Monkey Business

This astute behavioral analysis recently was shared with me by a friend:

Start with a large cage containing five monkeys.

Inside the cage, place a set of steps, and hang a banana on a string above the top of the steps.

A monkey soon will start up the steps to grab the banana.

As soon as the monkey touches the steps, spray all the other monkeys with cold water.

When the other monkeys make the same attempt, spray each of them with cold water.

Afterwards, when a monkey tries to climb the steps, the other monkeys will attack him.

Now take away the cold water and remove one monkey from the cage, replacing him with a new one.

The new monkey sees the banana and starts to climb the steps, but all of the other monkeys attack him.

He quickly learns that, if he tries to climb the steps, he will be attacked.

Continue to remove each of the original five monkeys and replace them, one by one, with new monkeys.

Each new monkey is attacked when he goes toward the steps, and the previous newcomers enthusiastically take part in the group mugging.

None of the new monkeys have any idea why they are not permitted to climb the steps or why they are participating in the beating of the newest monkey.

No monkey ever again tries to go up the steps to get the banana.

Why not?

Because, and as far as they know, that is the way it has always been done.

And that, my friends and fellow citizens, too often is how many of us and our government operates.

-West Virginia Delegate Larry D. Kump, District #59 (Berkeley-Morgan counties)

Visit www.LarryKump.us & www.LarryKump.com for more of my thoughts about good governance issues.

And for sure and for certain, may God bless you all real good!