(OT) Little Red Hen

[heywood]

The Little Red Hen

 

Once upon a time, on a farm in Texas, there was a little red hen who scratched about the barnyard until she uncovered quite a few grains of wheat. She called all of her neighbors together and said, "If we plant this wheat, we shall have bread to eat. Who will help me plant it?"

 

Not I," said the cow.

 

"Not I," said the duck.

 

"Not I," said the pig.

 

"Not I," said the goose.

 

"Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen. And so she did. The wheat grew very tall and ripened into golden grain.

 

"Who will help me reap my wheat?" asked the little red hen.

 

"Not I," said the duck.

 

"Out of my classification," said the pig.

 

"I'd lose my seniority," said the cow.

 

"I'd lose my unemployment compensation," said the goose.

 

"Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen, and so she did.

 

At last it came time to bake the bread. "Who will help me bake the bread?" asked the little red hen.

 

"That would be overtime for me," said the cow.

 

"I'd lose my welfare benefits," said the duck.

 

"I'm a drop out and never learned how," said the pig.

 

"If I'm to be the only helper, that's discrimination," said the goose.

 

"Then I will do it by myself," said the little red hen.

 

She baked five loaves and held them up for all of her neighbors to see. They wanted some and, in fact, demanded a share. But the little red hen said, "No, I shall eat all five loaves."

 

"Excess profits!" cried the cow.

 

"Capitalist leech!" screamed the duck.

 

"I demand equal rights!" yelled the goose.

 

The pig just grunted in disdain.

 

And they all painted "Unfair!" picket signs and marched around and around the little red hen, shouting obscenities.

 

Then a government agent came, he said to the little red hen, "You must not be so greedy." "But I earned the bread," said the little red hen. "Exactly," said the agent. "That is what makes our free enterprise system so wonderful. Anyone in the barnyard can earn as much as he wants. But under our modern government regulations, the productive workers must divide the fruits of their labor with those who are lazy and idle."

 

And they all lived happily ever after, including the little red hen, who smiled and clucked, "I am grateful, for now I truly understand." But her neighbors became quite disappointed in her. She never again baked bread because she joined the "party" and got her bread free. And all the Democrats smiled. 'Fairness' had been established.

 

Individual initiative had died but nobody noticed; perhaps no one cared, as long as there was free bread

[Scot]

Thanks for sharing!

Much truth.

 

Scot

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

quote:

---

...Individual initiative had died but nobody noticed; perhaps no one cared, as long as there was free bread...

---

Boy if that does not sum up Liberal thought I don;t know what does. Nice piece. There's a book by Ayn Rand that was about colectivism, can't remember the name of it(not Fountainhead) but after I read it, that was what convinced me that the Conservative/Libertarian viewpoint was where my heart was.

 

James teh If one does not work (and is able) then neither should they eat...

[Code_Breaker]

quote:

---

And all the Democrats smiled. 'Fairness' had been established.

---

I can see it now, the liberal attacks are coming . . .

 

I raised five kids, all boys but four. When they would say, "That's not fair", I told them that they were really saying, "That's not equal". Fairness and equality are NOT the same. I suggest everyone see the movie "Life Stinks" by Mel Brooks.

 

Code_Breaker

[Paul B Toolcraft Co.]

Ah, this little tale reminds me of another story I read recently, it goes like this:

 

"THE ANT AND THE GRASSHOPPER"

 

CLASSIC VERSION...

 

The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer

long, building his house and laying up supplies for

the winter. The grasshopper thinks he's a fool and

laughs and dances and plays the summer away. Come

winter, the ant is warm and well fed.

 

The grasshopper has no food or shelter so he dies out

in the cold.

 

MORAL OF THE STORY: Be responsible for yourself!

 

-------------

MODERN VERSION...

 

The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer

long, building his house and laying up supplies for

the winter. The grasshopper thinks he's a fool and

laughs and dances and plays the summer away.

 

Come winter, the shivering grasshopper calls a press

conference and demands to know why the ant should be

allowed to be warm and well fed while others are cold

and starving.

