The Hundredth Monkey
The Japanese monkey, Macaca Fuscata, has been observed in the wild for a period of over 30 years.
In 1952, on the island of Koshima scientists were providing monkeys with sweet potatoes dropped in the sand. The monkeys liked the taste of the raw sweet potatoes, but they found the dirt unpleasant.
An 18-month-old female named Imo found she could solve the problem by washing the potatoes in a nearby stream. She taught this trick to her mother. Her playmates also learned this new way and they taught their mothers, too.
This cultural innovation was gradually picked up by various monkeys before the eyes of the scientists.
Between 1952 and 1958, all the young monkeys learned to wash the sandy sweet potatoes to make them more palatable. Only the adults who imitated their children learned this social improvement. Other adults kept eating the dirty sweet potatoes.
Then something startling took place. In the autumn of 1958, a certain number of Koshima monkeys were washing sweet potatoes - the exact number is not known. Let us suppose that when the sun rose one morning, there were 99 monkeys on Koshima Island who had learned to wash their sweet potatoes. Let us further suppose that later that morning, the hundredth monkey learned to wash potatoes.
Then it happened!
By that evening almost everyone in the tribe was washing sweet potatoes before eating them. The added energy of this hundredth monkey somehow created an ideological breakthrough.
But notice. The most surprising thing observed by these scientists was that the habit of washing sweet potatoes then spontaneously jumped over the sea. Colonies of monkeys on other islands and the mainland troop of monkeys at Takasakiyama began washing their sweet potatoes.
Although the exact number may vary, the Hundredth Monkey Phenomenon means that when only a limited number of people know of a new way, it may remain the consciousness property of these people. But there is a point at which if only one more person tunes-in to a new awareness, a field is strengthened so that this awareness reaches almost everyone.
If we could convince the first 100 delegates to make the switch, then maybe the rest will follow and gladly. After watching BHO race to the right over the past few weeks - go back on his promises re FISA, public financing, withdrawing our troops from Iraq, and most recently - our reproductive rights they can't be happy about supporting him these days...
So keep this in mind as you contact those superdelegates folks. You may think it's not worth it but your email or phone call could be the thing that convinces that 100ths person decide to switch (back) to Hillary. Even though you're one person - you could make a huge difference in what you do - or don't do. One drop of water could be the one that makes a bucket overflow. Your words could make the difference so think about that - and act.
