By GEORGE STAHL
We have all heared the term, ‘Trojan Horse’. The term today is used to describe someone that pretends to be one thing, but actually has a complete opposite agenda. Usually, one that will hurt you.
In the year 1174 a place called Troy was an ancient city in what is now Turkey. An event took place in Troy that put the city on the map. It was because of a single indiscretion that Troy has been a major part of history for over 3,000 years and has become a household name. In fact, the term ‘Trojan Horse’ refers to a computer virus that disguises itself as a friendly update, but is actually a data system assassin. Once it gets into your computer it rips its guts apart and leaves no trace of your hard drive’s former life. It can literally change the programing and your pc becomes a virtual weapon posed to destroy and take down your entire Facebook neighborhood!
Sorry, I digress. It was in Troy, during the time of myths, legends and stories where we begin. Helen, the daughter of Zeus, and the most beautiful woman in Greece, was married to a guy named Menelaus. Menelaus had a brother named Agamemnon, the commander and chief of the Greek army. Their father was King Atreus, who was murdered by his nephew, and the brothers assumed the throne.
A handsome Prince from Troy named Paris, showed the narcissistic Helen some attention and she went for it, despite both of them being married. Prince Paris takes his new love back to Troy and they start an international incident that eventually leads to a ten-year war! Needless to say, when Paris and Helen reach Troy his parents are not happy with their youngest son’s choice. ‘No! You can’t keep her!’ Paris’ wife had a few choice words of her own, but Paris being a Prince, didn’t pay much attention to any of them. He just wanted Helen but, after seeing all of this drama, Helen wasn’t too sure if she wanted Paris or not after seeing this mess.
Meanwhile, back at the Grecian Palace, Menelaus is furious, and he and Agamemnon begin to put together a plan to ‘rescue’ Helen. So, they gather the army and navy. They load the men on ships and sail across the Aegean Sea in three days to Troy. In all of their planning and their vengeance, they didn’t count on one thing. The Trojan army. King Priam of Troy, even though he did not approve of Prince Paris’ actions could not just let Greece sail in and conquer his city. So, they put up a fight. To say the least. According to Greek history the rescue mission turned into an all-out war! The war that went on for 10 years! Helen and Paris always at the center of the conflict! Why didn’t Helen just leave? Why didn’t she muster up some goddess like super power and put an end to the fighting? The daughter of the most powerful god, Zeus must have been able to do something. Turns out, Wonder Woman she was not!
After seeing all of his people suffering like they did for a decade, you’d think that Prince Paris could also had done something to stop the fighting! It was Agamemnon who finally came up with the solution. Here is where today, April 24, 1184 BC comes into the story. General Agamemnon had a giant wooden horse built and had his army men climb inside. The gigantic horse is left at the gates of Troy one night with a note on it. ‘We give up. Take our peace offering, we are going home. You want her that bad, you can keep Helen!’ The Trojans fall for it, take the horse inside the city. Afterall, the note was…all Greek to them! That night Agamemnon and his men jump out of the hollow belly of the horse and kill everyone. They destroy Troy, kill Prince Paris, and rescue Helen. She goes back to Greece with her husband, Menelaus and they live happily ever after. Did it all really happen? Is that the rest of the story of the ‘Trojan Horse’? Maybe, maybe not. The moral here? Where shall we start?! If you get a huge wooden horse dropped at your front door, do not open it! If you get a request for a ‘Free Update’, for Pete’s sake, do not open it! It can only end badly for you!
