The Farmer Had it Right!

At our local mall, I recently saw the Easter bunny, sitting on his Easter bunny throne, holding royal court over all the little children. Frankly, I think it must be really traumatic for a kid to approach a stranger, especially one dressed up as a giant rabbit, and be forced to hug him or sit on his lap. Imagine the fright in their eyes as their parents push them towards the huge eared, bucktoothed specimen. “It’s okay, sweetheart. It’s only the Easter Bunny.”

It makes me want to yell out, “Watch it kid! He’s gonna eat you.”

Anyways, I noticed that the mall’s bunny display was about Peter Rabbit. So was this the Easter bunny or Peter Rabbit? Did I have the story wrong? Had Peter Rabbit graduated or magically transformed into the Easter Bunny? I didn’t stay long enough to find out, nor was I really concerned. I could have had some fun, though. . . gone and sat on the bunny’s lap and crushed him (or her) under the tremendous weight of the Easter Barbarian (a title I just gave myself).

Walking away, I wondered about the story of Peter Rabbit. Suddenly, a light went off in my head. We’ve been supporting the wrong person. Peter was terrible. Farmer McGregor (or whatever his name was) was the victim in this story! Think about it. The poor guy was trying to raise some food in his garden. Trying to feed his family. Maybe there was a food shortage in the village and he wanted to help out the needy. But what happened? A rabbit, a varmint, ravages his garden. Now that I think about it, Peter and his motley crew should have been skinned; their fur used to make some nice warm winter hats.

Hey wait a minute. My whole childhood, I have been brainwashed to root for the wrong guy. Tom and Jerry! The cat was simply trying to protect his house from a rat.

Mickey Mouse! We’ve basically made him king of Florida, yet he’s a mouse. Attention! To any women reading this…what would you do if you saw a mouse running across your kitchen floor? Yet he’s the leader of the club that’s made for you and me! No!!

For us older kids; Pixie and Dixie? Two mice who tormented the house cat!

Mighty Mouse! He was the aggressor, fighting against common house cats who were trying to keep their families safe from the disease and destruction that rodents can bring; a super powered mouse, at that. How frightening.

As I delve deeper into my subconscious, I must ask the question- Is my hatred of felines (Nay! My fear of them) rooted in Saturday mornings, plastered to the TV, cheering for these small rodents over the helpless kittens who were subjected to a variety of sadistic acts, including but not limited to, being smashed with cartoon hammers, pushed off cliffs, having their tails burnt off?

Have I been brainwashed to cheer for the carriers of the Black Plague!!!

Farmer McGregor! Sylvester! Tom (or Jerry…whichever one is the cat. I never really knew), I apologize for not understanding the truth. I was caught up in the excitement of the moment. Sold a pack of lies by clever animators and cartoonists. I believed the history written by the winners, instead of looking for the truth.

Yes my friends, I tell you, we’ve been cheering for the wrong side! The Farmer had it right.