Two parables

[crispini]

So one of my email buddies gets Parable #1, which pisses her off, so she fires it to one of her friends, who concocts Parable #2 (see reply) and fires it right back. Thoughts?

Parable #1
This is a little lengthy, but I thought it was worth sharing. We forget at times just what it means to live in America and have leaders that are willing to stand in the gap for others and do what is right,

A Good Explanation

The other day, my nine year old son wanted to know why we were at war. My husband looked at our son and then looked at me. My husband and I were in the Army during the Gulf War and we would be honored to serve and defend our Country again today. I knew that my husband would give him a good explanation.

My husband thought for a few minutes and then told my son to go stand in our front living room window. He told him: "Son, stand there and tell me what you see?"

"I see trees and cars and our neighbor's houses." he replied.

"OK, now I want you to pretend that our house and our yard is the United States of America and you are President Bush."

Our son giggled and said "OK."



"Now son, I want you to look out the window and pretend that every house and yard on this block is a different country" my husband said.

"OK Dad, I'm pretending."

"Now I want you to stand there and look out the window and see that man come out of his house with his wife and he has her by the hair and is hitting her. You see her bleeding and crying. He hits her in the face, he throws her on the ground, then he starts to kick her to death. Their children run out and are afraid to stop him, they are crying, they are watching this but do nothing because they are kids and afraid of their father. You see all of this son.... what do you do?"

"Dad?"

"What do you do son?"

"I call the police, Dad."

"OK. Pretend that the police are the United Nations and they take your call, listen to what you know and saw but they refuse to help.

What do you do then son?"

"Dad, but the police are supposed to help!" My son starts to whine.

"They don't want to son, because they say that it is not their place or your place to get involved and that you should stay out of it," my husband says

"But Dad...he killed her!!" my son exclaims.

"I know he did...but the police tell you to stay out of it. Now I want you to look out that window and pretend you see our neighbor who you're pretending is Saddam turn around and do the same thing to his children."

"Daddy...he kills them?"

"Yes son, he does. What do you do?"

"Well, if the police don't want to help, I will go and ask my next door neighbor to help me stop him." our son says.

"Son, our next door neighbor sees what is happening and refuses to get involved as well. He refuses to open the door and help you stop him," my husband says.

"But Dad, I NEED help!!! I can't stop him by myself!!"

"WHAT DO YOU DO SON?" Our son starts to cry.

"OK, no one wants to help you, the man across the street saw you ask for help and saw that no one would help you stop him. He stands taller and puffs out his chest. Guess what he does next son?"

"What Daddy?"

"He walks across the street to the old ladies house and breaks down her door and drags her out, steals all her stuff and sets her house on fire and then he kills her. He turns around and sees you standing in the window and laughs at you. WHAT DO YOU DO?"

“Daddy...."

"WHAT DO YOU DO?"

Our son is crying and he looks down and he whispers, "I close the blinds, Daddy."

My husband looks at our son with tears in his eyes and asks him..."Why?"

"Because Daddy.....the police are supposed to help...people who needs it…. and they won't help....You always say that neighbors are supposed to HELP neighbors, but they won't help either...they won't help me stop him...I'm afraid....I can't do it by myself ...Daddy.....I can't look out my window and just watch him do all these terrible things and…and......do nothing…. so....I'm just going to close the blinds....so I can't see what he's doing.. .....and I'm going to pretend that it is not happening."

I start to cry.

My husband looks at our nine year old son standing in the window, looking pitiful and ashamed at his answers to my husbands questions and he tells him ...."Son"

"Yes, Daddy."

"Open the blinds because that man.... he's at your front door..."WHAT DO YOU DO?"

My son looks at his father, anger and defiance in his eyes. He balls up his tiny fists and looks his father square in the eyes, without hesitation he says:

"I DEFEND MY FAMILY DAD!! I'M NOT GONNA LET HIM HURT MOMMY OR MY SISTER, DAD!!! I'M GONNA FIGHT HIM, DAD, I'M GONNA FIGHT HIM!!!!!"

I see a tear roll down my husband's cheek and he grabs my son to his chest and hugs him tight, and cries..."It's too late to fight him, he's too strong and he's already at YOUR front door son.....you should have stopped him BEFORE he killed his wife. You have to do what's right, even if you have to do it alone, before......it's too late." my husband whispers.

THAT scenario I just gave you is WHY we are at war with Iraq.

When good men stand by and let evil happen is the greatest EVIL of all.

Our President is doing what is right. We, as a free nation, must understand that this war is a war of humanity. WE must remove evil men from power so that we can continue to live in a free world where we are not afraid to look out our window. So that my nine year old son won't grow up in a world where he feels that if he just "closes" that blinds the atrocities in the world won't affect him. "YOU MUST NEVER BE AFRAID TO DO WHAT IS RIGHT......EVEN IF YOU HAVE TO DO IT ALONE!"

BE PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!

BE PROUD OF OUR TROOPS!!

SUPPORT THEM!!!

SUPPORT AMERICA!!

