on me to let her in and out
That can be a full time job with some cats. My ex-boss finally put in two cat flaps.; 6/30/17, 11:20 PM
David Baker said...: "They're not smart enough to understand that cooperating with us could be beneficial to them."

Cats tend to bond best with children. And once bonded they're very socially inclined (as Freeman related above). Cats jump on tables because that's where the people are; they want in on the conversation. They consider themselves members of the family.

About the bonding, there's a pecking order: If "Whiskers" bonds with 5-year-old "Billy," the next strongest bond will usually be with Billy's mother. And so on down the line - the lesson being that cats take their cues from their #1.

Regarding "smarts," cats generally are as smart as they need to be. So, if have a "dumb" cat, take a long, hard look in the mirror. By comparison, your cat is probably MENSA material;); 7/1/17, 6:00 AM
MaxedOutMama said...: Meade, thanks for explanation. I was a bit worried about Zeus.

I don't think cats are as stupid as most people do. IMO you can train cats to do many things, but they generally don't want to be trained, so....

But they are vengeful. I suspect Ida's family will get a piece of her mind when they return home. On the other hand, Ida will never forget that Meade is a stand-up guy with decent principles, on whom she can rely when there is an emergency.; 7/1/17, 6:44 AM
urbane legend said...: Ralph L said...
Also, they are self-cleaning.
They don't want smelly fur to tip off their prey.

Who already knew where the cat was, and was opening the Fancy Feast can at that very moment.

FullMoon said...
A border collie named Chaser has learned the names of 1,022 individual items . . .

Yes, but how many of those names can it spell?; 7/1/17, 7:01 AM
Ralph L said...: Which was more important to the life of the internet: cat-blogging or porn?; 7/1/17, 7:20 AM
tcrosse said...: Yes, but how many of those names can it spell?

How many can it pronounce ?; 7/1/17, 9:46 AM
Jay said...: Is there a Pussarazzo blog in the works?; 7/1/17, 1:52 PM