 

CBS, NBC, ABC, and CNN show up to provide pictures of

the shivering grasshopper next to a video of the ant

in his comfortable home with a table filled with food.

 

America is stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this

be, that in a country of such wealth, this poor

grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?

 

Kermit the Frog appears on Oprah with the grasshopper,

and everybody cries when they sing "It's Not Easy

Being Green." Jesse Jackson stages a demonstration in

front of the ant's house where the news stations film

the group singing "We shall overcome". Jesse then has

the group kneel down to pray to God for the

grasshopper's sake.

 

Tom Daschle &Walter Mondale exclaim in an interview

with Peter Jennings that the ant has gotten rich off

the back of the grasshopper, and both call for an

immediate tax hike on the ant to make him pay his

"fair share."

 

Finally, the EEOC drafts the "Economic Equity and

Anti-Grasshopper Act," retroactive to the beginning of

the summer. The ant is fined for failing to hire a

proportionate number of green bugs and, having nothing

left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is

confiscated by the government.

 

Hillary gets her old law firm to represent the

grasshopper in a defamation suit against the ant, and

the case is tried before a panel of federal judges

that Bill appointed from a list of single-parent

welfare recipients.

 

The ant loses the case.

 

The story ends as we see the grasshopper finishing up

the last bits of the ant's food while the government

house he is in, which just happens to be the ant's old

house, crumbles around him because he doesn't maintain

it.

 

The ant has disappeared in the snow.

 

The grasshopper is found dead in a drug-related

incident and the house, now abandoned, is taken over

by a gang of spiders who terrorize the once peaceful

neighborhood.

 

 

MORAL OF THE STORY: Vote Republican

 

 

Paul B.

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

[A-ron1286490684]

quote:

---

There's a book by Ayn Rand that was about colectivism, can't remember the name of it(not Fountainhead) but after I read it, that was what convinced me that the Conservative/Libertarian viewpoint was where my heart was.

---

-The Virtue Of Selfishness?

 

Poverty is not a mortgage on the labor of others - misfortune is not a mortgage on achievement - failure is not a mortgage on success - suffering is not a claim check, and its relief is not the goal of existence - man is not a sacrificial animal on anyone's altar nor for anyone's cause - life is not one huge hospital.

-- Ayn Rand, "Apollo 11," The Objectivist

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

No, that's not it either.

[Mark Lovelace]

I think it is wonderful how someone can make up a little fable to illustrate their own personal beliefs and we all accept it as establishing some fundamental truth.

[A-ron1286490684]

I too think it's wonderful Mr. Lovelace...

 

...sorta like the Clinton legacy huh?

 

[Mark Lovelace]

A-ron, are you implying that Clinton was anything less than a stellar example of a perfect, flawless, and infallible human being? I suppose next you're gonna try to tell me that he lied to the American people while waggling his finger at them. Heavens! My perfect little delusional world is crumbling!

[GreggT]

Atlas Shrugged, Anthem, Fountainhead, We the living, The virtue of selfishness, The objectivist manifestoe,....what did I miss

 

Which one was it James?

 

Now if the Republicans were the answer we would be done and could move on, unfortinately they are just as bad as the Democrats. And the manipulated masses will never elect Libratarians or for that matter anything other than what is presented to them from either of our corrupt parties, so I guess we'll either have to pickup our shovels and get back at it or renew freedom with the blood of tyrants? What's it going to be?

 

Your stories are interesting though I think may miss some of the point of what is actually going on. Most people are hardworking and intelligent, even though we have been lead to believe for many years (~150, since the dawn of public education)through bogus info like the "bell curve" and Darwinism to believe that people are basicly tractless and parasitic. The sad truth is that we have been programmed to be consumers and to fit into a corporate "global economy" it really doesn't have anything to do with capitalism. That fantasy has been dyeing for the same amount of time. If this idea is interesting to you check out John Taylor Gatto. (www.johntaylorgatto.com) If not just pickup your shovel, shutup and get back to shoveling the coal, 100s on wall street and in the white house depend on you. Forget the millions on welfare there just more employees of the state, paid to vote Democrat ;>)..............

