Any sensible person then call the cops to say that there is an injured alligator that needs to be taken care off one way or the other. You don’t just leave it injured.
I remember a sign in a small park in Florida “Warning! Don’t play with the alligators”. I was’t exactly tempted, but it’s a very American thing to think you have to put up a warning sign.
Obviously a repeat offender, still out on probation; just look at it’s tag. A real jail-bird.
Related stuff? We will never know…
You mean I’ll turn into Trump? No thanks. Hard pass.
Most likely the alligator went after someone’s pet and got a steak knife for its trouble. Alligator attacks on humans make the news, and I think someone would definitely mention the alligator making off with their knife.
Also, that’s a pretty impressive steak knife. The ones I have would snap before they even broke the skin.
I really hope there’s some Swamp Ahab missing a leg somewhere who’s the source of this knife…
Towards thee I roll, thou all-destroying but unconquering alligator; to the last I grapple with thee; from hell’s heart I stab at thee; for hate’s sake I spit my last breath at thee. Sink all coffins and all hearses to one common pool! and since neither can be mine, let me then tow to pieces, while still chasing thee, though tied to thee, thou damned alligator! Thus, I give up the steak knife!
Reminds me of the Bog Unicorn from Dragon Age: Inquisition.
Fixed that for ya.
I’m not saying your second scenario isn’t at all possible; there are, in fact, people who are just that abysmally stupid. Unfortunately.
But that immense stupidity still doesn’t give such a person any super-powers: no “super-stealth” to be able to creep up on a natural predator such as an alligator unnoticed, and no “super-strength” necessary to hold an alligator’s jaws shut with one hand.
Then there’s this; if someone is actually dumb enough to intentionally go attacking an alligator, a kitchen steak knife is probably one of the least effective weapons they could use.
That gator was a known troublemaker…an instigator.
I am not sure either is so.
Alligators seem quite peacful and sluggish when they are lying on the bank. They have been the apex predator since before the dinosaurs, and perhaps the don’t expect to be attacked. They also have relatively weak jaw-opening muscles, though the ones that close are tremendous: it is (allegedly) quite possible to hold an alligators mouth closed.
I haven’t tried this, of course. YMMV.
All these self-assured comments, and not even one person has considered the possibility that the gator might have stabbed himself. This is a cry for help, people!
None of us are; that’s the whole entire point.
Nobody knows what actually happened, and all we can do is postulate theories about what may have transpired.
We’ll likely never know.
Good day.
Here’s a struggle with a LITTLE one…
Yeeeeaaah…
I stand by my initial opinion:
If one happens to be a sadistic fuckwad looking for an animal to torture “for fun,” or whatever, there’s many far easier animals to go after, than a gator.
With just a freakin’ steak knife, no less.
Alligators are ambush predators. They look sluggish and peaceful until they are very suddenly not. Then you can very suddenly be missing a limb.
Are we victim-shaming alligators here?
Ooh, the poor widdle 'gator. Someone stuck a knife in its eye, but you are hurting its FEELINGS.
No, really, there is a serious point here. The original post was fairly neutral: Someone stuck a knife in an alligator. We don’t know details. It seems unreasonable to jump from that to Someone stuck a knife in an alligator in self defence. We will not be able to solve this on BoingBoing, but there is at least a reasonable suspicion the person attacked the alligator. They had a large, if unsuitable knife when they met. There seems to be no local hero saying “I saved my friend from an alligator with a kitchen knife”.
If we are going to have empathise with animals, let’s do it properly. And not just for the cuddly ones.
When I was attending The University of Florida, the married housing and daycare were practically across the street from Lake Alice, home to several gators for many years. CYA, ya know.
“Don’t tell me what to do! This is America! I do what I want! ARRRGGHH MY HAND!!! OH GOD, WHY DIDN’T ANYONE WARN ME? THERE OUTTA BE A LAW!”
