Man From The South Post

In the story of the American boy who placed a bet on his left pinkie finger and somehow won, let's flip the script and see what would have happened if he had actually lost.  If he had lost, he would have had the pinkie finger on his left hand chopped off.  Now, some of us might think that is not that bad, and losing your thumb or index finger would be much worse.  However, in reality, if someone were to lose their pinkie finger, on either hand, they would lose up to 50% of their grip strength.  Yes, you heard me right...50. Percent.  That's a large percentage for such a small finger!  We unknowingly rely on the pinkie more than we think we do.  So if this American boy, who is also a soldier in training, were to have lost the bet and had his left pinkie finger chopped off, he would more than likely struggle through basic training camp when he returned.  His grip strength on his rifle would be severely depleted, as well as his ability to perform well in the mandatory PT tests conducted during the training process.  Due to this, he might flunk out of basic and would have to return to civilian life, which he might not want to do, since during this time period, men were mandated and drafted to serve in the military.  One major thing that the boy could do to hopefully get back to his daily occupations of being a soldier, would be to work on grip strength exercises without the use of his left pinkie.  It is not at all impossible to live a fulfilling life without a pinkie, it will just take time and patience to get back to full usage.