The Ant And The Grasshopper
POLITICAL ANTS AND GRASSHOPPERS |
Is There a Difference??
You know I was only just thinking to myself the other day that...the Aussies have been a little 'politically-comedically' quiet of late, and then..this one arrives.
Funny!! I just love Aussie political humor it has a way of bringing the 'tall political poppy syndrome' down to a reasonable fits all kind of size.
Well if you are not an Aussie you may well not know who some of the people mentioned are, but let me assure you of two things...
1. It will make you giggle, and
2. There probably are exactly the same 'political personalities' lurking around your own country's halls of government..have a read and see what I mean.
This one is a little different....
Two Different Versions.... Two Different Morals | The Ant and The Grasshopper
- Image by laurakgibbs via Flickr
OLD VERSION
The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away..
Come winter, the ant is warm and well fed. The grasshopper has no food or shelter, so he dies out in the cold.
MORAL OF THE STORY: Be responsible for yourself!
MODERN VERSION
The ant works hard in the withering heat and the rain all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away.
Come winter, the shivering grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while he is cold and starving.
Channels 7, 9 and 10,the ABC and SBS show up to provide pictures of the shivering grasshopper next to a video of the ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food.
Australia is stunned by the sharp contrast.
How can this be, that in a country of such wealth, this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?
Kermit the Frog appears on Oprah with the grasshopper and everybody cries when they sing, 'It's Not Easy Being Green.'
Acorn stages a demonstration in front of the ant's house where the news stations film the group singing, 'We shall overcome.' Cardinal George Pell then has the group kneel down to pray to God for the grasshopper's sake.
Prime Minister Rudd condemns the ant and blames John Howard, Robert Menzies, Capt James Cook, and the Pope for the grasshopper's plight.
Bob Brown exclaims in an interview on Today Tonight that the ant has gotten rich off the back of the grasshopper, and calls for an immediate tax hike on the ant to make him pay his fair share.
Finally, Labor in conjunction with the Greens draft the Economic Equity & Anti-Grasshopper Act retroactive to the beginning of the summer.
The ant is fined for failing to hire a proportionate number of green bugs and, having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is confiscated by the Government and given to the grasshopper.
The story ends as we see the grasshopper and his free-loading friends finishing up the last bits of the ant's food while the government house he is in, which, as you recall, just happens to be the ant's old house, crumbles around them because the grasshopper doesn't maintain it.
The ant has disappeared in the snow, never to be seen again.
The grasshopper is found dead in a drug related incident, and the house, now abandoned, is taken over by a gang of spiders who terrorize the ramshackle, once prosperous and once peaceful, neighborhood.
MORAL OF THE STORY: Be careful how you vote in 2011.
Now, if you are the smart 'ant type person' you will let your other 'ant' type friends know about this - and hey, why not pass this on to all the other ants you know.
Don't bother talking to any grasshoppers about it because they wouldn't understand it, anyway.
Celebrate Life With An Army Of Ants!
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The ceremonies were kept secret and are directed by a “Birraark” or sorcerer, usually an old man. The candidates are instructed in the history of their Totem and on the power of the Birraark. They were initiated into the mystery of the Totem, usually accompanied by an ordeal such as circumcision and then they were tattooed with a seal of identity that marks them for a given Totem and a given generation in that Totem. In this way is constructed the simple system of relationship of the aboriginal Australian before British colonization. The mother took a predominant role, for descent was almost always reckoned through females. Parent, child, brother and sister were the only recognized relationships. Rudimentary as this system may appear to be, it is widely spread among the Malay Archipelago and prevails widely among primitive peoples everywhere.
Doug@discount men’s shoes´s last blog ..Workout Inspiration Part Three
Hey Doug …
Deep man, deep but interesting nevertheless ..thank you for your comment.
Cheers
Lorrette
The Totem group was the real social unit of the aboriginal Australian. The Totem is not an Australian word but it is generally accepted to designate the name of an institution which is found everywhere among primitive people. The Totem group is primarily a group of people distinguished by the sign of a natural object, such as an animal or tree, who may not intermarry with one another — this is the first rule of primitive social organization; its origin is lost in antiquity (“Alcheringa”) but its object is certainly to prevent the intermarriage of close relatives. Marriage takes place between men and women of different Totems; the husband belongs to all the women of his wife’s totem and the wife belongs to all the men of the husband’s totem at the same time that a communal marriage is established between the men and women of the two different Totems – the men and women being of the same generation. This presents a most valuable objective lesson in social history. There are no unmarried couples; marriage for them is part of the natural order into which they are born.
