Slog - Comments on Have You "Seen" this Dog? http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog It was the misuse of quotation marks that caught my eye--the dog's really missing, right?--and perhaps I should send this pic along to the "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks. But as the father of a kid who loves his itty bitty dog, I took this picture because I wanted to help get the word out. These posters are up on Capitol Hill... and here's hoping the coyote that's been leaving little bits of cats scattered up and down my block didn't pick off this adorable little maltese. So if you've seen this dog, or you've got this dog at home,... Copyright 2008 Thu, 13 Dec 2007 08:04:36 -0800 Thu, 13 Dec 2007 18:38:48 -0800 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.34 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Comment by heywhatsit Better hope there's no such thing as karma.


"All pit bulls should be boiled alive, like lobsters, and their owners should be forced to eat them."


Posted by Dan Savage | August 14, 2007 12:04 PM

]]> heywhatsit http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873117 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873117 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 08:17:50 -0800 Comment by Dan Savage My original version of that comment was more lyrical, heywhatsit:

"Pit bulls should be boiled alive, like lobsters, and fed to their idiot owners."

And I'd feel the same about 10 pound malteses or 8 pound toy poodles if those dogs were in the habit of mauling, maiming, and sometimes killing children, old ladies, and other dogs.

]]> Dan Savage http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873120 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873120 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 08:22:46 -0800 Comment by Mike in MO If Karma was at work here, Dan's Kid's dog would be eaten by a Pitty.

]]> Mike in MO http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873122 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873122 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 08:24:06 -0800 Comment by Mike in MO It is sad when any dog mauls a child, but it is ok when they maul old ladies.

]]> Mike in MO http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873125 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873125 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 08:25:51 -0800 Comment by Fnarf Dog's already in California with its new owner.

]]> Fnarf http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873130 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873130 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 08:41:40 -0800 Comment by ayarkay I don't know why people like to use quites for emphasis. I'm always seeing signs like '"LOSE" 10 lbs before Christmas!' What does that even mean? Are they quoting someone?

Also, that dog is "adorable"

]]> ayarkay http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873131 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873131 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 08:45:33 -0800 Comment by jamier Poor puppy, poor kitties, poor Dan.

You can't even post a flyer for a missing dog without people wishing horrible things upon your family. Sigh.

]]> jamier http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873132 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873132 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 08:48:00 -0800 Comment by Mr. Poe @1

It's not a Pit Bull, so we can care.

]]> Mr. Poe http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873133 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873133 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 08:48:56 -0800 Comment by Michigan Matt I wonder how they lost the little guy? My dad and his wife have to go outside with their 5 pound Yorkie b/c otherwise it'll be easy pickings for a fox, hawk, owl, or coyote.

]]> Michigan Matt http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873135 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873135 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 08:51:46 -0800 Comment by Matt from Denver If Dan deserves any karma, if for his less-than-sensitive posts of the missing cat fliers. He needed to be just as heartless with this one. "Hey, idiot owner, your dog is coyote chow!"

Which would be more just because little yappy dogs are annoying and cats rule. In your face, dog people!

]]> Matt from Denver http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873141 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873141 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 08:58:07 -0800 Comment by Lake I think people overuse quotations heavily because they are used to seeing things in print with titles/subjects in quotations. They extend this to thinking that the title of anything, naturally, belongs in quotations (in this case the title, or heading, of the poster.)

]]> Lake http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873146 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873146 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 09:03:28 -0800 Comment by June Bee Fnarf, almost none of my hang-out buds here in town are into blogging. I'll probably go tonight solo. Wanna meet at the Comet beforehand for a beer then over the street for a gimlet or two? "Bear before Liquor, never fear!"

It might be shades of that Chinese dinner prior to the seattle-indiepop day of M's rooting from the bleachers.
I'm pretty sure you remember that thread in '99 that lasted days discussing the "Soul of Seattle." I forget what I had to chime in with (i think Appelstein has since blocked all access to the site), but you had? lots of cool history on the Frederick & Nelson building.

Oh, sorry Dan for butting in here.

Relevent comment: In grade school, a bunch of kids called this other kid "Seen" because his name was Sean. They loved seeing him steaming and irate. Kids will be kids.

]]> June Bee http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873153 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873153 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 09:07:08 -0800 Comment by meks This dog is "missing" like that cat that clawed and peed on my couch... I swear, he's "missing", honey!

]]> meks http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873158 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873158 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 09:15:38 -0800 Comment by raindrop Missing is in quotation marks because the owner suspects that the dog may have been abducted.

]]> raindrop http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873186 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873186 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 09:45:47 -0800 Comment by MSW I agree with raindrop. the implication is that the dog was found by someone who knows better who then kept it or that the dog was intentionally stolen. The use of quotes also shields such ugly possibilities from the awareness of possible young children in the family who would be very distressed to imagine that someone took their dog. A less likely possibility is that the owner knows the chances are that the dog was eaten but is going through the motions to satisfy said children rather than have to explain death to them. In that unlikely event the quotes would be a tip-off.

