Wolf Story

In the early 1960s, this story was making the rounds of Alaska’s North Slope.

Eskimos in early Alaska tell of the challenges of hunting caribou. Winter temperatures of minus 40°F and below are normal, day and night.

At the villages, the blood from seal and other large kill is stored in a large bladder, and then allowed to freeze.

In the dead of winter, caribou hunters load their sleds with supplies, rifles and ammunition – plus a bladder of frozen blood, and a supply of double-edged knives made from animal bones.

After hitching up their dog teams, they set out on the several-day hunt.

At night, to protect them from the wind, they make an igloo (shelter) from slabs of rigid snow.

Inside their igloo, they light a small fire of seal oil to warm the bladder and melt the blood.

Then they solidly plant the knives, with the blades sticking straight up, in a circle around their camp. They coat the blades of each knife with blood from the bladder. That blood quickly freezes on the bitterly cold blades.

During the night, as the hunters and their dogs sleep, wolves smell the hunter’s camp, especially the blood on the knives.

Cautiously approaching the camp, the starving wolves first begin licking the knives. Once they taste the blood, their licking becomes more excited, so excited in fact that they accidentally cut their tongue and ignore the pain. As they taste the fresh blood (their own!), they lick faster and faster. After much frenzied licking, they have lost a lot of their own blood. They start to feel weak so they lie down to try to regain their strength. Soon they die, bleeding to death from their tongues.

The next morning, the hunters skin the dead wolves, save the pelts, and feed the carcasses to their dog teams.

Well, while this is an interesting story and makes a good point, the story itself is just a yarn. It has no basis in fact. It is just fiction. How do we know?

First, wolves have a natural fear of man, particularly Eskimos because of their hunting skills. Wolves would not approach the camp of a party of Eskimo hunters. (To an Alaskan wolf, Eskimos are “really bad news!”)

Also, the wolves would instantly sense they had cut their tongue, and would stop licking.

Third, since arctic nights are very long in winter, by daybreak the wolf carcasses would be frozen stiff. They would have to be thawed before the hides could be taken.

Finally, a piece of frozen wolf or other meat would have to be thawed before a dog could eat much of it.

However, the story does parallel one aspect of contemporary human life.

Today we face danger from at least three “double-edged knives” in the form of chemicals, trashy communications, and inane (mindless) amusements.

The chemicals may include illicit drugs, alcohol, nicotine and tar from tobacco products, excessive sodium (“salt”) in our diets, and a disturbing array of strange non-food chemicals added to artificial sweeteners and “factory food.”

Trashy communications may include incorrect grammar (especially on TV), sophomoric focus, vulgarisms, euphemisms, hypocrisy, exaggeration, selected half-truths, lies, malicious rumor, erroneous history, and shallow political hype (“socialist” propaganda).

Excessive and idiotic amusements – for some, “24/7” – may damage our brains, especially our ability to ponder, to think long and hard about a matter. Indeed, excessive amusement may cause intellectual atrophy. (Have you seen some of “brain dead” young people coming out of US and Canadian high schools these days?)

We may also be damaged by an almost continuous stream of pro-socialist “news and opinion” offered by the dominant media. Further, we may be bombarded by pro-socialist drivel from confused authorities: clergy, academics, and professionals.

So a big question automatically arises. Are there “antidotes” for these poisons? Yes, we think so.

We agree that we may benefit by greatly reducing our exposure to “factory food.” Taking a good array of vitamin supplements may also help. Further, significant benefit may come quickly from reducing our exposure to amusements, especially TV.

We can and should read non-fiction books, like biographies and books on philosophy and history.

A great starter biography might be, On Growing Up Tough, by Miss Taylor Caldwell, in her time, said to be the most widely read woman author in the world. (Have you ever fired a shotgun into a drunk when he was advancing on you – and was only about six feet away from you when you let him have it with both barrels? Can you imagine the mess? Read this lady’s story!)

As to a basic philosophy book, consider (Claude Frédéric) Bastiat’s The Law – only about 75 pages in a popular paperback edition. You may find it quite enjoyable as well as greatly beneficial. (Bastiat lived from 1801 to 1850.)

Our book, Money, may be helpful to wise adults, especially in light of the world’s recent economic turmoil.

Of course, to avoid subconscious confusion, we may wish to avoid most fiction.

We might also benefit by listening to the symphonies of Beethoven, Mozart, Haydn, Grieg, and Tchaikovsky.

One music advocate recommends that the family, as a group, spend one evening per year each year talking about the US Constitution, individual sovereignty, and liberty. Then, after reading the story behind his magnificent composition, listen to Antonín Dvorák’s “Symphony For The New World.” Great stuff for the whole family!

Maybe we could also invest an hour a day in the “PS I love you” program.*

A point to remember: The world’s In$iders promote “socialism” and 24/7 amusements (and vulgarisms) because those things can work like a bloody coating on a double-edged knife.

At first, consumption may seem okay but, in the end, it may contribute to an early and unpleasant demise.

* Please see our Food For Thought series, for our “PS I love you” commentary.