Barney Fife Was Right

I rewatch The Andy Griffith Show every summer (the local library has all the seasons). For several summers now I've been struck by how often the mouthy, semi-hysterical half-wit Barney is usually right.

When he insists that Andy should carry a gun in certain situations--he is right. When he insists that Otis should fill out an accident report after tripping at the jail, he is right. When he forces compliance with certain laws and rules and policies, he is behaving in accordance with current modern business and government expectations (yes, Barney is that guy who would make us all go to the required course on ergonomics).

But not in accordance with the requirements of Mayberry. Because Andy isn't wrong either when he uses his "mundane" knowledge to approach a citizen unarmed or dismiss Otis's fall as a non-crisis or take the squad car out to pick up an elderly woman's groceries.

We can never go back to "simpler" times (which were never as simple as people think anyway), but I have to wonder:

Is it that Barney was never really a half-wit? Or have we become the half-wits?

Of course, when Don Knotts is at his peak performance, Barney as half-wit is totally hilarious.