You know, dogs are pretty smart. Maybe her friends' dogs realize she's an asshat and treat her accordingly.

Yup, dogs are excellent judges of character.

Re: "the dog inevitably and deliberately sheds its hair all over me,"

Deliberately? That just gives me mental images of a dog holding it's mouth closed and blowing very hard, while propelling it's fur right toward her!
The dog's owner does sound like an asshat. The woman herself sounds a bit dog neurotic though. If she tries being nice to the dog, (instead of being a freakazoid), I'm sure the dog would settle down.

Dog Lady sounds to me like a grumpy exaggerating bitch. "Lunging with terrifying fangs"? What is it, a pekignese or a 3-headed cerberus? Most likely the dog's a little excited to see someone new and she interprets it as a vicious attack by an animal that "deliberately" sheds it's hair all over her. Typical paranoid rantings from the HuffPo writers. Rachel, why do you go in there?

Not raising the minimum wage in 10 years? Hell, I'm appalled that they haven't lowered the minimum wage in 10 years. I have never made minimum wage, even when I was working fast food in high school. I mean, minimum wage means the boss is telling you, "look, loser, you aren't even worth this much... but it would be illegal to pay you less."

That said, though, I am a little disturbed that minimum wage wasn't raised for ten years; that's pretty messed up. I mean I understand you can't raise it pellmell, but ten years? Come on nawh!

There have been proposals to index the minimum wage to the rate of inflation, which makes perfect sense (if we must have a minimum wage).

But that would remove one of the most important means by which politicians pander to low-income voters. Can't have that.

Sounds to me like Crazy Dog-fearing Lady has a neighbor with a little yappy prima-donna dog like a Pomeranian. Which really isn't a dog at all, just a rat that barks.

Seriously, she has to get some new friends. Just like I wouldn't hang out with people with Al Gore bumper stickers on their Volvo, I wouldn't hang around with people who own Pomeranians or drink wine from a box.

You *so* live up to the Rachel Lucas hype. U funee, Rachl Lukis.

HurricaneMikey:

Although I'm mostly a cat person, I like dogs too. Real dogs, though, not the little yappy types. I've always said, "If you want a small pet, get a cat. Or a hamster."

As an aside: I know there are cat people and dog people, and people like me who swing both ways. But it's struck me that there are far more dog people who hate cats than cat people who hate dogs. I've actually seen bumper stickers that said, "Lost your cat? Check under my tires." I've never seen a sticker like that about dogs.

"You're doing something wrong if you can't manage to make more than minimum wage after ten years of working. You have had a big giant bowl of FAIL."

RIGHT. ON. The minimum wage hike is pretty much a meaningless gesture for precisely this reason.

"But it's struck me that there are far more dog people who hate cats than cat people who hate dogs."

Rickl, dogs are more socialized with humans than cats are. Part of that is we are pack creatures and can identify better with dogs. The other part is that I think (and am waay too lazy to look it up) that dogs have been domesticated for 30,000+ years, while cats have been kept domestically for only around 10,000 (Pretty much Egypt, and there they were treated as little house-gods/avatars of B'ast, which did nothing to help their personality...)

Also a dog/cat switch hitter.

I can raise my own personal minimum wage anytime I want to, simply by refusing to consider job offers that pay less than the wage I want.

In fact, anyone can do this.

Anybody who sincerely believes that they need the government to do this for them is a pathetic loser.

That said, though, I am a little disturbed that minimum wage wasn't raised for ten years; that's pretty messed up.

You won't be saying that when prices go up because of the minimum wage hike.

The dog lunges at me and bares its terrifying fangs.

*GASP*

Watch out! The scary doggy's gonna get you! Boogie, boogie, boogie!

For fuck's sake, it's a dog not a grizzly bear! Any full-grown adult who isn't able to overpower a dog needs to hit the gym like nobody's business.

Part of that is we are pack creatures and can identify better with dogs.

Actually that's not entirely true. Humans are social animals, but we are not pack animals. In that respect cats are, ironically, much more similar to us than dogs are.

