Once upon a time there was a guy named Fred who lived a sweet life, high on the hog. Life was good, or so he thought. For years Fred lived as though there was no tomorrow, and the times even seemed to prove that things always went up and always his way. Fred changed doctors every 4 or 8 years. They usually gave Fred what he wanted for recreational purposes, if you know what I mean, but also managed to keep him healthy in spite of himself. Then one day a doctor came who decided that the best way to keep Fred healthy was to give him a steady dose of poison. The poison was beautifully wrapped and had the backing of all sorts of pundits who extolled its validity and efficacy. Fred took the poison religiously for 8 years. By the end, his constitution was seriously compromised. In fact, there was a time when it looked like he might not survive at all, but then extraordinary measures were taken so Fred could go on living the high life, and that worked, sort of, for a while. Just at that time, a new doctor rolled into town and Fred thought he might find a new lease on life. The new doctor seemed seriously invested in allowing Fred to maintain his life style too, but he had a new radical approach. The cure-all, he expounded to all who would listen was to take only ½ the previous dose of poison. This compromise he proclaimed was the answer to Fred’s problems and for all of Fred’s friends who were in exactly the same boat. Fred and his friends, despite the warnings of those who were convinced that the only true cure was a full dose of poison, ecstatically embraced the new program without reservation. They all died.