King Solomon

"But he would not let go. He felt the baby slipping out of his hands and he pulled back very hard. In this manner, the issue was decided". -pg 345

This story reminded me of the story about the two women who come to King Solomon, both claiming that one particular child was theirs. In reality, one woman had accidentally smothered her baby and was trying to claim the other child as her own. As both were newborns, it was a difficult issue to settle. Solomon offered to cut the baby in half, for surely that was the fairest way to settle the matter. One woman (not the mother) was alright with that idea, but the other (the real mother) told him the other woman could have the baby, as long as it went unharmed. King Solomon then gave the baby to the second woman for she truly cared about it. Comparing these two stories led me to discover several meanings or morals behind "Popular Mechanics".

Firstly, the two characters in the story go unnamed, which conveys the feeling that this situation (not exact situation, but similar) happens to quite a few people. These situations are ones that involve a decision that is difficult to decide fairly, often with a person or thing caught in the middle. In these cases, the fairest decision is not always the right one. Or the fair decision ends up hurting the one that was intended to be protected. Either way, the woman who give up her child will always be smarter than the fools in this story that pulled their child apart.