How Policy Begins

[allthumbs]

Start with a cage containing five monkeys.

 

Inside the cage, hang a banana on a string and place a set of stairs below it. Before long, a monkey will go up the stairs and start to climb towards the banana. As soon as he touches the stairs, spray all the monkeys with cold water.

 

After a while, another monkey will make the same attempt with the same results- all the monkeys get sprayed with cold water. Pretty soon, when another monkey tries to climb the stairs, the other monkeys will try to prevent it.

 

Now, turn off the cold water .

 

Remove one monkey from the cage and replace it with a new one. The new monkey sees the banana and wants to climb the stairs. To his surprise and horror, all the other monkeys attack him. After another attempt and attack, he knows that if he tries to climb the stairs, he will be assaulted.

 

Next, remove another of the original monkeys and replace it with a new one . The newcomer goes to the stairs and is attacked. The previous newcomer takes part in the punishment with enthusiasm.

 

Again, replace a third monkey with a new one . the new one makes it to the stairs and is attacked as well. Two of the four monkeys that beat him have no idea why they are not allowed to climb the stairs, or why they are participating in the beating of the newest monkey.

 

After replacing the forth and fifth original monkeys, all the monkeys that have been sprayed with cold water have been replaced. Nevertheless, no monkey ever again approaches the stairs. Why not ? Because as far as they know that’s the way it’s always been around here.

 

And that’s how policy begins…..

[Kiwi]

Pretty much.

[catbirdseat]

You have heard of taboos. That is how they are born.