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

Anthem!!!! Yes, that was it! I read it as a Sophomore/Junior. Matter of fact, I read it from cover to cover in about 15 hours. I could not put it down.

 

Mark, it's not necessarrily Dem/Rep, it more a mode of thinking. Can I make better decisions about my life than the Gov, and if I can, should I be able to. This is the fundamental difference between Liberal and Conservative. I'll grant you that in this day and age the lines are so blurred that there is only a hair's difference between Dem/Rep. Sad but true. Unfortunately a vocal minority of the types of people that embrace other parties (Independants, Libertarians, Peace and Freedom, etc...) are by and large on the fringe of society so other well researched people tend to gravitate away from that and pick "mainstream" candidates that will do nothing more than maintain the status quo, thus having to pick the lesser of two evils. Shamful. Just shameful. The stories/illustrations above do have validity weather you argree or not. If you look at the message, it's true. We are penalized for success, any doubts about this take a look at your paycheck when you work a lot of overtime. Corporations/Companies/Proprietors are penalized for making a profit. Companies are forced to find and use loopholes to shelter their hard earned money. That is eggregious and the founding fathers are rolling in thier graves.

 

Weather any of us like it or not, it is going to take something as radical as what happened in the 1700's (Boston Tea Party) to get the attention of "those serving the public".

 

JM2C

[Craig Madsen from CM3D]

Predictions if Bush gets re-elected?

 

We find reasons to pull troops out of Europe. (Germany, France, Spain, etc.)

 

We find reasons to go to war with another middle-eastern nation. (Iran or Syria - probably Syria - it is less able to defend itself.)

 

We still pussyfoot around North Korea (proven and claimed nuclear threat - and building a new missile system to boot). As well - we will pull out most of our troops from South Korea to support a new war elsewhere.

 

We won't consult with, or negotiate with anyone regarding any of the above.

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

Interesting predictions Craig. The reduction in Europe has started already. You think we'll see all of our troops in Europe out or will we always have a remnant?

[Craig Madsen from CM3D]

I'm guessing we will move most, but not all, within the next year. Rumsfeld has grossly underestimated the tenacity of our opponents.

 

The current administration has missed many opportunities to show their awareness of how our world is reorganizing, to our detriment.

 

The troop movement I just read this morning in the paper will be too little and too late.

 

Another prediction based on this new info - If Bush is re-elected - Expect the draft to be restarted, if not by congress at the administrations request, then by executive order. (time frame - within 4 months of the election - if he wins, but not before the election). We don't have the manpower in the military to support the extended deployments in the middle-east, and then to ALSO backup our 'implied' threats to the other nations.

 

I think there will be support staff in Europe for a few years. Then, like Manilla, we will be forced to 'voluntarily' close the bases.

 

Later,

Craig

[A-ron1286490684]

quote:

---

We find reasons to go to war with another middle-eastern nation. (Iran or Syria - probably Syria - it is less able to defend itself.)

---

Probably Iran, they are the closest to the bomb currently but I hardly see it as "Us finding a reason".

 

quote:

---

We still pussyfoot around North Korea (proven and claimed nuclear threat - and building a new missile system to boot). As well - we will pull out most of our troops from South Korea to support a new war elsewhere.

---

Considering it's a peninsula off the Chinese mainland I'd tend to say this is probably a safe bet for now. Especially after the reaction to our Orion recon plane that was forced down in international waters a few years ago

(Not to mention the fact that thanks to Clinton and the Loral Corp, China can put a Long March missle anywhere on the west coast they want to...)

 

What happened to your hawkish ways Craig? Is Santa Cruz county getting to you?

[GreggT]

When the draft is reinstated. I predict violent civil oposition to the federal government at all levels from taxation all the way to the draft and everything in between. This may be the catalyzing event that we need to wake up and have another "Tea Party", Boston might not be the right place though..... I doubt if Kerry is elected we'll see anything different, he's just as much a moron as Bush.

