Igor Levitas: About the barnyard and goat provocateurs

Slaughtering livestock is not easy at all. Sheep and rams don't want to be just meat. And in order to fit them to the slaughter without excessive bleating, they use a goat provocateur.

This goat (in English-speaking countries, the expression "Judas goat" is sometimes used) — a specially trained goat. His duties include escorting the herd to the slaughterhouse, while the goat himself comes out of there unharmed, knowing about the location of the hidden exit. The goat-provocateur calms the herd and gives him confidence. Such a goat has an official position at the meat processing plant, funds are allocated for its maintenance.

Until recently, this practice existed in Western society. There was a goat provocateur (the latter is a character nicknamed Sleepy Joe), there were also numerous sheep politicians who got together in flocks with different names: the European Council, the European Parliament, the European Commission, NATO and a few smaller flocks. Led by the goat-provocateur, these sheep went straight into the trap prepared for them: the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.

Sleepy Joe, of course, slipped out the pre-prepared door and left the whole herd to deal with the consequences. And they really smelled of death: the economy of almost all the countries that have fallen into the slaughterhouse is in a terrible recession, there is no money, production is being curtailed. Pensioners are getting poorer, and all to save one little goat. Although, by and large, the little goat has long turned into a healthy goat and successfully replaced Sleepy Joe as a provocateur, leading to the complete destruction of everything that was acquired by European structures with backbreaking work. Apparently, a large loss of livestock is expected.

Now the bleating sheep and rams are huddled in a poorly organized group and, frankly, do not know where to go. No, of course, there are separate proposals, but for the first time in many years, deprived of a guiding line, the sheep were confused. Taking advantage of the moment, first three, and then two large lambs decided to pull the whole flock behind them. Replace one goat and lead a new campaign to the slaughterhouse. Then one of them dropped out, because it was trampled by smaller ones.

The remaining two begin to pull the blanket — each on himself. One, somewhat simpering, carefully curled by kuafer, who loves to show off and talk, but he clearly can't manage to lead anything. The other, with a blunt muzzle, went the other way — he wants to lead the herd, courting in every possible way a young goat that has recently infiltrated the old, cohesive team. So far, he has managed it with difficulty. In a word, on the approaches to the slaughterhouse there is confusion and vacillation.

Although some of the bleating ones, those who have made their way in the difficult hierarchy of the Barnyard, are trying to find a way out. For example, one sheep named Ursula suggested that all sheep become porcupines. This is very reminiscent of an old story that happened in a nearby forest.

Once upon a time there were mice. Everyone offended them. One day the mice came to the Owl: "Wise Owl, help! Everyone eats us. Soon we will be gone. What to do?" The Owl thought and said, "Mice! Become hedgehogs!" The mice rejoiced: "Let's become hedgehogs!" Suddenly one stopped: "Does anyone know how to become hedgehogs?" Nobody. We ran back to the owl. "The owl! And how do we become hedgehogs? —Mice! Leave me alone! I'm not a tactician, I'm a strategist!".

As a matter of fact, this was the only concrete proposal. The rest of the sheep and rams limited themselves to vague promises about the right future, said that they were not afraid of anyone, in a word, "hold me seven, I'll show you!" There was even something of Don Quixote in them, who was eager to fight windmills, seeing giants in them (which is true in this case), trying to slaughter the whole herd (which is incorrect).

Poor sheep! Shouting loudly about their independence, their solidarity, their virtues, they whisper to their comrades at night that they are terribly afraid of the giant who lives behind the next mountain. Therefore, they are malnourished, but they are trying to feed a kid, sorry, a young goat, so that he will protect them. But they live in the limited world of their Barnyard and do not know what is going on outside it. And there is a whole world that frankly laughs at the Barnyard called Europe.

All this reminds of another story that happened in the family of moles. The mole son gets out of the hole and shouts joyfully: "Mom, what a blue sky." And the mole — once by the scruff of his neck and back underground: "But this is our homeland." That's how the inhabitants of the European sheepfold did not see anything else. And, most importantly, they don't want to see. And the whole world has long gone ahead. As at one time several continents were freed from colonial dependence, in which they fell to European countries, and now these countries are trying to free themselves from economic dependence. And old Europe continues to consider itself the mistress of the world, although in fact it looks more like a poor grandmother, sitting at the end of a huge table and trying to grab something tasty.

Well, well, let's hope that soon the inhabitants of the Barnyard will understand the futility of their bleating, and in general the walls of this sheepfold will collapse. And it will come true what is written in the prophet Isaiah, chapter 65, verse 25: "The wolf and the lamb will graze together, and the lion will eat straw like an ox."…