Hey Mark
First off let me say thank you for what I believe is an amazing bit of information. Wow, tradition never ceases to amaze – very interesting, thank you again.
Cheers
Lorrette
Before the colonization of Australia, The aboriginal Australian understood neither the cultivation of the land nor the rearing of sheep and cattle. The dingo was their only “domestic” animal. They took shelter in caves and in primitive huts. They had no food but the natural products of the earth. They knew a very primitive form of fire-making and their traditional cooking was very crude. They have no knowledge of metal work. Their weapons were the flint-headed spear, the axe and the wooden boomerang. They wore no clothing at all. Living like this on the point of starvation may have gone on for thousands of years.
John thank you, both you and Mark from absworkouthelp.com have shared a similarly interesting snippet of information with us.
Cheers
Lorrette
I love this story, the moral of the story is true, keep it up .
Alberta Business Plans´s last blog ..Government of Canada Grants $900,000 in Funding to Viandes Laroche Inc
Hi There Alberta
Thanks for your comment – this actually has been a most popular post.
Cheers
Lorrette
I don’t think it is too far from reality. It could be adapted to a US version, by bailing out the grasshopper, because he is just too big to fail, which in turn causes the ants money to loose value. Thanks for the nice post.
Alberta Business Plans´s last blog ..Government of Canada Grants $900,000 in Funding to Viandes Laroche Inc
Excellent thought!! thanks for visiting and for your thoughtful comment on the post.
Cheers
Lorrette
Both story is great and have worth to learn about political stunts.
Thank you Nick, yes they certainly do highlight the ‘political stunts’ our pollies may be pulling.
Take care
Lorrette
Hahaha! Nice version! I love it! Though, i must admit, there is one time i cursed the ant for being stupid and not voicing his right! Hehe! You can get a lot of moral lesson from this. Hope you don’t mind me if i copy this and share it to my friends as well do you?
Sammy Holiday´s last blog ..Holiday Cottage in Cornwall
Hi Sammy
Pleased you got so much enjoyment out of this post. Yep there are times you felt that the ant needed a good shake. Please feel free to share it with your friends, I am flattered.
Celebrate Life
Lorrette
Ha ha, that was a fun and witty post! And yes, don’t you worry, there are plenty of the same characters and personalities of politicians in every country. ha, that is for sure!
Chris@Tires on Sale´s last blog ..Bridgestone Motorcycle Tires
Hear, Hear Chris!! Thanks for the comment and pleased we made you laugh.
Celebrate Life Laughing…til it hurts!
Lorrette
I always enjoyed the cartoon version of the ant and the grasshopper, which they used to play on Sunday mornings every so often.
The Modern Version, however, is pretty funny, although I don’t think it is too far from reality. It could be adapted to a US version, by bailing out the grasshopper, because he is just too big to fail, which in turn causes the ants money to loose value, forcing him to go broke…
Mmmmm! John those are interesting words and thoughts, thank you.
Cheers
Lorrette
Politics are a headache and funny sometimes, it depends on the perspective you see things. In this case, the modern contrasts suits well for them. (Grasshopers)
Hear, hear Sarah…thank you!
Cheers
Lorrette
There is an grasshopper on my patio and it appears that his leg is broken.How long will he live? And is it possible for it to heal?
I found your question interesting so I set about to see if I could find the answer – but it seems there is no answer out there as to whether a grasshoppers’s broken leg would heal. I personally think think not, but I could be wrong. Thanks for the comment though.
Cheers
Lorrette
Both story is great and have worth to learn about political stunts. Which is used by candidates in during the election time. It means we should be aware, about the candidate, to whom we are voting.
You got right there Paisley…’being careful who we vote for’ is a timely warning.
Cheers
Lorrette
nice story thanks for sharing.. moral of the story are very much true. good luck on the upcoming election and lets vote wisely.
WISELY \Wise”ly\, adverb In a wise manner; prudently; judiciously; discreetly; with wisdom.
Hahaha.
Hey Michael..thanks and I agree about the ‘lets vote wisely’ too
Cheers
Lorrette
i think the moral of the first story is very nice and should follow everyone that be responsible for yourself. nice post keep posting such a nice stories.
How right you are Sarika – thank you for your lovely comment.
Cheers
Lorrette