It's not a criticism, it's an observation.
A baker's dozen
Mike Cox

Perception is a wonderful thing. In high school, a girl rumored to be interested in me was suddenly funnier and better looking when I found out she knew who I was.

Things your children or pets do are cuter and more clever than those same actions by others. When an expert we respect tells us a book or CD is worth buying, we are probably going to like it.

Recent studies suggest we find news reports and editorial pieces that reinforce our current beliefs rather than look for things that challenge those opinions. How we see the world influences everything we believe, good or bad.

I travel a lot, therefore I buy lots of gas. It seems I'm buying more than I used to. I am a devout creature of habit. I usually fill up when the gauge dips just below the quarter tank mark. For the last six months or so, it seems like an extra gallon or two is going into the tank each time.

Since I'm sure I am doing the same thing as before, I'm at least partially convinced the oil companies are conspiring to fudge the gauges just a tad. Adding an extra half gallon to each tank full multiplied by a few billion can add up. And it's easy to believe anyone who is willing to make record profits quarter after quarter at our expense is willing to cheat to add a few more dollars to their own wallets.

That's the problem with perception; we never consider the other guy's morality or situation. We take our own reality and factor in our opinions and then develop a plausible theory that fits our own prejudices. I'm not saying it is good or bad, right or wrong, it's just the way we are.

A friend of mine has noticed that people are miscounting quantities more frequently as the economy gets worse. A dozen wings become eleven. So does a dozen roses. If you call them on it, they apologize for the honest mistake and add one to the total. If no one notices, or chooses not to complain; well, it reduces the overhead just a tad. Sort of a Baker's Dozen in reverse.

That term originated in England around 1300. A fun group called the Worshipful Company of Bakers regulated the baking trade. The guild would get downright medieval on anyone suspected of shortchanging a customer. Since bread was measured by weight, it was easy to add one loaf to a dozen to keep from landing in the WCB dungeon. The practice eventually came to mean exemplary service, something as foreign as trade guilds these days. So what do we call today's shortchanged version ?

Since much of our consternation over the current economy stems from high gas prices, and since those high gas prices seem to coincide with the current pair of oil bidness cronies residing in the Executive Branch of our government, maybe we could link the existing disdain for the consumer with the suspected culprits of our current situation.

How about the Cheney Dozen?