To be offended by children throwing things at a dead animal on the side of the road?

[blackkitty1234]

Walking my dog and the kids are coming out of the local high school in their droves. Sadly there is a dead badger that’s been hit and placed on the grass verge. In come a group of boys who start throwing stuff at it. I told them to stop and they tell me ‘it’s a fucking animal’. AIBU to find this behaviour disgusting and pull them up on it? I wish parents would raise their children to have a deeper respect and compassion for non human life 😕

Have people forgotten what "offended by" actually means?

Is it like "mortified"? Words have meaning. Don't use them if you don't know.

Yes they were idiots, but how on earth can you be offended by it.

It’s a dead badger. I don’t think it’s ‘disrespectful‘ or ‘offensive’ kids poking at a dead animal carcass. It’s a bit gross but kids are curious. You on the other hand swearing and name calling at a group of children...

@Nikhedonia

‘So are you, you’re a fucking animal, you jerks’.

Didn't exactly cover yourself in glory with that response and interestingly was left out of your OP.

Not everyone is bothered about covering themselves in glory or convincing themselves they are simply sooo much better than everybody else. It is a liberating way to live, you ought to try it some time.

Some high school kids are like a totally different species of human. Though most do seem to evolve back eventually! Our back lane is part of a route to a high school and the other day my husband had our shutters up and these feral youths could clearly see him putting our three year old into the car yet still thought it appropriate to throw a bit of brick over the back wall at him! I just don’t know what goes on in their heads!

Really nasty behaviour. Not surprised you're disgusted.

Report them to the school - lots of schools get hot under the collar about their pupils behaving badly in school uniform.

@HoldMeCloserTonyDanza

It’s not nice. It’s the sort of behaviour adults should discourage.

However if you were to go back in time literally a thousand years or more you would find children doing the exact same thing, so I wouldn’t worry too much about the present state of humanity.

I remember poking at a dead bird with a stick when I was little, also with multiple jellyfish I found washed up on the beach which I presumed were dead at the time, thinking about it now the poor things were probably alive and stranded. I’m now a massive animal lover and literally wouldn’t hurt a fly. It’s just shit kids do

@Growapair

It’s a dead badger. I don’t think it’s ‘disrespectful‘ or ‘offensive’ kids poking at a dead animal carcass. It’s a bit gross but kids are curious. You on the other hand swearing and name calling at a group of children...

‘It’s a dead badger’ You sound just as disrespectful as the children. You are probably the prototype of the kind of parents they have.

They were also very disrespectful to me with the ‘it’s a fucking animal’ comment so I was well within my rights to respond and let them know how vile there were being.

Children can be really horrible.

@Janegrey333

Children can be really horrible.

There sure can. It doesn’t help when the adults in their lives put that kind of behaviour down to ‘just being kids‘ or ‘boys will be boys’. You could literally try and excuse anything with that kind of attitude. Why can’t parents just teach their children to have respect and compassion for non human life? I would be so ashamed if that was my child.

Why can’t parents just teach their children to have respect and compassion for non human life? I would be so ashamed if that was my child

Cruelty to animals can escalate to aggression and abuse towards people. Never trust anyone who hurts animals.

Why can’t parents just teach their children to have respect

One of the saddest things in life, is watching a child doing the right, kind thing, being admonished by an arsehole parent. It's heartbreaking.

Not everyone is bothered about covering themselves in glory or convincing themselves they are simply sooo much better than everybody else. It is a liberating way to live, you ought to try it some time

I don't think I'm better than anyone. But I would be surprised if many people thought that swearing at children in the street was acceptable.

Get off your high horse! I’d love to know know you would you respond...

Oh for goodness sakes! I'm not on my high horse, I just thought it wasn't a great way to respond and I pointed that out. You shouldn't be swearing at children in the street. I don't think that's a particularly radical thing to post.

I’m amazed that swearing at school kids is ok but not throwing something at a dead animal.

YANBU OP.

This sort of thing is sickening but doesn't surprise me at all. On a local FB page someone complained recently about kids throwing things at (live) swans and other wildfowl... attracted lots of responses from idiots saying stuff like 'kids will be kids', it wasn't doing any harm (!) etc. Some people are thick as pigshit sadly.

@gypsywater

God some parents really dont raise their children very well do they

It seems a couple of them are on this thread

@shittingthreeeyedraven

I’m amazed that swearing at school kids is ok but not throwing something at a dead animal.

I am amazed that throwing stones at a dead animal is okay, but telling the children responsible that they are vile little shits isn’t... We’ll just let them go round believing that behaviour is acceptable, shall we?

If you do horrible things out in the middle of the street, you can expect a horrible response from the people who witness this.... this stands whether you’re a child or not. That’s life I’m afraid. I did ask them nicely to stop and they came out with the ‘it’s a fucking animal’ comment. You honestly just expect me to stand there and be like ‘excuse me, but can you please rethink your attitude’ after I’ve been sworn and scoffed at. Besides they were old enough to know better and don’t worry, their language wasn’t much better so I doubt they have learnt any new profanities.

@Nikhedonia

Get off your high horse! I’d love to know know you would you respond...

Oh for goodness sakes! I'm not on my high horse, I just thought it wasn't a great way to respond and I pointed that out. You shouldn't be swearing at children in the street. I don't think that's a particularly radical thing to post.

I’d love to know how you would have responded...

@18:10Whatwouldscullydo

Cruelty to animals can escalate to aggression and abuse towards people. Never trust anyone who hurts animals.

This. The lack of compassion in some people, young and old, is shocking. I don't even let me son chase pigeons. Because I cannot think of one reason that deliberately scaring animals is justifiable. Same as throwing things at a dead animal.

I’d love to know how you would have responded...

I wouldn't have responded to them.

I'm vegetarian, an animal lover, but I find the concept of showing 'respect' to road kill a bit weird, to be honest. I don't think it's nice behaviour but mostly because it's unhygienic and antisocial. Maybe it's because I don't eat meat but I find the idea that a dead badger should be treated with solemnity but a dead pig can be turned into sausages strange.

I also think that this is just something that kids do. I remember being on the phone to DH (secondary teacher) on his lunch time and him saying 'got to go, year 7 have found a dead rat and I can see them poking it with sticks out the window'. I also remember people messing around with the pig hearts in a biology dissection at my (nice, all girls' if it matters) school and one girl putting the two halves of one of them on her head as ears...

I would never condone or allow animal cruelty (and I consider things like running at pigeons to fall into that category) but a grim fascination with a dead animal isn't very nice but nor is it the same thing at all

You often find sadistic, and disturbing traits in adults starts by cruelty and torture of animals in childhood.

@Nikhedonia

I’d love to know how you would have responded...

I wouldn't have responded to them.

So you wouldn’t have challenged this disgusting behaviour. Just let these feral brats go round thinking it’s acceptable. Yet I’m the bad guy for letting them know they are being fucking vile. You’ve got your priorities all wrong. God only knows what values you install in your own children, now that’s a scary thought.

@Groovinpeanut

You often find sadistic, and disturbing traits in adults starts by cruelty and torture of animals in childhood.

But how can you be cruel to or torture a dead animal?

The lack of compassion in some people, young and old, is shocking. I don't even let me son chase pigeons. Because I cannot think of one reason that deliberately scaring animals is justifiable. Same as throwing things at a dead animal

No I've never let mine chase pigeons either. Don't care if they are considered vermin. Not only can you cause an accident by chasing them into a car windscreen , you can full on kill birds by scaring them so they fly into glass and knock themselves out. Its bloody cruel.

I never let mine pull legs off spiders or daddy long legs either.