Once upon a time, there was this donkey farm. It started out poor, with only a few donkeys, but with careful effort, over many years, it started producing better and better donkeys. The neighbors around the donkey farm were pleased by this, and started trying to help the donkey farm out where they could. This culminated in some truly champion donkeys, but unfortunately, the last in the line was shot by a madman, finished off by accident, and the farm fell upon bad times.

New management was brought in. As happens so often, there was an enormous influx of money, but no real expertise when it came to producing donkeys. Some of the neighbors offered up advice, based on their recollections of the donkey farm's better times, but were rudely dismissed. The new bosses got a deal on some elephants from the elephant farm down the road, and declared them donkeys. They called this new "breed" Progressive Donkeys, so that people would know they were making Progress. The neighbors were not fooled.
"Why do you think we moved away from the elephant farm?" they cried. "They get loose and run amok too often! We hate having to clean up after their gigantic crap!"
But the new donkey farmers said: "No, actually, you like it!"
By virtue of repetition, many of the neighbors started to say "OK, it's not so bad, really."

To be fair, the donkey farm did keep a few regular donkeys around, to be used in their advertisements.

Then one day a giant cobra was seen in the neighborhood. And the donkey farmers said "We must unite and crush this threat!"
So some of the neighbors that had seen this kind of thing before talked to the other neighbors, and they all pitched in, and got the donkey farm a mongoose.
And the donkey farmers said "Ewww. A mongoose."
And the neighbors said "We thought you were worried about the cobra!"
"Of course we are!" said the donkey farmers, "-But a mongoose? Unheard of!"
"Look," said the neighbors "-this mongoose is old and wiley, and the cobras haven't got him yet!"
To which the donkey farmers replied "We don't like mongooses, or mongeese, or any other animal that's hard to make a plural of! We have a donkey to deal with the problem! We have pre-ordained that this donkey will defeat the cobra!"
And the neighbors said "We wish we had your unreasonable confidence. Won't you try the mongoose we brought you?"
But the donkey farmers said "Ick! Mongooses are bad! Besides, it's after March 15th. We can't have a mongoose this late in the year."
At that point, a few of the neighbors said "I can't watch this train-wreck any more. Call me when it's over?"
And then they went home to spend more time with their families, or with their friends, or to spend more time on their hobbies.

But talk of the giant cobra continued to spread. The elephant farm down the road suddenly didn't have any elephants left, and the neighbors thought they would have a last try at convincing the donkey farmers.

When they arrived at the donkey farm, they could see that the mongoose was still in his cage, which now had a lock on it, and that he had been poorly treated. But he still had that fire in his eye that a mongoose will get when he senses a nest of snakes.
"What's with the lock?" The neighbors asked the donkey farmers.
"We needed to make sure that he didn't go off and do something on his own." said the donkey farmers.
And the mongoose spoke up then, and said "Don't worry about me! I've been unjustly locked up before!"
But the donkey farmers ignored the mongoose, and told the neighbors "Why don't you amateurs quit trying to tell us how to run OUR donkey farm?"

Then the neighbors said to the donkey farmers "That cobra just bumped off a bunch of elephants. You might want to try the mongoose. That has worked really well in the past." But the donkey farmers said
"Enough! -about the mongoose! We decided amongst ourselves years ago, and NO MONGOOSES! We have a new plan. If you don't approve, you are anti-donkey! All of you will help us herd the cobra directly under our donkey's foot, who will then stomp it to death. Take your positions!"
Then the neighbors said "Have you lost your minds? We chipped in and got you a mongoose! Why don't you use him?" And the donkey farmers said "We don't like your tone! We will keep the mongoose in his cage, and wave it at the cobra. That should distract the snake long enough to trample it!" And still more of the neighbors went home, saying "Let us know how that works out for you!" And then the donkey farmers became enraged and said "You will ruin our glorious plan! Now get off our lawn! -And take your mongoose with you! AND we expect all of you losers back here when it's time to corral that cobra!"

And the neighbors trudged away with the mongoose, telling him that they were sorry he was mistreated, and that they loved him, and would get that lock off soon enough. Some of them started to talk about how they would deal with the cobra.
-And the mongoose said to them "See? Some of you are mongooses too! You just hadn't known it yet!"
Then some of the neighbors looked at each other, and to their amazement, saw that it was true. As the neighbors left the donkey farm behind them, the donkey farmers could be heard screaming
"If that snake bites our asses, it will all be YOUR FAULT!"
Then suddenly, there was a silence, as though that very thing had happened.

One of the neighbors said "I wish they had listened."
And the mongoose gave a great sigh, and said "As soon as I get out of THIS cage, we have a lot of work to do. Let's start planning!"
It was some time after, but finally, when all the new mongooses were tallied, they found they were 99 in number. 99 mongooses, 1 snake. You know how that story ends.

And the moral of this story is:

To stop a venomous reptile, best to rely on their natural enemy.

-But also, it's that sometimes, stubborn ass farmers will not be helped.