A Nebraska Republican state senator is being mocked for his suggestion that some school children are now identifying as either cats or dogs — i.e. furries — demanding their own litter boxes, and defecating on the floor in protest when they aren’t provided a place to relieve themselves.

Yes, truth is indeed stranger than fiction.

The Washington Post reports:

During a televised debate over a Nebraska school funding bill on Monday, Republican state Sen. Bruce Bostelman brought up an issue he found particularly troubling: furries.

“Schoolchildren dress up as animals — cats or dogs — during the school day; they meow, and they bark,” he said. “And now schools are wanting to put litter boxes in the schools for these children to use. How is this sanitary?”

A floor speech from Nebraska State Senator Bruce Bostelman that “is about something called furries.”

Just gonna leave this here: pic.twitter.com/drn6jUgCXf

— Jon Kipper (@jonnykip21) March 28, 2022

Furries it should be noted, are “people who identify with or are interested in anthropomorphic or cartoon animals. People in the fandom often wear costumes and interact with their community online or at conventions.”

Bostelman later walked his comments back, suggesting that he had merely sought to bring a troubling trend to the attention of his legislative colleagues:

“It was just something I felt that if this really was happening, we needed to address it and address it quickly.”

But despite his backtracking on the issue of furries, Bostelman still received a whirlwind of social media mockery and scolding.