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About

“Beating a dead horse”(a.k.a “flogging or punching a dead horse”) is an internet slang term often found in comments, discussion forums and image macros used for mocking unnecessary arguments, pointless discussions or acts.

Origin

According to the Wikipedia^[1] the first recorded use of the expression with its modern meaning is by British politician and orator John Bright, referring to the Reform Act of 1867, which called for more democratic representation in Parliament, an issue about which Parliament was singularly apathetic. Trying to rouse Parliament from its apathy on the issue, he said in a speech, would be like trying to flog a dead horse to make it pull a load. The Oxford English Dictionary cites The Globe, 1872, as the earliest verifiable use of flogging a dead horse, where someone is said to have “rehearsed that […] lively operation known as flogging a dead horse”.

From Urban Dictionary^[2]:

It doesn’t matter how much you want to continue riding beating a dead horse is not going to get you anywhere.

If something is already done and over with there is no point in still talking about it.

If something is already broken there is no point in trying to use it.

External References