THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2023 AESOP'S FABLES THE MOTHER AND THE WOLF

 THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2023 AESOP'S FABLES THE MOTHER AND THE WOLF

This week I’m taking some of Aesop’s Fables and writing about them  The fable for today was not one that I know - maybe you know it - The Mother and the Wolf.

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The Mother & the Wolf

Early one morning a hungry Wolf was prowling around a cottage at the edge of a village when he heard a child crying in the house. Then the wolf heard the Mother's voice say:

"Hush, child, hush! Stop your crying, or I will give you to the Wolf!"

Surprised but delighted at the prospect of such a delicious meal, the Wolf settled down under an open window, expecting every moment to have the child handed out to him. But though the little one continued to fret, the Wolf waited all day in vain. Then, toward nightfall, he heard the Mother's voice again as she sat down near the window to sing and rock her baby to sleep.

"There, child, there! The Wolf shall not get you. No, no! Daddy is watching and Daddy will kill him if he should come near!"

Just then the Father came within sight of the home, and the Wolf was barely able to save himself from the Dogs with a clever bit of running.

Do not believe everything you hear.

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WOW - “Don’t believe everything you hear”

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I guess lying is universal - whether it is the “little white lie” or the big LIE.  

Mom -” Johnny, did you eat the cookie on the counter”

Johnny - “not me”

I’m pretty sure the mother knows that Johnny ate the cookie, and I’m pretty sure that Johnny knows that Mom knows that he ate the cookie - but he doesn’t want to get into trouble by admitting it.  (Now if there are more children in the house, it might be such that Johnny didn’t eat the cookie, but for our example, we’ll assume this is only one child (Johnny) and the circumstances are such that it had to be Johnny.  Maybe Mom’s husband or spouse ate it on the way to work” 

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Last week was the State of the Union address.  I didn’t watch it or hear it, but different media did some fact-checking of the address.

Here is one example:

““I stand here tonight, after we’ve created, with the help of many people in this room, 12 million new jobs — more jobs created in two years than any president has created in four years.”

The analysis “This needs context. The economy added 12.1 million jobs‌ ‌between January 2021, the month‌ when‌ Mr. Biden took office, and this January. By raw numbers, that is indeed a larger increase in new jobs over two years than the number added over other presidents’ full four-year terms since at least 1945. But by percentage, the job growth in Mr. Biden’s first two years still lags behind that of his predecessors’ full terms.

So, Yes, the increase in the sheer number of jobs is good, but the percentage isn’t as good.  

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Sometimes (like in this example), statistics can be used to cover or distort the outcome.  

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Some years ago in a political campaign, the challenger said something like the incumbent missed 40% of his committee meetings; the incumbent’s ads said “the person attended 97% of all votes on the House of Representatives floor. That is comparing apples (committee attendance) to oranges (actual house votes).  

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A friend forwarded a political email to me.  One line was “I believe America was founded by geniuses but is now run by idiots. I believe you can't fix stupid, but you can vote them out of office.”  There is a legal description for “idiots”. I don’t think America is being “run” by “idiots”. So this politician is suggesting that “stupid idiots' ' are running the country.  While I understand his viewpoint, his language is not correct.  Don’t believe everything you hear!!!

Merriam-Webster Dictionary online says “The terms idiot, imbecile, moron, and their derivatives were formerly used as technical descriptors in medical, educational, and regulatory contexts. These uses were broadly rejected by the close of the 20th century and are now considered offensive.

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People say things to one group they wouldn’t say to others.  

In the fable, Mom says to the child ‘be good or I’ll give you to the wolf”.  And later she says “The wolf will not get you”. 

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I am guilty of some aspects of this.  I might say, “That is a pretty necklace on you” to a person but think, “That might be nice with a blue outfit but with your red outfit today that looks tacky”.  I don’t want to come right out and say, “That’s not a very pretty necklace for your red blouse”.  I think I might be wanting to be nice.

A phrase I learned at home was “if you can’t say nice, don’t say anything at all”.  Maybe I could rephrase the statement “That sure is an interesting necklace.” I might even add “Where did you get it”.  (I didn’t say it was pretty, but that it was interesting!!)

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Put the words you say in the correct context.  Learn to use “weasel words”.  Reports in the media use words about the “alleged criminal” - innocent until proven guilty.  

And, if you can’t be nice - be quiet!!!

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Don’t believe everything you hear!!

LOVE WINS
LOVE TRANSFORMS
KAREN ANNE WHITE, © FEBRUARY 16, 2023