 

The Anthem rocks. Excellent book especially since it is such a quick read. James, if you haven't read Atlas Shrugged, you should take a shot at it 1000+ pages but well worth it, just schedule about 5 days without sleep and run right through it. I forgot "The Night of January 16th" another decent read if you like plays and Ominous Parallels.

[gcode]

North Korea is a difficult problem.

The capitol of South Korea, Seoul, is just south of the DMZ.

The Noth Koreans have about 15,000 artillery pieces aimed at Seoul. They are hidden in bombproof caves and are invernerable to air attack.

They can turn Seoul into a smoking hole in the ground at will and there is nothing we can do to stop it.

This rules out any kind of strategic strike against thier nuke plants.

The only recourse is to negotiate or turn

North Korea into a black hole.

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

quote:

---

...This may be the catalyzing event that we need to wake up and have another "Tea Party"...

---

Could be. Not sure what the event will be, but that kook from Vermont that was running for the Dems. nomintation sure tapped into some rage. There's a lot of unhappy people on both sides of the aisle me being one of them. I'm extremely displeased with the way my government is going. I just hope we don't see another 60's. As a nation we still have not recovered from it. Our families (and consequently society as a whole) has just been devastastated since then.

 

quote:

---

...Atlas Shrugged, you should take a shot at it 1000+ pages but well worth it, just schedule about 5 days without sleep and run right through it...

---

Maybe back in the day... now I can only seem to read short stuff. But I 'll check it out at Borders, maybe.

[Craig Madsen from CM3D]

A-ron,

 

I am all in favor of war - when it is necessary, and with maximum firepower. 'I believe in detente, through superior firepower and immediate retaliation'.

 

I don't believe China would come to the aid of North Korea (this time), they want us to back down on supporting Taiwan. As well, I don't think they like having uncontrolled nuclear capability in North Korea.

 

Iran MAY have designs on nuclear weapons, North Korea DOES. I do not worry about China and their Long March missiles - overall we have had acceptable relations with them.

 

Where China is a concern is with their increasing demand for oil - they have 4 times the people and are industrializing at a current growth rate of 30%. Their demand is now second only to ours, and will surpass ours in less than 4 years. (say goodbye to cheap gas, though I will keep my truck).

 

I just don't see us taking the long term steps necessary to keep America a growing, thriving, economy when we can see the writing on the wall. This includes 'overseas outsourcing', science and math education, local manufacturing and machine technology, etc.

 

Long term, we need to work on international issues, energy dependance, and manufacturing. We can not ignore looming problems.

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

quote:

---

...Long term, we need to work on international issues, energy dependance, and manufacturing. We can not ignore looming problems...

---

Would be nice to see that rather than "... when I was in Vietnam..." and "... we're going to stay the course...".

[A-ron1286490684]

quote:

---

This includes 'overseas outsourcing', science and math education, local manufacturing and machine technology, etc.

---

Well then lets start by making our teachers here at home accountable. Lets produce more entrepreneurs here at home with our educational system. Lets break up these unions and make it legal again to test our kids in K-12 here in California. How about vouchers... -or some type of competition as far as educational options.

 

Your sure not gonna make any headway there voting for Kerry. They've been in bed with the Dems for so long its like a vote for job security for union teachers.

 

[ 08-16-2004, 02:14 PM: Message edited by: A-ron ]

[gcode]

I read in the paper this weekend that we have firefighters in Orange County making $227K/per year and 100% pensions after 30 years. Nice work if you can get it. Makes my 401K and social security look kind of sad.

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

Got that right A-ron!

 

Oxy Moron - Union and Accountable

 

quote:

---

...Lets produce more entrepreneurs here at home...

---

Can't do that because we all know that once somebody is not dependant on "... the system..." they'll vote conservative and God help us if that happens.

 

quote:

---

...make it legal again to test our kids in K-12...

---

OMG.... We can't do that, we may actually find out what these kids are good at.

When I was a kids, you actually had to TRY OUT for Baseball, Football, etc... Not everybody made it. OMG somebody's self esteem may get bruised...

 

Man, I just wish people with common sense and the balls to follow it could get elected. Just when you think somebody has some, they get bought, then it disappears.

 

Could be worse. We could be like France!