View source for Why the asshole is the most important organ

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[[Category:Mike Huben]]
[[Category:Humor]]
[[Category:Parables]]
{{DES | des = A parable where all the other organs admit it.}}
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The organs of the body were arguing over who should be the boss.

The brain claimed that it should be the boss because it coordinated everything.

The muscles said they should be the boss because without them, the body couldn't move.

The stomach declared that it should be the boss because otherwise the other organs would starve.

Finally, the asshole spoke up and said it was going to be the boss.  All the other organs laughed and laughed at the idea of the asshole being the boss. The asshole got so mad that he closed up.

After a while, the brain got dizzy, the muscles grew weak, and the stomach felt sick.  They all begged the asshole to be boss.  Since then, all the other organs did the work and the asshole just bossed and passed out a lot of crap.

Humorous morals:
* You don’t have to be a brain to be a boss, just an asshole.
* No matter how well things are going, it can all be shut down by a single asshole.

Analysis:
* All of those organs are essential, and any one of them could be a holdout.  The joke is funny because of the unexpected holdout power of a low-status organ.
* The joke is also funny because no organ of the body is actually a boss: they all coordinate together through complex, networked feedback systems that we take for granted.

Extension:
* Society is like a body, with many institutions similar to organs.  Markets, government, families, etc. are institutions that function together, though the proportions can vary more than in bodies.
* Markets would be the boss organ according to libertarians.
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