Imagine you move into a new house with your small children and pets. You become concerned there are coyotes in this neighborhood. They’ve become aggressive since a recent fire in the neighboring hills burned some of their habitat.

No worries, says your friend. Buy a wolf./1

/2 A wolf, says your friend, is much fiercer than a coyote. Something that strong and fierce is what you need to protect your children and pets from coyotes. Let the wolf let loose and it will tear the coyotes apart.

/3 You’re not sure. Aren’t wolves fundamentally wild animals? Don’t they eat small children and pets as eagerly as they eat coyotes?In fact, isn’t it the nature of wolves, since the dawn of time, to be MORE likely to prey on smaller and weaker things rather than stronger ones?

/4 Those wolves weren’t properly trained, your friend says. Are you not smarter, more aware, more involved than people who have tried to train wolves before? Don’t you have better motives and insight? Won’t you give the wolf better supervision, more feedback, a clearer mission?