Revised:  10/19/2004

When You Can't Win For Losing!

In Rule #10 of my Thirteen Principles I emphasize the fact that history often repeats itself because we seem to do such a poor job of learning from our mistakes in the past.

One person who understood this very well was Founding Father Benjamin Franklin. Franklin often used stories, analogies, and indirection to convey his thoughts or illustrate a point. On at least one occasion, to illustrate the point that sometimes you just can't win for losing, or, as it is more commonly put, "You can please some of the people some of the time, but you can't please all of the people all of the time," Franklin used the incredibly effective fable below.

The occasion was Franklin's now famous essay that came to be known as Benjamin Franklin's Apology For Printers, which he published in the May/June issue of the Pennsylvania Gazette, 1731, in response to criticism over a paid advertisement that had appeared in his paper (Benjamin Franklin was the proprietor of the Pennsylvania Gazette).

[The words are in original Old-English form.]

A certain well-meaning man and his son were travelling towards a market town, with an ass [donkey] which they had to sell. The road was bad, and the old man therefore rid [rode], but the son went afoot. The first passenger they met asked the father if he was not ashamed to ride by himself and suffer the poor lad to wade along through the mire; this induced him to take up his son behind him. He had not travelled far when he met others, who said they were two unmerciful lubbers to get both on the back of that poor ass, in such a deep road. Upon this the old man gets off and let his son ride alone. The next they met called the lad a graceless, rascally young jackanapes to ride in that manner through the dirt while his aged father trudged along on foot; and they said the old man was a fool for suffering it. He then bid his son come down and walk with him, and they travelled on leading the ass by the halter; till they met another company, who called them a couple of senseless blockheads for going both on foot in such a dirty way when they had an empty ass with them, which they might ride upon. The old man could bear no longer. My son, he said, it grieves me much that we cannot please all these people. Let us throw the ass over the next bridge, and be no farther troubled with him.

Franklin ended by commenting that:

"Had the old Man been seen acting this last Resolution, he would probably have been call'd a Fool for troubling himself about the different Opinions of all that were pleas'd to find Fault with him: Therefore, tho' I have a Temper almost as complying as his, I intend not to imitate him in this last Particular. I consider the Variety of Humours among Men, and despair of pleasing every Body; yet I shall not therefore leave off Printing. I shall continue my Business. I shall not burn my Press and melt my Letters."

While Benjamin Franklin is widely recognized as one of the most influential early Americans, as well as one of the Founding Fathers of our country, he is perhaps not as well known as the great mind and intellect that he was. Benjamin Franklin was, in fact, considered one of the World's most preeminent scientist of his day (remember his famous experiment of flying a kite in a storm to prove the nature of electricity?). He was not just highly regarded in America, but during his time came to be one of the most recognized names in the World.

Franklin not only brought many innovations to the printing industry, with which he is most closely associated, but established the model for what was eventually to become the public library system. Franklin organized the first firefighting companies in America, which saved countless lives and property. Franklin invented the modern fireplace and stove, which later came to be known as the "Franklin Stove." Interestingly, he was offered a patent on his invention of the stove, but he refused, instead wanting his invention to go to the better good of mankind.

Much of the above information about Benjamin Franklin you can easily find on the Internet. However, a book that is a part of my library, and  considered to be one of the best works yet on the life of Benjamin Franklin, is: "The First American: The Life And Times Of Benjamin Franklin," by H.W. Brands.

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Last modified: October 19, 2004