This first ran four years ago. Unfortunately, it remains relevant. Merry Christmas.
RALEIGH – It was the end of the workday, and a woman was trudging wearily down the street towards her car when a man approached her. “Please, ma’am,” he asked her, “could you help me out? I’ve just lost my job and my home, I’m down on my luck, and it’s cold tonight.”
The homeward-bound worker noticed the beggar’s shabby clothes and shuffling gait. It was Christmas, after all, and despite her weariness after a hard day’s work she couldn’t help but stop to consider the situation. Wasn’t it the season of giving? If it were she on the street, jobless and homeless, how would she liked to be treated? The woman rhad little money in her purse, but then she saw the man shiver in the chilly night air. “Here,” she said, beaming with holiday cheer, “take my coat. It is cold tonight and I think you need it more than I do. Merry Christmas!”
This is a tale of charity.
A year later, at the end of the workday, the same woman was trudging wearily down the street when the same disheveled man appeared. Apparently without recognizing her, the beggar said, “Please, ma’am, could you help me out? I have no job, no home, and it’s cold tonight.”
“Don’t you remember me?” said the woman, letting some annoyance creep into her tired voice. “You asked me for help last Christmas, and I literally gave you the coat off my back. You said you were just down on your luck, but here you are again asking me for another handout. Why should I give you anything?”
The beggar, taken aback for a moment, then bowed his head and stretched out his arms in supplication. “You don’t understand – I’ve had another string of bad luck,” he said, sounding embarrassed. “I did get another job last year, and things were going along great until just a few days ago, when I got laid off. Can’t you find it in your heart to help me out?”
With a sigh, the woman nodded her head. “OK, I’ll help,” she said, “but I won’t just give you anything. I have some work I need doing on my house and lawn. If you’ll come and help me, I’ll pay you enough to buy a warm coat for the winter. Merry Christmas!”
This is a tale of enterprise.
Still another year passes, the same woman is trudging wearily home from work down the same street when the same beggar stops her to ask for help. “Why in the world should I help you again?” the woman demanded angrily. “You’ve taken advantage of my holiday spirit for the past two Christmases, and it’s obvious that you are not taking responsibility for yourself. The answer is no.”
The beggar’s voice rose in anger, too. “Well, now that I’ve worn two of your thick coats and seen where you live, I think I deserve some of what you’ve got,” he insisted. “You are obvious far more lucky and wealthy than I am. I need a warm coat more than you do. So give it to me, now!”
Just then, a policeman happen to be passing by. “Officer, will you tell this guy to leave me alone?” asked the woman. “He says he has a right to my coat, but I won’t give it to him. Now he’s threatening me.”
The policeman looked at the woman carefully, then at the beggar. “You know, he does look like he needs a warm coat more than you do,” the officer told the woman. Then he tapped his gun for emphasis and said, “Take your coat off, and give it to him – now!
“And, uh, Merry Christmas!”
This is a tale of modern government.
Hood is president of the John Locke Foundation and publisher of Carolina Journal.