Le Renard et Les Raisins

by Jean de la Fontaine (1621–1695)

Image: Milo Winter, 1919.

Certain Renard gascon, d'autres disent normand,
Mourant presque de faim, vit au haut d'une treille
Des raisins mûrs apparemment,
Et couverts d'une peau vermeille.
Le Galand en eut fait volontiers un repas;
Mais comme il n'y pouvait point atteindre:
Ils sont trop verts, dit-il, et bons pour des goujats.
Fit-il pas mieux que de se plaindre?

Fable de Jean de La Fontaine. Livre III, 11

The tale of a fox who, desirous of a prize that he cannot achieve, denigrates the prize in scorn of his failure to have achieved it.

For the US Government's rendition of this same fable see The Aesop for Children. Now, ask yourself, who could better deliver this story to your children: the government, MIT, or you. Further ask, why your government is spending your money on its provision, and you can begin to understand why America has lost its way.