Proverbs

From BASSO via email to TOWWAS, S.Dar and I today:

"Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you will not have to listen to his incessant whining about how hungry he is."

"Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you can sell him fishing equipment."

"Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime. Unless he doesn't like sushi...then you also have to teach him to cook."


My reply:

Give a man a fish, you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you will have given him purpose. And with this purpose, he will strive to achieve. And his achievements will make him important. And his importance will overwhelm him. And in his overwhelmed state, he will ask for help.

And the next thing you know, you've been tasked to compile and format data for a 47-page brief on the future of the fishing industry...muttering under your breath why you didn't just give him the damn fish and leave it alone already.



You know, I'd like to think I'm not really cynical about where I work, but just maybe...