• HelixDab2@lemm.ee
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    35 minutes ago

    If someone intentionally caused harm to any of my cats, I live near a large national forest, and once you get a few hundred yards off a trail, no one is going to find a body.

    • pugehenis@lemmy.ml
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      2 hours ago

      I could take shit from people to some extent but if it is my pets, I am putting a smile on that face

  • Treczoks@lemmy.world
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    9 hours ago

    My neighbors daughter had one of those water guns. I told her if she shoots at me, I’ll get the hose and retaliate. She grinned, shot at me, and ran away laughing.

    I talked to her dad, he nodded, and when she came back for more mischief, she got wet.

    • FuglyDuck@lemmy.world
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      2 hours ago

      Can confirm.

      I have a robot that clears snow on my driveway (it’s a diy build,). One winter, we were having problems with a couple teenage boys chucking snowballs at cars.

      Their dads conspired to teach them a lesson.

      They recruited me and S5-SY (the robot, pronounced “Sassy”,).

      So they played some mind games to get the kids to think it was their idea to record themselves-live- chucking snowballs at the “defenseless” robot.

      In the video, the robot turned to face them, drove itself into the snow bank and turned on its sweeper to give them the worst white wash of their lives.

      • Empricorn@feddit.nl
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        33 minutes ago

        I’m sorry, you can’t just say “I built a robot that clears snow”, like it’s no big deal! Do you have more details? Also, please link the video of it blizzarding the teens!

      • brisk@aussie.zone
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        25 minutes ago

        Is the lesson “why throw snowballs at cars when you could be having a snowball fight with a robot instead?”

  • robador51@lemmy.ml
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    9 hours ago

    We’ve a lot of cats coming through the garden. I wouldn’t mind if not for my dog, who does and goes insane when she spots a cat. So I’ve been thinking about getting a super soaker to chase them away. I think that’s pretty harmless, and perhaps they learn to skip our garden after a while… What do you lot think?

      • InputZero@lemmy.world
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        6 hours ago

        Hahah simply. I’ve only trained a handful of dogs, so professional dog trainers sound off here but there are dogs that are more or less untrainable. Sure difficult dogs can learn a few manors or tricks, but either because an abundance or lack of intelligence they’re not going to ever be a show dog. Depending on the dog maybe the best they get is just not as reactive instead.

  • drunkpostdisaster@lemmy.world
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    9 hours ago

    That the risk you take with an outdoor cat. It’s not even like water is harmful to it.

    I used to have an outdoor cat and if that happened I would have shrugged it off and expected him not to go there again.

    • Adulated_Aspersion@lemmy.world
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      41 minutes ago

      It’s the risk you take letting your kid go outside. It’s not even like water is harmful to it.

      I used to have a kid that went outside and if thst happened I would have shrugged it off and expected him to not go there anymore.

    • BambiDiego@lemmy.world
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      7 hours ago

      “Nobody got hurt, just LET ASSHOLE BE ASSHOLES! MUH FREEDUMS!”

      Nah, I’m a firm believer in ‘Fuck around and Find out’

    • Jyek@sh.itjust.works
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      9 hours ago

      That’s the risk you take with an outdoor brat. It’s not even like water is harmful to it.

      I used to have an outdoor brat and if that happened I would have shrugged it off and expected him not to go there again.

    • rumba@lemmy.zip
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      7 hours ago

      That the risk you take

      Well someone might just hit your car, that’s the risk you take by driving, nobody got hurt, they shouldn’t be held accountable. I would have shrugged it off and started taking the bus.

      This is fun, we can remove all accountability from everything that’s not harming someone directly!

    • baines@lemmy.cafe
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      2 hours ago

      …,clea.rly ,.com.,.,mas .,….a n .,.d ,p,e,r,i,o,d,s……,.,.,areimportant

    • Dicska@lemmy.world
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      10 hours ago

      I was gifted Robert Merle’s The Day of the Dolphin once. They told me it was a great book. I’m still sure it is, but I couldn’t get past the 2nd page. The lack of punctuation made it awfully cumbersome to read.

    • tauren@lemm.ee
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      12 hours ago

      This is what big comma and periods want you to believe. Don’t be a fool!

    • Viskio_Neta_Kafo@lemm.ee
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      6 hours ago

      please dont say we need to use correct grammer its unnecessary periods or commas in all of history have never really added anything to a sentence or body of text writing is about the soul not trying to control peoples formatting formatting its self is often overrated and not at all necessary inorder to discern what the meaning is of the writers passage

  • cynar@lemmy.world
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    17 hours ago

    As a parent, if my kid did that, I’d likely side with the neighbour. I would put it (very loosely) in the category of “natural consequence” punishments.

    It fits the crime, it discourages the crime, it forces empathy with the cat, and it does no real harm.

    • Eatspancakes84@lemmy.world
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      2 hours ago

      I think it depends a bit on where the cat is. If my cat is in somebody’s yard and the owner does not like it, it’s perfectly fine to spray my cat with water. In fact I do the same to my neighbours cat to prevent cat fights. If my cat is on neutral territory, I would be more pissed.

      • cynar@lemmy.world
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        2 hours ago

        Agreed, there are 1001 context points that could change things around, one way, or the other.

