Let's say every other day in the course of your comings and goings, you cross a bridge. Granted, there are other ways to get to the precipice on the other side, but keep in mind that climbing down a mountain takes time (not to mention the climb back up), and training a pet eagle to fly you across might not be the safest alternative. And to make things more interesting, let's say this is a swinging bridge. So every other day you make the trek back and forth across hanging boards to maintain life as you know it. Some days the bridge swings more than others; some days it shakes. But hey, it is a swinging bridge, after all.
And then, one crazy day, you almost drop something. As you crawl on all fours to gather your packages, you notice one of the underlying support ropes is a little loose. Not loose enough for the boards to come untied or loose enough for the bridge to break into a free-spirited swing, but nevertheless, loose.
The next few weeks you hesitate before stepping out, then slowly and gingerly make your way across. The bridge is unchanged. Some days it sways. Some days it shakes a little. But now you know the danger is lurking underneath.
One day you get the bright idea of adding a stronger support rope underneath the loose rope, but you quickly realize it's still not taut enough to hold all the boards together.
The bridge and its supports have not changed; your knowledge of it has.
Do you still keep crossing for supplies?
And then, one crazy day, you almost drop something. As you crawl on all fours to gather your packages, you notice one of the underlying support ropes is a little loose. Not loose enough for the boards to come untied or loose enough for the bridge to break into a free-spirited swing, but nevertheless, loose.
The next few weeks you hesitate before stepping out, then slowly and gingerly make your way across. The bridge is unchanged. Some days it sways. Some days it shakes a little. But now you know the danger is lurking underneath.
One day you get the bright idea of adding a stronger support rope underneath the loose rope, but you quickly realize it's still not taut enough to hold all the boards together.
The bridge and its supports have not changed; your knowledge of it has.
Do you still keep crossing for supplies?
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