Pin the tail . . .

Saturday. Sofa. Coffee.

When I was a child there was a game that we played at birthday parties. There was a large poster of a tail-less donkey on a wall.  The contestant was blindfolded, handed a donkey-tail with a pin on the end of it, and given the opportunity to attempt to properly attach the tail to the donkey without having the benefit of sight, but listening to the reaction of the onlookers for guidance, or misguidance.  I think this ubiquitous game is so common we all played it, or at least knew of it, despite the now ridiculous notion of turning a five year old loose swinging a straight pin in a crowd of other five year olds. I suppose they use velcro now. A lot safer for those who play or observe the game.

Some observers took delight in cheering on the contestant, guiding the sightless player with cheers of encouragement and yelling direction.  Others who wanted to claim the chocolate bunny prize for themselves would yell out misdirections, hoping to confuse the player, hoping that the tail would end up far from its proper place.

All who played, and all who watched, knew the object of the game. Be the first to pin the tail in its God-intended location and win the prize for yourself.

But nobody ever addressed the real problem.

That poor donkey's tail fell off.  He's got no tail. Most of the time the donkey suffers a stab wound in some unexpected part of his body.  Even if a blindfolded player pins the tail perfectly it is only a temporary fix.  The tail will be taken off so that the game can start all over again for a different player and a different prize. Without the tail-less donkey there can be no game at all.

Yeah I know, it's a silly thought about a fun children's game.  But it's Saturday morning.  Silly is okay.

We should be doing better than we are.  After all, we know who is to blame. We spend countless hours pinning the blame on the asses who are causing all our problems. The rich, the poor, the Christians, the Muslims, the liberals, the conservatives, the politicians, the big corporations, the immigrants, the bigots, the southerners, the northerners, the gays, the straights, the Democrats, the Republicans, Obama, Congress, judges, lawyers,referees who call ridiculous fouls against Retin Obasohan (yeah, it still stings).  Blind-folded we stab in the dark, listening to voices yelling direction, telling us where the blame should be pinned.

Meanwhile, the donkey still has no tail. 

And that's the way it will stay until we quit playing that other favorite childish game.  We all know it well.

The blame-game.

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