Like humans, feral cats will often live together in colonies, but each cat generally takes care of itself. They find their own food and they defend themselves when they feel threatened. Contrast this with canine species, such as wolves, who often cannot survive if they are abandoned by their pack.

On the minimum wage issue, especially if you plan on arguing with someone from Huffpo, don't forget the Earned Income Tax Credit.

"Enacted in 1975, the then very small EITC was expanded in 1986, 1990, 1993, and 2001 with each major tax bill, regardless of whether the tax bill in general raised taxes (1990), lowered taxes (2001), or eliminated other deductions and credits (1986). Today, the EITC is one of the largest anti-poverty tools in the United States (despite the fact that income measures, including the poverty rate, generally do not account for the credit), and enjoys broad bipartisan support." - link above from Wikipedia

Just because the minimum wage hasn't gone up in the last ten years, doesn't mean that the incomes of people who can't get beyond minimum wage jobs haven't gone up. The EITC is a better way to reduce poverty than the minimum wage. Facts, inconvenient facts.

You're not allowed to say anything nice about the earned-income credit. For one thing, you have to earn some income to get the credit, which is just grievously offensive to the poverty pimps; for another, it was based on an idea by Richard M. Nixon, who was an evil Republican.

"Pretty much Egypt, and there they were treated as little house-gods/avatars of B'ast, which did nothing to help their personality"

Yeah.. which is why after only a few thousand years bunnies are just as smart as cats. When an animal knows you'll just eat them, they start learning a personality real quick. Well.. at least a personality that rivals a cat.

" If she tries being nice to the dog, (instead of being a freakazoid), I'm sure the dog would settle down."

I defy you to watch Cesar Milan for 30 episodes and say that again. Even if you can only stand 5.

There seems to be this sub-set of dog owners who enjoy seeing their little dog be aggressive to friends and family. Hell, half the people on that show say they don't like the dog being aggressive to people.. but their body language, and the smile that comes over their face tells the real story.

It isn't the dogs fault...but the owners sure do enjoy it. Just watch their faces and ignore what they say.

Any full-grown adult who isn't able to overpower a dog needs to hit the gym like nobody's business.

Depends a lot on the dog, don't you think?

To an unarmed human, a Shepherd or Doberman is a damned fearsome opponent - nearly as big, faster, more agile, and absolutely committed to attack in a way few humans get to exercise. Move up to bigger dogs - mastiffs, Presa Canario, etc. - and the challenge to the human becomes greater.

Add training to the human, the balance shifts in his favor, some. Add training to the dog and the balance shifts in favor of the dog, a lot. Add weapons and weapons training to the human and the dog pretty much loses - there are advantages to being a tool user.

Doesn't apply to all dogs, and isn't necessarily a 'fault' of dogs to which it does apply.

Not to mention, some people are legitimately fearful of dogs. Think of someone who'd met that fence-jumping pit bull when she was, oh, about seven or eight. Even if she'd managed to escape before being mauled to death, she'd probably have a...jaundiced view of the canine species forever after. Kind of like this old guy I know who was a POW in World War II. To this day, he loathes the Italians for the way he was treated (he'd been shot down over northern Italy and been taken by Mussolini's diehards in the "Salo Republic.") If he had the same sort of attitude about blacks that he does about Italians, he'd be kicked out of the Klan for being a bigot.

"How do you get jokes on the internet in 1988? YEAH I KNOW the "internet" was actually invented many decades ago but she's obviously talking about the web as we know it."

Are you sure? Email lists were all the rage as far back as 1986.

Technomad-- you're right and that reminds me of things I've read about Holocaust survivors who are irreparably terrified of dogs, particularly German Shepherds, because the Nazis used them brutally in the camps. Some Holocaust survivors have serious, serious bad reactions to the mere sight of a German Shepherd. Sad.

And about the cat vs dog issue - it's comparing apples to oranges! Hell it's comparing apples to cheesecake as far as I'm concerned. Do people compare the merits of horses versus cows? They're two completely different types of animals with completely different uses. Cats are fine and I like them, but the aren't in the same league as dogs by any stretch of the imagination.

