What Are Furries?

This is all so ridiculous that it must be true. If you thought things were bad in the good old USA, take a look at what is going on in Australia.

You would think that people in Australia would have retained at least a semblance of sanity. Apparently not.

Children there have taken the next logical step beyond transgenderism and identify as animals. One would like to think that it’s all satire. One would like to think that the children are trying out for roles in the next Catwoman movie. Apparently not. If you insist on looking at the bright side, consider that these teenage girls might also have identified as pussies-- and we can’t have that.

So, the Daily Mail reports from a Melbourne private school:

A teenage girl now reportedly identifies as a cat with the Melbourne private school where she attends supporting her 'animal behaviour'.

The year eight student does not speak during school hours, according to the report in the Herald Sun, despite being described as 'phenomenally bright'. 

A parent reportedly told the paper that the school let the girl behave like a cat as long as it did not distract her or other students.

'No one seems to have a protocol for students identifying as animals, but the approach has been that if it doesn't disrupt the school, everyone is being supportive,' a source close to the family told the newspaper. 

Maybe the girl is just making a political statement, enacting a reductio ad absurdum of the latest in transmania. We would like to think so. And yet, one wonders where the girl’s parents are during all of this. 

And besides, now that we happily put tampons in the boys restrooms, will we be putting litter boxes in all restrooms now? And besides, what happens when she goes into heat?

Apparently, the cat girl is not alone in her mania:

The Herald Sun also reported there was a boy who identified himself as a dog for a period of time and had been treated by Melbourne psychologist. 

In March it was reported that female students at an elite Brisbane private school were walking on all fours and cutting holes into their uniforms for tails because they identify as cats or foxes. 

'When a girl went to sit at a spare desk, another girl screamed at her and said she was sitting on her tail; there's a slit in this child's uniform where the tail apparently is,' a concerned parent told the Courier Mail.

The school denied the claim from the parent. 

Again, we would like to think that these children are offering up a cultural commentary, but perhaps not.

Of course, as part of the latest mania about cosplay, or dressing up in costume to play a role in some idiot drama, we do have a subculture of “furries.” That is, people who identify with or who pretend to identify with furry animals. They no longer have personae, but have fursonas. 

'Furries' is a sub-culture of people who identify as animals, often dressing up in costumes as part of what they call their 'fursonas'. 

There have been reports of students identifying as 'furries' at US schools. 

In January, a Michigan school district was forced to deny that litter boxes were provided to students who identify as 'furries' after a woman made the claim in a school board meeting last month.

District superintendent Michael E. Sharrow replied it was 'unconscionable' that he had to address the issue in an email to parents that was also posted on Facebook.

'Let me be clear in this communication. There is no truth whatsoever to this false statement/accusation! There have never been litter boxes within MPS schools,' Sharrow said.

But, have there been students who identify as cats and dogs? Enquiring minds want to know? Apparently, litter boxes are on step too far.

High school students notwithstanding, there are groups of adult furries, who get together in costume and who lick each other, or some such:

Furscience says fursonas are a form of 'self-expression' and 'creativity'.  

'Creating a fursona is a creative exercise, which can have a number of psychological benefits,' the site states.

'Inventing a character can help you think about who you are as a person and who you would like to become. 

'For example, if you've always stood out in school for being tall, having a giraffe fursona might help you feel more comfortable with your height.'

About half of furries worldwide are found in the US or Canada with Australia reported to have about one per cent of those participating in the trend.  

You knew that someone somewhere would declare that this form of cross-species dressing and play acting was therapeutic. 

It looks like Western civilization is in bigger trouble than I had thought.