    • Remember_the_tooth@lemmy.world
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      17 hours ago

      This is my favorite answer. I’d argue that he got less than the natural consequences of his actions. In nature, when one assaults another, even with something as harmless as water, it’s usually reasonable to interpret it as a threat, the response to which is usually violence. That kid is lucky he didn’t get a face full of claws. I’ve gotten a lot worse from gently touching cats that, as it turned out, didn’t want to be touched. Boundaries are important.

      • cynar@lemmy.world
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        16 hours ago

        Natural consequences doesn’t mean “law of the jungle” here. It just means linking cause and effect in a proportionate manner.

        I tend to use a lot of “natural consequence parenting”. Basically, the response should flow from the cause. If you throw water over your friend, you can’t then complain if they throw water over you. You learn that, while it’s fun when expected, it can be deeply unpleasant when unexpected.

        It’s a lot more effective than random generic punishments. The trick is shielding them from excessive results, while allowing proportional ones to play out. E.g. swinging on a chair will get a warning, but often not stopped. When they fall, there’s an “I told you so” before/with the cuddle. If there is a risk of a more serious injury however, e.g. the corner of a table where their head may hit, then I step in and stop things.

        • Ms. ArmoredThirteen@lemmy.zip
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          16 hours ago

          I don’t have kids but this is pretty much how my dad raised me. It made me really respect when he gave me a hard no for something, it meant “no really the risk majorly outweighs the reward” and even if I didn’t understand it at the time I trusted it. I got a lot of I told you so after varying seriousness of injuries lol. Eventually I learned that the soft warning meant I was going to have a lot of fun but I needed to be ready for if it went sideways. Now I’ve got a pretty healthy sense of my own limits and when to start gauging risk/reward

          • cynar@lemmy.world
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            15 hours ago

            That’s basically the goal I’m aiming for. It’s also worth remembering to always give an (age appropriate) explanation with the “no”. If you’re using a hard no, then there is something they don’t yet understand. Explaining it lets them integrate that knowledge into their future risk management.

            The only downside is their confidence is high enough to terrify me! The job of containing and shaping that confidence, without damaging it gives me plenty of grey hairs.

        • ZoopZeZoop@lemmy.world
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          13 hours ago

          It’s not really about the proportion. The rest you have right. Things (good or bad) may happen as a result of your behavior (good or bad). Those things are natural consequences. We talk about it a lot in the context of punishing behavior, but natural consequences can also reinforce behavior. Of course, if we design those consequences, they’re no longer natural.

        • Remember_the_tooth@lemmy.world
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          16 hours ago

          As a native social media pedant, I’d just like to take a moment to split hairs and point out that’s the literal definition of that phrase.

          With all that said, I’m glad you’ve taken that approach. They’re very lucky to have you. I wish I could’ve had more adults like that in my life as a child. Here’s to you and your contribution to supporting the next generation. May they pass on those values, too.

          • cynar@lemmy.world
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            16 hours ago

            That’s why I clarified. There’s 2 ways to read the phrase, one a lot harsher than the other.

            It seems to be working well. It also results in me being surprised a lot of the time. I’m ready to deal with a scuffed knee, or a bruised ego. Instead they either get back up and try again, or just pull it off. At that point I need to mentally correct for their new capabilities.

            The key thing is, I’m not looking after a small pet, I’m training a future adult. They need to both instinctively understand how the world works, while packing as much awesomeness and magic into the formative years as possible. Letting them learn and practice is a big part of that.

    • wuphysics87@lemmy.ml
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      15 hours ago

      I like that approach. But when the parent only has their kid’s half of the story, it’s understandable why they would be pissed. I think most of us would be. Why did they do that to my kid? I’d want answers amd I wouldn’t be happy about it.

      • cynar@lemmy.world
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        14 hours ago

        I suspect most kids who would throw water at a cat like that would not be very good liars about it. Also, adults tend not to dump water on kids for no reason. I would definitely take the time to pick apart what happened, before going full papa bear mode.

        I might be pissed, but my instinct would be to find out who I should be pissed at first, before going on the war path.

  • alekwithak@lemmy.world
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    2 hours ago

    How DARE you interact with my poor, helpless cat, who I lovingly toss outside to slaughter songbirds, pick up parasites, and maybe get flattened by a car. I don’t generally give a single solitary shit what happens to it out there, but this splash of water is TOO FAR.

    Edit:

    Please stop letting your cat out. It’s not good for your cat or the local wildlife.

    https://daily.jstor.org/environmental-danger-outdoor-cats/

    https://www.bbc.com/news/scienceenvironment-21236690p

    https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms2380

    https://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/cats-responsible-for-driving-many-species-to-extinction/all/amp.html

  • saltesc@lemmy.world
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    17 hours ago

    Everyone here balancing the ethics of getting wet like it’s assault.

    Water melts snowflakes and wicked witches, everyone else need not worry.

    All living things should be used to being wet either all the time or somewhat regularly. To think beyond that, wow, society has its teeth in you and you are lost.

    • IndiBrony@lemmy.world
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      12 hours ago

      It is assault, though.

      Kid acted maliciously towards the cat. It’s not like the kid accidentally knocked a bottle of water and some of it splashed the cat. No. There was a conscious decision to torment the cat by deliberately throwing water over it.

      Punishment fits the crime here.

      • Godric@lemmy.world
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        9 hours ago

        Or the cat could secretly be a wicked witch, who then vows to make an evil AI to contact aliens in order to slay all humans in revenge. Who knows what monstrous things could happen as a consequence of getting a cat wet???