Rickbert - thanks for that info about the EITC. I hadn't even thought of that!

It'll be interesting to see how many small businesses go under in the next few years. I don't know whether it'll happen or not, but an $84 per week per person increase in outgoing funds? That sounds like a major drain, unless income suddenly goes way, way up.

Depends a lot on the dog, don't you think?

Well...maybe. In hindsight, I may not be the person best qualified to judge whether someone should or should not be scared of dogs.

I study Jeet Kune Do in my spare time and one of the primary lessons of the style is that when you are in a fight, there are no rules. It makes sense when you think about it. I mean, if a guy's coming at you and he means to mess you up, there really isn't any point in holding back because you're too proud to fight dirty.

Suffice it to say, if I was in a fight with an aggressive dog I wouldn't pull any punches. I'm sure I would NOT come out of the fight unscathed but I'm confident that, if I absolutely had to, I could bring the necessary force to bear to take down any attacking dog.

Also, I can DEFINITELY understand that some people are genuinely afraid of dogs. After all, they're pretty terrifying animals if you think about it. They've got big, sharp teeth, they can run several times faster than a human, and they can be intimidatingly strong. But lets call a fear of dogs what it really is. A phobia. An irrational fear.

Dogs can be fearsome but they are still animals. Any human who knows what he or she is doing can easily fend off an attacking dog of any breed, though again, not without being injured in the process.

The point I was trying to make earlier is that dogs are not these invincible monsters that feel no pain and can kill a human in seconds. Any person who is of at least average human strength can overpower a dog.

First (without wanting to find the post on HuffPo to check, since you didn't link and it's a cesspit), maybe she meant Usenet? Lots of jokes posted there in 1988.

Second, what good is an increase in the minimum wage when farkin' McDonalds was paying over minimum for years?

Minimum wage is a subsidy for middle-class teenagers more'n anything else.

Minimum wages, combined with child labor laws and a new culture of laziness in our children spread via video games and cell phones, are the reason we have so many illegal aliens.

mightysamurai:

I wasn't responding to fear of dogs, but this:
Any full-grown adult who isn't able to overpower a dog needs to hit the gym like nobody's business.

If it's a dachshund or a lick-you-to-death lab, 'overpowering' really isn't much of an issue.

Hitting the gym isn't likely to help much against a Shepherd or a Doberman.

If you can stand to do the archaeological dig, look through the rec.martial-arts newsgroup archives from the '90s on what a number of MA practitioners think about fighting dogs. Watch out for the "Circus Ponies of Death"!

Hitting the gym isn't likely to help much against a Shepherd or a Doberman.

I don't deny that some breeds of dog can be very strong, but raw strength isn't the only way to win a fight.

For one thing, an adult human has superior leverage over a dog. We're taller and sometimes heavier than they are. We also have very long and agile limbs compared to a dog. A human with a good grip on a dog's head can exert control over the animal with relative ease.

Now again, I wouldn't expect anyone who got into a fight with a crazed German Shepherd to come out unscathed. I've heard stories about burglars who have had their fingers bitten right off by guard dogs.

I'm not saying that a dog can't pose a danger to a human being, but the idea that we are helpless before their unconquerable might is just silly.

Umm, I don't mean to be contentious here, but if you believe this: [a] dog can be very strong, but raw strength isn't the only way to win a fight. why is is it you started with this: Any full-grown adult who isn't able to overpower a dog needs to hit the gym like nobody's business. ? That pair of statements seems to me to be in opposition to one another.

I fully agree that humans have advantages over animals (including being smart enough to "cheat"), and I agree that dogs, per se need not ordinarily inspire paralyzing fear.

Umm, I don't mean to be contentious here, but if you believe this: [a] dog can be very strong, but raw strength isn't the only way to win a fight. why is is it you started with this: Any full-grown adult who isn't able to overpower a dog needs to hit the gym like nobody's business. ? That pair of statements seems to me to be in opposition to one another.

You're right. I suppose that was poor phrasing on my part.

My bad.