]]> MSW http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873232 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873232 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 10:27:40 -0800 Comment by Dan Savage Stolen or eaten, the dog is actually missing, so the quotes are unnecessary. If they owners suspect the dog was stolen and the poster said LOST, then maybe quotes -- because the dog wasn't lost, but taken.

]]> Dan Savage http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873239 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873239 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 10:31:36 -0800 Comment by Matt from Denver Nonsense. People misuse quotation marks for two reasons - one, because they don't know that bold and italics are the way to emphasize text; and two, they misunderstand when someone uses quotation marks to indicate irony (Ex: ecce homo contributes "smart" and "insightful" comments to Slog).

]]> Matt from Denver http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873243 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873243 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 10:34:09 -0800 Comment by SeMe I hate yappy little dogs. Who breeds these things? Get a real dog.

]]> SeMe http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873248 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873248 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 10:37:44 -0800 Comment by Will in Seattle Let me check my tires.

]]> Will in Seattle http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873262 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873262 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 10:48:15 -0800 Comment by Matt from Denver Crap, didn't close out the html tags. Oh well.

]]> Matt from Denver http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873275 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873275 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 10:58:47 -0800 Comment by Kristi in Kitsap I "hope" someone "finds" the puppy, missing animal posters make me "sad." :(

I thought about the unnecessary quotes blog last week when I saw a sign taped to the Azteca salsa bar:

"Please try"
our new salsas

]]> Kristi in Kitsap http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873294 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873294 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 11:15:40 -0800 Comment by C. I love these mistakes. And that's a great blog. Another one of my favorites (favorites to ridicule) is when people (teenagers) use the ?! when really they just mean to have multiple exclamation marks. I know a girl who still does this at age 19, writing things like "OMG i am so excited to go see the Spice Girls?!"
Is she questioning her excitement? It makes me laugh.

]]> C. http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873308 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873308 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 11:27:45 -0800 Comment by Amelia Aw it's a little Havanese. Most adorable babies ever!

]]> Amelia http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873333 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873333 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 11:53:37 -0800 Comment by Buffalo Bob It puts the lotion on It's skin.

]]> Buffalo Bob http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873358 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873358 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 12:10:40 -0800 Comment by Mike @ 17 Sorry, I can't help myself....

You're right about the quote mis-usage of course. But your quote usage for the "smart" and "insightful" comments would probably be a better examples of sarcasm than of irony.

]]> Mike http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873396 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873396 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 12:42:04 -0800 Comment by Matt from Denver @ 25, you're right. Come to think of it, when quotes are used like this it's just as likely to be sarcastic as it is ironic. But I think in my use it's at least a little bit ironic, don't you think?

]]> Matt from Denver http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873402 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873402 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 12:44:58 -0800 Comment by Colin '...the "smart" and "insightful" comments would probably be a better examples of sarcasm than of irony.'

So true.

The popular conception of irony has really taken a beating since that sassy dame from Canada misrepresented it for all of us back in the 90s.

]]> Colin http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873407 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873407 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 12:47:25 -0800 Comment by ecce homo Tiny dogs are for fags

]]> ecce homo http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873466 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873466 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 13:22:36 -0800 Comment by NapoleonXIV Whenever one of my beloved pets goes missing, I'm always sure to attach a current photo and consult the latest edition of the Chicago Manual of Style before flier-ing the neighborhood.

]]> NapoleonXIV http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873483 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873483 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 13:36:00 -0800 Comment by Bellevue Ave When do you plan on getting rid of your tiny dog ecce?

]]> Bellevue Ave http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873500 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873500 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 13:44:02 -0800 Comment by Lake @25,26,27

Are you fucking kidding me? There is absolutely no way that they intentionally used quotes for any other effect than what they thought was correct punctuation.

]]> Lake http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873518 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873518 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 13:51:07 -0800 Comment by Jamey NapoleonXIV posts make me laugh.

hey, that quote blog is great!

Random notes can be fuuunny...
I really like this one too:
http://www.passiveaggressivenotes.com/

]]> Jamey http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873528 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873528 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 13:54:32 -0800 Comment by Matt from Denver @ 31, exactly. I didn't say they used the quotes correctly. There is a correct way to use quotes (such as when being sarcastic or ironic), and people who misunderstood that started using quotes because they think it's right. That's probably what happened here.

]]> Matt from Denver http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873543 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873543 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 14:04:02 -0800 Comment by Ben GODDAMN YOU, #32!! I CAN'T STOP READING THEM!

]]> Ben http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873703 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873703 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 15:41:00 -0800 Comment by Bison @25,26,27

You are all tedious and deserve to be smacked about the shoulders with dictionaries and VHS tapes of Reality Bites.

]]> Bison http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873932 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/12/have_you_seen_this_dog#c873932 Life Thu, 13 Dec 2007 18:38:48 -0800