1. During the Era of Warring States (475-221 B.C.), the various kingdoms of China made all sorts of alliances with each other, playing the near against the far.
2. The result was unceasing warfare, which caused untold suffering among the common people.
3. The sage Mencius said, "I will go to the leaders of these countries who like to fight so, and try to persuade them to stop their warring."
4. Mencius then went to the kingdom of Liang to visit its king.
5. The king said, "I spend all my time and energy on the affairs of state. Not one of the neighboring kings cares about his subjects the way I do. Yet my kingdom's population does not increase. Why is this so?"
6. "Your Excellency, let's use war as an example. On the battlefield, the defeated side must run for their lives."
7. "If one warrior is a bit slow, and only retreats fifty paces, he might see another in front of him, who has gone hundred paces."
8. "He teases the other man, saying, 'scared of dying?'"
9. "Is this right?"
10. "Of course not."
11. "Right! Since Your Excellency understands this point, then there should be no problem. Although you care about your subjects, you still like to fight. And when war comes to their homes and families, they suffer enormously. You criticize the neighboring kings for not caring about their subjects. Isn't this like the man who ran fifty paces laughing at the one who ran one hundred?"
● This story comes from The Mencius, "Mencius debates the king of Liang." Later people used the expression "fifty paces laughs at one hundred" to describe people who have failed in a small way teasing those who have lost on a larger scale. Another usage is to describe people with the same trait or problem, with their difference only being one of degree.
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