Poems and Thoughts    by Frank Maurer

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The Dog That Went Too Far--An Allegory. Our farm needed a replacement watchdog. We viewed a homeless, nice looking German Shepherd cross. We all knew German Shepherds had their reputations, But we voted and made the choice to give him a chance. We needed a guard dog, the position high in our farm bureaucracy. All seemed to go well, but there were glimpses Of the possible predatory instincts of our nominee. True enough, one night we returned to find a large open pen Of communal rabbits had all been thoughtlessly slaughtered. With discussion, some said to shoot the dog on the spot, While others said that it should be banished or removed from the farm. Our rules and governance of the once stable farm Had been completely crippled and almost destroyed, Because so many innocent rabbits had been needlessly slaughtered. We needed to decide quickly so that no more such acts would occur. Being a humaine group, a nice isolated home was negotiated and found, And our farm managed to recoup and continue thriving. Even by running our farm in a procedural way, We were misled by the initial behavior of this dog. Our lesson learned was to be more prudent and careful In making decisions, concerning such an important station, Supporting the hierarchy of our democratically run farm society. Frank Maurer 13 February 2025 2115 Hours.