Humans are mean sometimes...

[Ashlynn Rose]

I just had to rant about this. So I'm sitting in a lounge in the science building at my college, minding my own business. I can see out into the hallway, and a professor is walking by. She looks down at the floor and says, "sorry, buddy, but you have to go," and stomps on something before I can even move. I know what just happened, and stare at her in mingling anger and disgust. She sees me staring as she waits for the elevator and seems confused.

Once she's gone, I get up and look at what she killed. It's a beautiful wolf spider of some kind. Why would you kill it? You're never going to see it again. It's not going to hurt you. UGGHHH! Humans make me angry.

 

[cold blood]

I can relate....end of summer my bass fishing league took a pic of everyone for the website....We are all standing on the piers, a good 75 of us...in front of me i see a big beautiful fishing spider walk up....without warning, another guy steps over and steps on it.....he looked at me all crazy when i subsequently went off on a verbal tirade in his direction.....so sad.

 

[Torech Ungol]

That's likely a human being ignorant, not mean. Educate her, let her know why that was a stupid thing she did. Maybe she'll appreciate the knowledge, and maybe she can help educate others. The more people learn about spiders, the less likely they are to cause them harm.

 

[Ashlynn Rose]

That's likely a human being ignorant, not mean. Educate her, let her know why that was a stupid thing she did. Maybe she'll appreciate the knowledge, and maybe she can help educate others. The more people learn about spiders, the less likely they are to cause them harm.

I've tried to do that before, and people do not appreciate it. My high school classmates did not appreciate me swooping in to save spiders from them, or my insisting that they wouldn't hurt them. They all thought I was crazy for taking the spiders outside or into a disused hallway.

Plus, it would be awkward if I had her for a class later and she only knew me as the weird spider girl.

 

[NYAN]

I've tried to do that before, and people do not appreciate it. My high school classmates did not appreciate me swooping in to save spiders from them, or my insisting that they wouldn't hurt them.

And? Life is better when you stop caring what other people think. If they don’t like what you feel is the right thing to do and what you believe in, then they can sit on a cactus. Seriously though, what’s their gripe with you doing something so harmless to them?

Plus, it would be awkward if I had her for a class later and she only knew me as the weird spider girl.

This is a great title to be blessed with. Society is so strange. You won’t know these people in a matter of years also, so these titles are irrelevant.

Anyway, the answer to your first question as to why she did this is that people suck. For some reason she felt that it’s presence was unwanted. This comes from the negative stigma which society has given spiders. People fear or dislike them, and as a result others do as well.

 

[Ashlynn Rose]

And? Life is better when you stop caring what other people think. If they don’t like what you feel is the right thing to do and what you believe in, then they can sit on a cactus. Seriously though, what’s their gripe with you doing something so harmless to them?



This is a great title to be blessed with. Society is so strange. You won’t know these people in a matter of years also, so these titles are irrelevant.

Anyway, the answer to your first question as to why she did this is that people suck. For some reason she felt that it’s presence was unwanted. This comes from the negative stigma which society has given spiders. People fear or dislike them, and as a result others do as well.

I know, I know. It never stops me from trying to save them, but I'm a sensitive person, so people disliking me still bothers me. It's just how I am.

 

[Anoplogaster]

Yeah, people most often DON’T appreciate the “lecture” due to a natural defensive response. They’ll likely debate you, if not just try to pin YOU as the crazy one (even though you should probably question the mental state of people who kill senselessly). But at the very least, they’ll probably be less likely to do it in the future because they’ll be looking to avoid another confrontation from a “crazy spider person.” If you can alter their behavior at least to that extent, you’ve done your part

 

[The Snark]

"sorry, buddy, but you have to go," and stomps on something before I can even move

another guy steps over and steps on it

The Lucifer principle in action. To some, an evil to be removed, to others, the bringer of light that can educate.

 

[SonsofArachne]

I was in the break room at work when a house centipede ran out from under the table and headed for the vending machines. The only other person in the room told me to kill it. As it ran past me, I told her that they eat things like roaches, silverfish, and bedbugs, and it wouldn't stay here if there wasn't something to eat. So she said " Oh, I didn't know that, let it go then".

Sometimes a little info can change peoples' minds - at least if they are open-minded.

 

[Torech Ungol]

Right. Do nothing, and nothing changes. Say something, and *maybe* you change a mind, or at least open it.

As with all things, tact is important here. "Why did you do that, you idiot?!" will be much less effective than "Not only is that spider harmless, but they also eat many dangerous pests that can and do kill hundreds of thousands of people each year. In addition..."

 

[Quetzalcoatl Nyarlathotep]

I cry when that happens. Spiders are as precious as children to me. When I see someone kill one, I feel a great sadness and pain in my heart. It's like I failed them as their protector and guardian. The first thing I tell someone after meeting them is to never kill a spider in my presence. I break down uncontrollably in anger and tears.

The Lucifer principle in action. To some, an evil to be removed, to others, the bringer of light that can educate.

A bringer of fate my friend. We should all make an effort to save as many as possible from the ignorant. I've always had luck educating people. Get them fascinated, and they lose the phobia.

 

[The Snark]

Get them fascinated, and they lose the phobia.

"Unless they are really stupid." A quote from Frank Zappa in the context of, "Playing a guitar is like having sex. Once you learn you never forget. Unless you are..."

 

[lostbrane]

Ugh. This reminds me of a terrible event that I had to bear witness to some months ago, but might have proved to be illuminating. A L. hesperus had decided to make home by the front step of my parents condo. My mom (who learned to love tarantulas because I started to keep them) was terrified of it. I found out it lived behind the defunct doorbell ringer (of which now I realize maybe I should have lied about that... Little bit of a McKinsey moment there, eh?). I tried to convince her to let my dad or myself catch it and relocate it when it was out in the open but she was too worried that it was going to kill our cat. So, she busts the Raid out and I point blank refused to be the one to do it. She let loose a torrent of poison and jumped in fright of a spider that was clearly dying, which I thought was rather distasteful. She then got a good look at it convulsing and she started to feel bad about the whole thing so from now on at the very least I think she'll be much more willing to try and save it, rather than kill one next time...

Anyways, sorry to hear that OP, sucks when these beautiful creatures get snuffed out of existence for little to no reason.

 

[Quetzalcoatl Nyarlathotep]

Ugh. This reminds me of a terrible event that I had to bear witness to some months ago, but might have proved to be illuminating. A L. hesperus has decided to make home by the front step of my parents condo. My mom (who learned to love tarantulas because I started to keep them) was terrified of it. I found out it lived behind the defunct doorbell ringer (of which now I realize maybe I should have lied. Little bit of a McKinsey moment there, eh?). I tried to convince her to let my dad or myself catch it and relocate it when it was out in the open but she was too worried that it was going to kill our cat. So, she busts the Raid out and I point blank refused to be the one to do it. She let loose a torrent of poison and jumped in fright of a spider that was clearly dying, which I thought was rather distasteful. She then got a good look at it convulsing and she started to feel bad about the whole thing so from now on at the very least I think she'll be much more willing to try and save it, rather than kill one next time...

Anyways, sorry to hear that OP, sucks when these beautiful creatures get snuffed out of existence for little to no reason.

My condolences for your loss. I salute you sir.