The law of holes, or the first law of holes, is an adage which states: "if you find yourself in a hole, stop digging." It is used as a metaphor, warning that when in an untenable position, it is best to stop making the situation worse. [1] [2]
The law of holes, or the first law of holes, is an adage which states: "if you find yourself in a hole, stop digging." It is used as a metaphor, warning that when in an untenable position, it is best to stop making the situation worse. [1] [2]
When it is said, "if you find yourself in a hole, stop digging", [3] [4] [1] [5] it is because digging a hole makes it deeper and therefore harder to get out of.
The second law of holes is commonly known as: "when you stop digging, you are still in a hole." [6]
The adage has been attributed to a number of sources. It appeared in print on page six of The Washington Post dated 25 October 1911, in the form: "Nor would a wise man, seeing that he was in a hole, go to work and blindly dig it deeper..." [7] [8]
In 1983, Bill Brock was quoted "Let me tell you about the law of holes: If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging." [9]
In the United Kingdom, it has been referred to as "Healey's first law of holes" [4] after politician Denis Healey, who used the adage in the 1980s and later. [3]
On 4 May 2024, British politician Suella Braverman wrote in The Daily Telegraph : "The hole to dig us out is the PM's, and it's time for him to start shovelling." [10] According to The Guardian , this sentence "does not make sense". [11]
A hole is a hollow place, an opening in/through a solid body, or an excavation in the ground.
Sturgeon's law is an adage stating "ninety percent of everything is crap". It was coined by Theodore Sturgeon, an American science fiction author and critic, and was inspired by his observation that, while science fiction was often derided for its low quality by critics, most work in other fields was low-quality too, and so science fiction was no different.
Denis Winston Healey, Baron Healey, was a British Labour Party politician who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1974 to 1979 and as Secretary of State for Defence from 1964 to 1970; he remains the longest-serving Defence Secretary to date. He was a Member of Parliament from 1952 to 1992, and was Deputy Leader of the Labour Party from 1980 to 1983. To the public at large, Healey became well known for his bushy eyebrows, his avuncular manner and his creative turns of phrase.
Holes is a 1998 young adult novel written by Louis Sachar and first published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. The book centers on Stanley Yelnats, who is sent to Camp Green Lake, a correctional boot camp in a desert in Texas, after being falsely accused of theft. The plot explores the history of the area and how the actions of several characters in the past have affected Stanley's life in the present. These interconnecting stories touch on themes such as labor, boyhood and masculinity, friendship, meaning of names, illiteracy, and elements of fairy tales.
Adagia is the title of an annotated collection of Greek and Latin proverbs, compiled during the Renaissance by Dutch humanist Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus. Erasmus' repository of proverbs is "one of the most monumental ... ever assembled".
Fareham was a constituency in Hampshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. From 2015 to 2024, it had been represented by Suella Braverman of the Conservative Party.
Apple Panic is a game for the Apple II programmed by Ben Serki and published by Broderbund Software in 1981. Apple Panic is an unauthorized version of the 1980 arcade game Space Panic, the first game with ladders and platforms. While the arcade original remained obscure, Apple Panic became a top seller for home computers. It was ported to the Atari 8-bit computers, VIC-20, IBM PC, and TRS-80.
Space Panic is a 1980 arcade video game developed by Universal. Predating Nintendo's Donkey Kong, and lacking a jump mechanic, Space Panic was the first game involving climbing ladders between walkable platforms. The genre was initially labeled "climbing games", but later became known as platform games. A ColecoVision port by CBS Electronics was released in the winter holiday season of 1982.
The Conservative Party Conference (CPC) is a four-day national conference event held by the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom. It takes place every year in October during the British party conference season, when the House of Commons is usually in recess. The event's location has alternated between Birmingham's International Convention Centre (ICC) and Manchester's Central Convention Complex since 2008. Previously, it had alternated between Blackpool, Bournemouth and Brighton. In contrast to the Liberal Democrat Conference, where every party member attending its Conference, either in-person or online, has the right to vote on party policy, under a one-member, one vote system, or the Labour Party Conference, where 50% of votes are allocated to affiliated organisations, and in which all voting is restricted to nominated representatives, the Conservative Party Conference does not hold votes on party policy.
Richard Grosvenor Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax is a British Conservative Party politician, landowner, journalist, and former Member of Parliament (MP) for South Dorset between 2010 and 2024.
Sir Michael Tyrone Ellis is a British politician and barrister who served as Attorney General for England and Wales between September and October 2022, having previously served in the position from March to September 2021 during the maternity leave of Suella Braverman. A member of the Conservative Party, he previously served as Paymaster General from 2021 to 2022 and as Minister for the Cabinet Office from February to September 2022. Ellis served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Northampton North from 2010 to 2024.
Lucy Claire Frazer is a British politician and barrister who served as Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport from February 2023 to July 2024. A member of the Conservative Party, she served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for South East Cambridgeshire from 2015 to 2024.
Sue-Ellen Cassiana "Suella" Braverman is a British politician and barrister who served as Home Secretary from 6 September 2022 to 19 October 2022, and again from 25 October 2022 to 13 November 2023. A member of the Conservative Party, she was chair of the European Research Group from 2017 to 2018 and Attorney General for England and Wales from 2020 to March 2021, and again from September 2021 to 2022. She has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Fareham and Waterlooville, previously Fareham, since 2015.
Felicia Jane "Flick" Beatrix Drummond is a British Conservative Party politician. She was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Meon Valley from 2019 until 2024, having previously represented Portsmouth South from 2015 to 2017.
Digging, also referred to as excavation, is the process of using some implement such as claws, hands, manual tools or heavy equipment, to remove material from a solid surface, usually soil, sand or rock on the surface of Earth. Digging is actually the combination of two processes, the first being the breaking or cutting of the surface, and the second being the removal and relocation of the material found there. In a simple digging situation, this may be accomplished in a single motion, with the digging implement being used to break the surface and immediately fling the material away from the hole or other structure being dug.
Ben Houchen, Baron Houchen of High Leven, is a British Conservative politician and life peer. He has been Tees Valley Mayor since 2017, winning the inaugural mayoral election in the combined authority. Houchen was re-elected in 2021 and won a third term in 2024.
The European Research Group (ERG) is a research support group and caucus of Eurosceptic Conservative Members of Parliament of the United Kingdom. In a Financial Times article in 2020, the journalist Sebastian Payne described the ERG as "the most influential [research group] in recent political history".
Miriam Joy Cates is a British politician who was the Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for Penistone and Stocksbridge from 2019 to 2024.
Shovel Knight Dig is a 2022 roguelite platform game developed by Nitrome and Yacht Club Games. It is an entry in the Shovel Knight franchise and a prequel to the original game. The player controls the protagonist Shovel Knight as he fights enemies and collects treasure while descending down a hole to recover his stolen treasure bag. When the player dies, they lose all obtained upgrades, returning to the surface with a fraction of the treasure they collected while playing. At the surface, they can spend treasure on a variety of items that make gameplay easier.
The 2024 Conservative Party leadership election was announced on 5 July 2024 when then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak declared his intention to resign as Conservative Party leader following the party's defeat at the 2024 general election. The leadership race commenced on 24 July and concluded on 31 October. On 2 November, Kemi Badenoch was announced as the winner of the members' ballot, becoming the first Black leader of any major UK political party, the fourth female Conservative leader and the second consecutive Conservative leader to be non-White.
I have studied this situation thoroughly in five states and in close relation to hundreds of dairymen and the answer to 'Hard Times' is 'If you are in a hole, stop digging - raise your head - open your eyes - think - study -climb.'