Slog
News & ArtsThursday, August 13, 2009
Politics What's Mike McGinn Gonna Do About All the Rats?
Posted by Megan Seling on Thu, Aug 13, 2009 at 4:25 PM
Stranger reader Simac asks on Electionland:
"Seattle is full of rats. Way more than in other cities. The rats were happy before, and now they have everyone's weekly yard waste/compost bins at their disposal, too. At what point do rats become a public health issue, and what can the mayor's office do to control the rat population responsibly?"
Find out what McGinn says tomorrow, when he visits Electionland between noon and 2 pm to answer your questions.
Want to know about more than just the city's rat problem? Go ask your own question now!
2
My question is, where the hell does this person live? I live on cap hill right in the middle of the bars and homeless people, and I've never seen one. ever. So it doesn't seem like there's much of a rat problem to me...
3
uhmmm belltown 5 years cap hill 3 years and the only time i saw a rat was at a mccdonalds dumpster in renton
you sure you arent just a disgusting pig and/or modern day pied piper mr simac?
you sure you arent just a disgusting pig and/or modern day pied piper mr simac?
4
Dude, it's a port city.
Anyone stupid enough to claim they'd get rid of the rats would claim they'd get rid of drugs.
Not going to happen. Seriously.
Anyone stupid enough to claim they'd get rid of the rats would claim they'd get rid of drugs.
Not going to happen. Seriously.
5
We have way more rats than other cities? Seriously?! Do they all wear invisibility cloaks? The only rats I have seen are either pets or pet food.
6
I saw many rats when I worked downtown. Especially in Pioneer Square. But the largest rat I ever saw in Seattle was the size of a football and it crawled out from underneath a dumpster behind the Sheraton on 6th.
There is a reason it's called "Rat City" - even though we're technically talking about White Center when we use that name.
There is a reason it's called "Rat City" - even though we're technically talking about White Center when we use that name.
7
i saw my first seattle rat in a TREE a couple weeks ago, it was strange, my cat was confused too. I haven't seen any otherwise....must be those little black death boxes everywhere actually work....
8
Way more than in other cities.
uh, wft?! Have this person ever walked around Chicago where you can easily see rats the size of cats? I have yet to see such a site here.
Did the person mean ave rats instead of just rats? Even those are fewer these days. Many of the potential ave rats now sit around at westlake plaza.
uh, wft?! Have this person ever walked around Chicago where you can easily see rats the size of cats? I have yet to see such a site here.
Did the person mean ave rats instead of just rats? Even those are fewer these days. Many of the potential ave rats now sit around at westlake plaza.
9
@6: "There is a reason it's called "Rat City" - even though we're technically talking about White Center when we use that name."
Not necessarily. Per the wiki:
"There are a couple theories as to how "Rat City" got its name. Some people assume there was once a prolific rat problem in the 1940s, but RAT might have also been an acronym for Restricted Alcohol Territory, which Seattle was designated as during WWII. Unincorporated areas such as White Center were a draw for servicemen in part because of less stringent liquor regulations. Additionally, a military Relocation and Training (RAT) Center was located in the area during that period. ... An alternate scenario for the moniker is that the name refers to the "rink rats" who roller skated at the Southgate Skate Center (which still stands)."
Not necessarily. Per the wiki:
"There are a couple theories as to how "Rat City" got its name. Some people assume there was once a prolific rat problem in the 1940s, but RAT might have also been an acronym for Restricted Alcohol Territory, which Seattle was designated as during WWII. Unincorporated areas such as White Center were a draw for servicemen in part because of less stringent liquor regulations. Additionally, a military Relocation and Training (RAT) Center was located in the area during that period. ... An alternate scenario for the moniker is that the name refers to the "rink rats" who roller skated at the Southgate Skate Center (which still stands)."
15
Okay, I generally hate those "you Seattleites don't know what a real city is like" posts, but I would invite Simac to come to NYC some day. Seattle does not have a rat problem.
16
While Chicago has a port, it isn't what anyone would call a port city, except dipshits like Will. Chicago is famous for railyards and stockyards, not ships. their port moves less value than Anacortes.
Professional curmudgeon Emmett Watson used to hunt rats for the government in downtown Seattle during the Depression. Five cents a carcass, 25 cents if it had plague, if I recall correctly.
Professional curmudgeon Emmett Watson used to hunt rats for the government in downtown Seattle during the Depression. Five cents a carcass, 25 cents if it had plague, if I recall correctly.
17
What do yard waste bins have to do with the rat population?
Before yard waste bins, there were trash cans, and I don't think a rat gives two shits about which one contains his dinner.
Before yard waste bins, there were trash cans, and I don't think a rat gives two shits about which one contains his dinner.
18
As the leading “general cargo” port on the Great Lakes, the Port of Chicago moves over 26 million tons of natural resources and other goods produced throughout the Midwest and the world annually, generating directly or indirectly thousands of jobs.
19
I've seen some critters while bicycle commuting. Particularly after dark. The only rats I ever saw were in Bellevue. Near, I kid you not, the Mormon temple. Seattle on the other hand is the land of raccoons.
20
WIS is correct - many parts of Seattle do indeed have a significant rat presence (and a lot of them are gigantic descendants of Norway rats).
Solution: fava beans and a nice Chianti.
Solution: fava beans and a nice Chianti.
23
I've lived here for 10 years and have seen maybe 3 rats in that time. We don't have a city-wide rat epidemic, and we certainly aren't worse than most major cities.
24
@16 - fine, you ignore the special qualities of port cities (easy supplies of grain, ships carrying rats to/from other locations, storage facilities filled with fish and produce that gets thrown out and then consumed by rats) and I'll live in the real world.
Advertisement
Most Commented on Slog
-
Hating People Doesn't Make Them Thinner by Jen Graves
-
Los Angeles Gay Bar Bans Bachelorette Parties Until Marriage Equality Is Attained by David Schmader
-
Fill in the Blank by Grant Brissey
-
This Reminds Me of the Great Calculator Scare of the Late '70s/Early '80s by David Schmader
-
Idiot Tries to Defend Bigoted Anti-Gay-Marriage Preacher on Anderson Cooper by Paul Constant
-
Six Moms with Too Much Time on Their Hands and a Shitty Website Decide to Fight Gay Superheroes by Paul Constant
-
Why Mayor McGinn's Wife Canceled Her Family's Seattle Times Subscription by Eli Sanders
-
What the Hell Is Wrong With Seattle's Pride Parade? by Dominic Holden
-
The Saturday Morning News by Unpaid Intern
-
NYC Man Ticketed for Not Riding in the Bike Lane by Jonathan Golob
RSS
Facebook
Twitter
Comments (25) RSS