There was once a herd of oxen that a few lions in the area could never reach. Then one day, one of the lions came up with a cunning plan. He approached the leader of the herd and said, "We actually don't want to bother you, but that yellow ox has caught our attention. If you give it to us, you'll be rid of the problem, and we'll be satisfied as well."
The elders of the herd gathered and, "for the supreme interests of the herd," they sacrificed the yellow ox.
Of course, before long, the lions came back with a similar excuse, demanding another sacrifice. This cycle continued until the herd had shrunk so much that they eventually became easy prey for the lions.
In that final moment, as the leaders—who had thought they could survive by continuously making sacrifices—searched for an answer to the question, "When did we lose this war?" they realized that they had lost it the day they gave away the yellow ox.