Once upon a time, in the far away kingdom of Kokomo, a council was held among the peasants of the realm to determine who would succeed Squire McKillip as their ruler. It fell out that Squire Good Knight received the majority of the votes, and so they crowned him King and bade him act as a good steward of their limited resources.

But when Good Knight had completed his tour of the land, he saw that it was not good, for there were peasants living on the outskirts of Kokomo who did not pay enough property taxes into the Royal Treasury of Kokomo.

And the Snooty Council said unto Good Knight, “Liege, let not these churls retain their vulgar freedom, but bade them enter into the kingdom of Kokomo with promises of great reward. Then, thou canst receive the fruit of their labors into the Royal Treasury, and thy name (and the renown of our kingdom) will be great.”

But when Good Knight sent out his Royal Tax Collectors, the people stoned them! Again, Good Knight was dismayed. Had the peasants living on the outskirts of his kingdom failed to understand the benefits of annexation?

“My good people,” he said unto them. “If thou wilt only agree to my plan of annexation, my royal trash collectors will remove the refuse from thy roads so that thou canst enjoy the light of a brand-new street lamp.  I will send out the firemen of Kokomo to combat the blazes that spring up on thy property, and the royal sewer system will be open to thee at a lesser price.  And if the Sewer be not enough, and thou shouldst crap thy pants, I will send out the members of the Snooty Council to wipe thine hind ends for thee.  All this if thou wilt only offer up thy hard-earned wages (and if thou art old, thy Social Security) into the Royal Treasury."  Surely, the King thought, his subjects would respond favorably to this olive branch.

         But the peasants said unto him, “We care not if thy kingdom be sixteenth or twelfth or first in the Empire of Indiana.  We ask only for our freedom and the right to the money we’ve earned, the money we need for the feeding of our families and the paying of the exorbitant federal income tax, which has already broken our backs.  Shouldst thou follow this plan of annexation, think not that thine hind will sit on the throne when the time to choose a new King has arrived.  Thou and thy followers wilt surely rue the day you expanded Kokomo at the price of our labor.  Say not that annexation be good to the single mother fighting to survive or the ancient sage who lives on a fixed income or even the family of four struggling to stay ahead of their game.”

         How dost this tale end?  None but the wise know.  Either Good Knight and the Snooty Council wilt choose the road that pleases the peasants, abandoning their promises of “benefit,” or they will choose the broad road of annexation that leadeth unto destruction for their subjects and themselves.