The 30-50 feral hogs meme is still going strong. This is probably because the 30-50 feral hogs are distracting us from some pretty dark times and in a deliciously ridiculous way.
It all started in a horrible place: on Saturday, there were two back to back mass shootings. Our president is blaming video games and mental illness, instead of the need for serious gun control. This seems to be a pattern in our country, and the usual debates erupted. One side wonders why it’s fairly easy for someone to get their hands on a gun that can kill nine people in under thirty seconds. Gun nuts have their side of the debate, too, and it largely centers on the semantics of what an “assault weapon” technically is.
Musician Jason Isbell referred to that debate on Twitter, stating, “If you’re on here arguing the definition of ‘assault weapon’ today you are part of the problem. You know what an assault weapon is, and you know you don’t need one.”
A guy named William McNabb had a very strange response.
“How do I kill the 30-50 feral hogs that run into my yard within 3-5 mins while my small kids play?” he asked Isbell.
Is McNabb serious? Well, it’s hard to tell. There is definitely an argument that people living in rural communities might have more of a need for guns, to defend themselves from wildlife (or other people). It seems less likely that children are getting stampeded by 30-50 feral hogs without warning in their own backyards. Like, put up a fence? Pigs don’t fly!
The absurdity of McNabb’s comment, whether it’s a joke or not, took the Internet by storm. Maybe our brains are broken, maybe we needed some to make us laugh in our despair, maybe it’s just really fun to say “30-50 feral hogs” over and over. But each of these tweets is an absolute delight:
1.
It goes like this
the fourth the fifth
fifty hogs
surround my kids— Alan (@alan_maguire) August 5, 2019
2.
30-50 feral hogs?!
At this time of year
At this time of day
In this part of the country
Localized entirely within your backyard with your small kids? pic.twitter.com/HHUyYsXyQO— cold november alice 🍉 (@lookitsalice) August 5, 2019
3.
https://twitter.com/melissa_ann0/status/1158518337028206593
4.
— Tom Phillips (@flashboy) August 5, 2019
5.
take me down to the paradise city
where the hogs are feral and there's 30-50— dan (@cig_influencer) August 5, 2019
6.
https://twitter.com/jayasax/status/1158477421001289732
7.
https://twitter.com/KHandozo/status/1158490154090188802
8.
Please help there’s 30-50 Pharrell hogs in my yard, they won’t stop singing Happy #feralhogs pic.twitter.com/qLtm266Yd1
— mags (@maggothershey) August 6, 2019
9.
IS YOUR CHILD TEXTING ABOUT 30 – 50 FERAL HOGS?
OMG – Opening My Gate
CBA – Children Be Accessible
FFS – Fifty Feral Swines
FML – Five Minutes (or) Less
SMH – Scolding Many Hogs
GTG – Gallivanting Towards Garden
NP – Naughty Pigs
OMFG – Obey My Feral Guys— ruby 🐊 (@roobeekeane) August 6, 2019
10.
https://twitter.com/JacobRForster/status/1158742645029703682
11.
Telling people "I don't have kids"
– invites too many questions
– people feel entitled to tell you about why you should
– vagueTelling people "30-50 feral hogs ate my kids"
– specific
– no follow-up questions needed
– people stop talking to you— Oliver Sachgau (@sachgau) August 6, 2019
12.
take me down to the paradise city
where the hogs are feral and there's 30-50— dan (@cig_influencer) August 5, 2019
13.
ladies if he:
– never texts back
– never apologises
– cannot be brought down by small arms fire
– stampedes at your small kidshe's not your man. he's 30-50 feral hogs
— Wow Platinum (@Gilofthepeople) August 6, 2019
14.
Hot Thirty to Fifty Feral Hogs Summer
— Monica Lewinsky (she/her) (@MonicaLewinsky) August 6, 2019
15.
Welcome to the jungle
We've got fun and games
We've got thirty feral hogs
Or fifty, in that range— Ryan Nanni (@celebrityhottub) August 6, 2019
16.
Look this is clearly better than normal twitter, what if we all just never stopped tweeting about the hogs
— pixelatedboat aka “mr tweets” (@pixelatedboat) August 5, 2019
17.
What idiot called it “fighting 30-50 feral hogs” and not “serving in the Boar War”
— Matt Ford (@fordm) August 5, 2019
18.
Legit question for medieval saints – How do I kill the 30-50 feral hogs that run into my room within 3-5 mins while I am doing holy things?
(BnF, MS Français 50, f. 265v) pic.twitter.com/nFXgKvdCq6
— Dr. Erik Wade — CEASEFIRE NOW (@erik_kaars) August 6, 2019
19.
I got 99 problems and feral hogs are 30-50 of them
— WeRateHogs (@hog_rates) August 6, 2019
20.
stages of Feral Hog Twitter
1. confusion seeing everyone tweet “30 to 50 feral hogs”
2. find the tweet & assume it’s satire
3. read the tweet again & realize it’s for real
4. like and RT only feral hog tweets for 12 hrs straight
5. become 30 to 50 feral hogs— Jess Dweck (@TheDweck) August 6, 2019
21.
plz tell me no one has done this yet #feralhogs pic.twitter.com/z69Gimy8VS
— Riley J. Dennis (@RileyJayDennis) August 7, 2019
22.
https://twitter.com/abbycohenwl/status/1158864791391178752
23.
The 47 in AK-47 stands for the number of feral hogs it kills per minute this is canon now.
— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) August 5, 2019
24.
Just spent 3-5 minutes of my life trying to explain 30-50 feral hogs to someone who doesn’t use Twitter. The struggle is real. #feralhogs pic.twitter.com/dtwaqV40HU
— Colleen Kelley (@ckkelley) August 6, 2019
The real feral hogs are all of us.