[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

“They’re floundering.”

It annoys me that “floundering” is now an accepted word! Ever since “Animal House” I guess. Actually, it goes a lot further back than that, centuries really. But to me, a flounder is a flatfish, and “to founder” is, well;

“foun·der
verb (used without object)
1.
(of a ship, boat, etc.) to fill with water and sink.
2.
to fall or sink down, as buildings, ground, etc.: Built on a former lake bed, the building has foundered nearly ten feet.
3.
to become wrecked; fail utterly: The project foundered because public support was lacking.
4.
to stumble, break down, or go lame, as a horse: His mount foundered on the rocky path.”

And those definitions make more sense in this case!
Well, back to reading the post,,,,,,,,,,,,, Sorry!

[Kaslin]

You should have gone to Merriam-Webster online.com. This is what I found

See flounder defined for kids »

Origin of FLOUNDER

Middle English, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Norwegian flundra flounder

First Known Use: 15th century

Other Fishes Terms

char, chum, ichthyology, smelt, tetra, turbot

Rhymes with FLOUNDER

bounder, founder, grounder, hounder, pounder, rounder, sounder

²flounder

intransitive verb

floun·deredfloun·der·ing \-d(ə-)riŋ\

Definition of FLOUNDER

1

: to struggle to move or obtain footing : thrash about wildly

2

: to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually

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²flounder

I belief this is what is meant with floundering.

founder is a completely different word