THERE'S THIS GUY LIVING DOWN THE STREET from you who you disapprove of. Call him Jones. He's a complete jerk, and you hear him screaming at his wife and children, and generally being rude to his neighbors all the time.
You're also really irritated that he has the coolest computer you ever saw—the kind you would really like to have, yourself.
Down the street in the other direction there's another family that's not doing so well. They pretty much let their kids do anything they want. Call them the Smiths.
Once or twice you've seen Little Billy Smith hanging out at Jones' house.
Anyway, one day Billy comes into your yard, and stabs one of your kids with a knife. He gives him a pretty good gash on the shoulder.
While your wife is taking your son to the doctors, you storm over to the Smith's house, and follow the little criminal into the back yard. But by the time you get there, Billy's either well-hidden, or he's gone over the fence, so all you can do is shout at his father, and threaten all sorts of repercussions.
You come home, but you are not at all satisfied you've done enough, when you remember Jones up the street. Billy used to hang around his house, too—at least once or twice.
How do you know Jones doesn't have knives, as well? He may be planning to attack your other kids!
You ask around the neighborhood, and a lot of people who have been in Jones' house tell you that that he doesn't have any knives, and isn't likely to attack you.
But you just talk more and more to your wife and family about how dangerous Jones is, until you get yourself so worked up that one day you go into his house, kill Jones, and tell his family that you have saved them from him.
You take over their household. You start giving orders, as though you were Jones. You even spend money to help them out. You hire your cousin to do some work in the yard, pay him an exhorbitant fee, and give him the use of that wonderful computer.
You don't actually bother to make sure he's doing a good job, though.
And, for some reason, you don't notice that your own house is beginning to fall apart, because your money is all going to your cousin.
Your kids can't afford to go to the doctor, and the roof over their heads is leaking.
Meanwhile, the Jones family is suffering, too. Your cousin has taken a lot of money, while doing very little, and they're broke,their roof is leaking even worse than yours, and they're fighting among themselves.
You send your kids in, to stop the fighting. They get pretty beat up, as well, but they manage to do a lot more damage to the Jones family.
You can't understand why the rest of the neighborhood has turned against you, and sided with those horrible Joneses.
But you at least you taught Billy Smith a lesson—and made the neighborhood safe for everyone.
Besides, you've got to stay—what would the Joneses do without you?
