"So," says I, "*if* one speaks of 'robbing Peter to pay Paul'
   then does the use of Biblical names at some level sanctify the
   act of such robbing?"

   "I don't understand what you're talking about," says he.

   "Well, look at it this way.  If I say I'm going to rob Gladys
   to pay Fred, it is clear that I am going to commit a sleazy
   and possibly criminal act.  But somehow 'robbing Peter to pay
   Paul' has a diginity that lends validity to the act, because
   of the names."

   "Oh," says he.

   Feeling that the matter was settled and we could move on, I
   was about to change the subject when the aliens who had landed
   in the backyard unbeknownst to us vaporized the door with their
   ray guns, took us prisoner and shipped us off to their planet
   to be slaves in the mines for the rest of our natural lives.

10 responses total.

"I don't understand what you're talking about," says I.

are the aliens named Gladys and Fred or Peter and Paul? And where's Mary?
and Barney?

And what if your name actually is Rob?  Does this cause
an infinite recursion?

Somehow, I get the feeling that you guys are talking about various things.
That scares me.

Yeah, variety panics the hell out of me too.  There is safety only
in the predictable.

It only causes an infinite recursion if you go bob-bob-bobin' along.
along.

I'd rather rob Bob to pay myself...

and again-  rob Bob a re-bob.

resp:0  Those aliens sure didn't reckon on the arrival of me.

Peter and Paul should get together to rob those aliens of their mines.  Or
at least of their mineworkers.

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