THE CRICKET by William Cowper

Little inmate, full of mirth,
Chirping on my kitchen hearth,
Wheresoe’er be thine abode
Always harbinger of good,
Pay me for thy warm retreat
With a song more soft and sweet;
In return thou shalt receive
Such a stain as I can give.
The art of economics consists in looking not merely at the immediate but at the longer effects of any act or policy... Henry Hazlitt , 1946
Thus thy praise shall be expressed,
Inoffensive, welcome guest!
While the rat is on the scout,
And the mouse without snout,
With what vermin else infest
Every dish, and spoil the best;
Frisking thus before the fire,
Thou has all thy heart’s desire.

Though in voice and shape they be
Formed as if akin to thee,
Thou surpassest, happier far,
Happiest grasshoppers that are;
Theirs is but a summer’s song,
Thine endures the winter long,
Unimpaired, and shrill, and clear,
Melody throughout the year.
"Demagogues can be more plausible in putting forward economic nonsense from the platform than the honest men who try to show what is wrong with it." Henry Hazlitt, 1946
Neither night nor dawn of day
Puts a period to thy play:
Sing ten- and extend thy span
Far beyond the date of man;
Wretched man, whose years are spent
In repining discontent,
Lives not, aged though he be,
Half a span, compared with thee.
"Conservatives, libertarians, and other defenders of free enterprise are becoming more outspoken and more articulate. And there a many more of them." Henry Hazlitt, 1946

It’s 2009! Given real, enemy conditions in Obama’s house, I’ll still champion the cricket.