Althouse: The rescue opossum just can't stop playing possum.

September 20, 2026

The rescue opossum just can't stop playing possum.

21 comments:

Not an oldster. said...: We all have people like that in the fam, no?
Lol...play dead,they're coming...; 9/20/26, 9:55 AM
Original Mike said...: If only we could teach our trolls to play dead.; 9/20/26, 10:05 AM
Not an oldster. said...: Begone zionist monopolizers.
You can't spew propaganda here 24/7... lol; 9/20/26, 10:07 AM
Achilles said...: This is just the animal part of the possum brain doing what a possum brain does when fear takes hold.

They haven't learned how to react the way humans want them to react. Their brains need to develop a new part.; 9/20/26, 10:10 AM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: Look. #unsaid things made a comment.; 9/20/26, 10:11 AM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: I want to be a real Opossum / But you are a real Opossum.; 9/20/26, 10:12 AM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: The Opossum that inspired Christina Perri to write hit song for the Twilight Saga. You hear it here first.; 9/20/26, 10:15 AM
Mr. O. Possum said...: I am pleased to see my species get the attention it deserves on this blog.

Thank you,
Mr. O. Possum; 9/20/26, 10:20 AM
Jaq said...: I see those guys doing that alongside the highway all the time.

As for silencing “trolls,” well there’s a couple of ways, you could ban them, like Trump, or you could do what Biden did, you could do your presidential business in your private home three days a week, with no uninvited guests and no visitor logs.

Either way, you avoid having to examine your thinking in any new lights.; 9/20/26, 10:21 AM
Jaq said...: He’s like a fainting goat.; 9/20/26, 10:23 AM
bagoh20 said...: He should run for the U.S. Senate as a Republican.; 9/20/26, 10:27 AM
Jaq said...: Maybe he is a Republican and he read the latest polls.; 9/20/26, 10:36 AM
john mosby said...: That’s just the Gen Z Stare. CC, JSM; 9/20/26, 10:37 AM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: Does the Opossum use the front of his brain to play dead, and does the back of his brain even know what is happening?

These are the riddles keeping science awake at night. Hopefully, when super ai comes, science will be able to relax and take time off... and play possum/opossum even.; 9/20/26, 11:00 AM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: What's the difference between a possum and an opossum?" While they have similar names, possums and opossums are distinct animals. Here are seven key differences between these marsupials." -- Bob Vila.

I didn't even know Bob Vila was alive.; 9/20/26, 11:04 AM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: I thought Opossums were Irish, and Possums were recovering alcoholics.; 9/20/26, 11:07 AM
bagoh20 said...: The first question in my head about Opossums faking death is what happens if a predator doesn't fall for it? I didn't know that it's actually involuntary, and they can't wake up on purpose. In that state, they also release a smell of rotting flesh, but if a predator or scavenger tries to eat them anyway, they can't do anything about it and just get eaten alive. Doesn't sound like such a great trick anymore.; 9/20/26, 1:58 PM
mikee said...: I have watched an Opossum near a dog food bowl stand still for 5 minutes and hiss at a Raccoon that sauntered in and started eating, displacing the marsupial. The Raccoon showed zero distress over the proximity, sharp teeth, or hissing of the Opossum. Make of that what you will.; 9/20/26, 2:21 PM
Narr said...: Our late dog was a possum-finder par excellance. After he found his first one in a tree, and my wife worried about rabies or other infection, I found out that their body temperatures are too low to sustain most of them.; 9/20/26, 3:57 PM
Jim at said...: Snarling, vicious, nasty creatures.
They're worse than rats.

And I've dealt with plenty of both.; 9/21/26, 12:06 AM
Jim at said...: The only good thing about 'possums? They're bigger targets.; 9/21/26, 12:08 AM