misapprehension,
willfully blind, plausibly
ignorant of facts
I had to hammer out some of these words to fit into what I self style a haiku.
The words should have been:
> misapprehension of facts
> willfully blind
> plausible ignorance
These are all terms used in recent newspaper articles to describe legal defenses or legal avenues that can be used to explain the actions of defendants in a this big lawsuit in Georgia.
Nowhere does anyone seem to suggest saying, “I didn’t do it.”
Because they did.
But, with the right wording, what they did was not wrong.
Right wording like a misapprehension of facts.
Right wording like willfully blind.
Right wording like plausible ignorance.
Hard to believe but back in the day I was a 4th grade Sunday School teacher.
I was asked to a be a summer fill in and it lasted 10 years.
(I know that means that if ever I am charged with any type of crime the headline will read, “ONE TIME SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHER CHARGED WITH …”)
I would do a series of lessons based on the 10 Commandments and I would ask the boys if they tried to follow the 10 commandments.
SURE – YOU BET – OF COURSE they would answer.
Then I would describe a simple scenario for the kids in my class where they, the kids, were at home on a Sunday Morning and their Mom had left a candy bar on the kitchen counter and told them to not touch the candy bar.
In the story the Mom leaves the room and the kid eats the candy bar and when the Mom comes back and asks what happened to the candy, the kid says to himself a certain cuss word and then says out loud, “I don’t know.”
I then said that the kid …
Coveted the candy bar.
Stole the candy bar.
Took the Lord’s name in vain.
Lied about taking the candy bar.
Did not honor his parents.
And since it was on a Sunday, did not honor the Sabbath.
In five minutes, said kid broke 6 of the 10 commandments.
Not bad for a 4th grader.
Then I gave them this scenario.
Same kid and this time, his parents are going out and they say, DO NOT GO TO THE PARK.
The parents leave and the kid rides his bike to the park.
Later when the parents come home, they ask DID YOU GO TO THE PARK?
And the kid says with care, I went for a bike ride.
I would then ask the class, did the kid lie?
The kid DID go for a bike ride.
The kid DID NOT say I DID NOT GO TO THE PARK.
Did the kid lie?
I then pointed out that the commandment says, DO NOT BEAR FLASE WITNESS.
The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
And I let those 4th graders think about it.
Of course the Court Case in Georgia is not about 4th graders but adults.
Adults who maybe should know better.
Adults who probably know about and push the 10 commandments.
As Huckleberry Finn said, and I quoted this just the other day, “Right is right, and wrong is wrong, and a body ain’t got no business doing wrong when he ain’t ignorant and knows better.“
No Haiku For You 