SO THAT IN THE FUTURE OUR CHILDREN WILL NEVER HAVE TO CLOSE THEIR BLINDS!

Parable #2

======================================================

The story goes more like this:

The father is looking out the window with his son and, for some reason, is telling him a story unfit for a 9-year old.

He is telling him the story of how the bad man who lives across the street killed his wife and children, though the event actually happened a while back—before the son was even born. At the time, the father’s father (the boy’s grandfather) was the one looking out the same window, but just watched as the slaughter occurred.

In fact, the grandfather’s friend, Donald (with his supplier Ronald) was the one who had provided the bad man with the gun with which he killed his wife and kids. Fortunately, before the house was left to the father by the grandfather, the occupants who rented the grandfather’s white house, as well as the rest of the neighborhood (let’s call it United Nations Estates) were able to isolate the bad man. His guns were removed and none of the neighbors would have anything to do with him.

However, those who had known the grandfather (let’s call them, Dick, Donald, and Paul) became increasingly angry that the grandfather had not stood up to the bad man when he had lived across the street from him. So these men whispered in the father’s ear and told him that the bad man had been given new guns, and since the assault weapons ban had been lifted, he now had extremely dangerous weapons that could kill lots of people with one ammo clip. And he could use these weapons very quickly, as quickly as 45 minutes.

The father’s neighbors in United Nations Estates knew better because, unlike the father, they had continued to live near the bad man the entire time, so they had observed his isolation from the rest of the neighborhood. However, the father, believing his father’s friends, (Dick, Donald, and Paul) decided that he had to do something about this bad man before he used his new weapons (which actually didn’t exist) on others.

So the father tells his 9-year old son the story below (“A Good Explanation”), which was the story that he had been told by Dick, Donald, and Paul.

His son is sad and depressed about the story and, given the situation, agrees that his father should do something about it.

So the father calls his housekeeper, cook, and gardener, who live across the tracks at the dilapidated apartments called Left Behind Villas. He uses all his charm and promises of college scholarships to convince them that their sons and daughters should fight the bad man. He provides the children from Left Behind Villas weapons (but doesn’t provide them with sufficient body armor) and sends them to kill the bad man.

The children go and spray the house with bullets. They don’t know that the unarmed bad man has some acquaintances visiting. These acquaintances—who carry guns because they can, given the concealed handgun law—don’t really like the bad man, but they feel sorry for him and his isolation. The bad man is killed. The children hit most of his acquaintances as well, but as they turn to leave, several of them are shot by the surviving acquaintances.

Then the bad man’s surviving acquaintances call all their friends and relatives from the neighborhood on the other side of town (let’s call it Middle East Oaks) and they now decide that what they had been told by their mayor (let’s call him M. Osama) about this neighborhood was true and now they will launch strikes against it. So United Nations Estates is now being targeted by men with guns from Middle East Oaks.

Information about the unprovoked killings by the children surfaces, noting that the bad man had no weapons of his own and that he was not an immediate threat.

The father realizes that he has made a mistake but refuses to admit it to anyone. Instead, he continues to tell his son that they did the right thing. Even though the bad man was not an immediate threat, he did atrocious things in the past. He doesn’t explain why his grandfather did nothing about it, but he can’t admit that it was wrong to invade this man’s house under present circumstances, thus starting a war with other previously uninvolved parties. After all, a father must always be consistent and clear even when reality intrudes.

Because the father has brought this war to United Nations Estates, he is now the one who is increasingly isolated. Other children are killed in both neighborhoods and animosities increase.

And for what?

[Swede]

1. Here's another.

Politics...Explained


A little boy goes to his dad and asks, "What are Politics?"

Dad says, "Well son, let me try to explain it this way:

1. I'm the head of the family, so call me The President.

2. Your mother is the administrator of the money, so we call her the Government.

3. We're here to take care of your needs, so we'll call you the People.

4. The nanny, we'll consider her the Working Class.

5. Your baby brother, we'll call him the Future.

Now think about that and see if it makes sense."

So the little boy goes off to bed thinking about what Dad has said.
Later that night, he hears his baby brother crying, so he gets up to check on him.
He finds that the baby has severely soiled his diaper. So the little boy goes to his
parent's room and finds his mother sound asleep. Not wanting to wake her,
he goes to the nanny's room. Finding the door locked, he peeks in the keyhole
and sees his father in bed with the nanny. He gives up and goes back to bed.

The next morning, the little boy says to his father, "Dad, I think I understand the concept of politics now."
The father says, "Good, son, tell me in your own words what you think politics is all about."
The little boy replies:

"The President is screwing the Working Class,

While the Government is sound asleep.

The People are being ignored

And the Future is in deep shit!"

[Jokinomx]

2. Interesting

I would be upset also with the first one. There are emails being sent all over this country pulling at peoples emotions yet not having credibility or sources for the information. My Mother was sent one recently supposedly an email from a father to his two sons.... my Mother fell for everything that was said. Of course it was pro war.... and pro chimp...


Your Friends response was excellent. Thanks for posting. :toast: