Wierd sayings

[Sundae]

I don't know the origin of those with googling, and somehow that seems like cheating, so I'll just answer questions with more questions if that's ok.

I'm still trying to find the origin of the phrase "More [insert item] than you can shake a stick at" I'm not satisfied by the answers I've found on the internet...

Another stick related query:
I've always assumed the carrot & stick approach referred to a system of motivating by reward. In other words the carrot is dangled in front of the donkey via a long stick, and it strives to reach it.

Recently the phrase seems to imply its either carrot OR stick. So that the donkey is rewarded with a carrot or punished with a stick.

Has the phrase become misunderstood?

[Cyclefrance]

Originally Posted by Sundae Girl

Another stick related query:
I've always assumed the carrot & stick approach referred to a system of motivating by reward. In other words the carrot is dangled in front of the donkey via a long stick, and it strives to reach it.

Recently the phrase seems to imply its either carrot OR stick. So that the donkey is rewarded with a carrot or punished with a stick.

Has the phrase become misunderstood?

To my mind the carrot and stick refers originally to the two methods of getting results out of a horse/mule/donkey, the first being to encourage by way of motivation or reward (the bribe offer of a carrot) the second being the punitive method (strike with a stick).

The method is easily transferrable to describe any other situation where a result is required - you can either try to win the person round by reward or motrivation, or you can make them produce by threat of or even application of violence. 'Carrot and stick' is also used over here to describe the police tactic employed to get a confession out of a subject. Two police officers, one offering the kind approach ('come on Charlie, what's the point of holding out, it's you they've left holding the baby, fat lot they think of you, tell us who put you up to it...') and the ther the hard-nosed approach (' you're going go down for this, the only chance you've got is to tell us who set this up, hold back and I'll make sure you won't see the light of day for ten years minimum - and that's a promise...)