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72 the philosophicallead..ram THERE WAS ONCE A LEADram who lived in a slaughterhouse and whose duty was to guide his kind to their deaths. The sheep never questioned his authority, and once he had organized them into columns for the convenience of their executioners , they would trot obediently behind him with downcast heads; and they were so docile, so meek, that they did not notice when he slipped out of line at the right moment and left them tricked and carried to their deaths by the weight of their own forward-pressing bodies. [ 140 ] Later, from a place of safety beside the runway, the lead-ram would watch his brothers calmly, for in his security he had became a philosopher, and when his victims, seeing the sharp knives that waited them, rolled their eyes, bleated, and struggled to escape, he would point out to them that sheep were born to be slaughtered and that they should feel only pride in the fulfillment of their destinies. Death was a trivial thing at best, he maintained. Ideas were the things that really counted. And so it went until one day the lead-ram forgot to step aside at the right instant and, to his dismay, found himself caught on the belts along with his brothers. At first he was quiet, fortified with philosophy, but when he saw the knives coming closer, he too began to struggle and bleat in terror, just as his victims did, knowing at last that those who send others to their deaths with fortitude are usually sure that they themselves are safe. [ 141 ] ...

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