Libertarian Gifting.

"No, I will eat it myself!" said the Little Red Hen. And she did.

That's the ending of The Little Red Hen, a copy of which I dropped into a Toys For Tots box yesterday. What's that people say about Libertarians, that we're always recruiting? Why not start young?

This version of the story's negligibly different from the Little Golden Book version, but if you want to read it, you'll get the idea.

Don't get me wrong; there ARE some problems with the story. For instance, why are the welfare types in the story a duck, a goose, a cat, and a pig? I would have chosen a pig, a weasel, a snake, and a jackass.

And why doesn't the Little Red Hen check for ownership of the grain of wheat before she takes it? What if it belongs to someone?

And since when does ONE wheat plant make enough wheat to make a loaf of bread?

But those are tangents that might confuse the target audience. With kids that young, it's better to keep it simple than to explore every possible angle for philosophical consistency.

I bought an extra copy. I may donate it to the kindergarten class at the Thayer Elementary School. Or, if I can get assurances they won't put it in their freakin' book sale, I may donate it to the library. I may give it to my great niece, whose grandmother is a vocal union-slurping Democrat. Or I may keep it for myself.

Although the folk tale upon which this version is based is older, this version was copyrighted in 1954.

Question: Can a 51-year-old chicken run for President?

She'd get my vote.