Comments on: Start Investing In Hanta Virus Vaccine Now

By: Brian McMurphy

Brian McMurphy — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 21:15:49 +0000

But that’s the thing. Kids don’t know. Especially if you’ve got a kid on a budget.

This is all now far removed from the absurdity of this post as Ratatouille has been linked to a Hanta virus epidemic no more than Johnny Depp has to Somalian pirates seizing freighters full of benzene.

I will be on the lookout for any AIDS infested Haitians carrying pet rats with fleas on them.

And make sure they’re carrying a bottle of Purell.

By: Victoria

Victoria — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 16:23:52 +0000

Also Brian, it’s bacteria that that carry Tuberculosis…not undocumented aliens coming across our borders.

And it’s a virus that carries AIDS…not the Haitian refugee I was with last night…

By: Victor

Victor — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 14:29:43 +0000

Brian, it’s fleas that carry(ied) the Plague. Rats…and dogs, cats, squirrels, and (yes) people…in the dark ages simply carried the fleas around.

Michele, were you refering to the little fuzzy masked dude, or to the full, ripe lips behind him?

Oh, and no, I don’t encourage kids to play with wild rodents, no more than I’d encourage them to play with a wild wolf. Not unless they’ve got a good life insurance policy, or if they won’t stop farking with the remote while I’m watching the baseball game.

(Yeah, I’m referring to my nephew.)

By: michele

michele — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 03:25:28 +0000

When you have a child as inquisitive as my oldest, you keep the hand sanitizer close by. I’ve considered laminating her, but that’s just cruel.

By: Brian McMurphy

Brian McMurphy — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 02:04:39 +0000

That's not mean. I just think it's a bad idea for kids to play with rats they find in a field. Didn't anybody ever watch "The Wall"? A minute fifteen in.

By: michele

michele — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 01:58:16 +0000

You’re so mean.

By: Brian McMurphy

Brian McMurphy — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 23:39:58 +0000

They were good enough for the tens of millions who died of The Plague too. Rattus rattus specifically. And though disease may be weeded out through some domestication, they are still a filthy animal. Your membership in the Rodent Anti-Defamation League is duly noted. Next time the dirty Chinese restaurant down the street scores a 48 from the Health Board, I hope you're first in line.

By: michele

michele — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 22:53:53 +0000

Tell me you wouldn’t kiss this little guy full on the lips.

http://photos1.blogger.com/x/blogger/7934/3033/1600/517635/_MG_2012.jpg

By: Victor

Victor — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 20:11:54 +0000

Rattus rattus are roof rats. I think they’re only in Europe and parts of Canada, but I could well be mistaken. Pet rats and sewer rats are all Rattus norvegicus.

Seriously, though, the difference between a domestic pet rat and a sewer rat is a lot like the difference between a wolf and a German shepard. One has been domesticated throughout the centuries and and countless generations and might well have been bred selectively for certain traits; the other has been domesticated since the Victorian era and countless generations…and are also bred selectively for certain traits.

If rats are good enough for Teddy Roosevelt (or his kids, anyway), John Cleese, Ron Jeremy (he had a hairless rat named Chemo), Kurt Cobain, Pink, and others…rats are good enough for me.

By: Cranky

Cranky — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 14:59:20 +0000

Stick with frogs. They won’t let you down.