A Nation's Charity Must be Equal to its Heart, Not its Credit Card

   Would be wise of us if we shifted our social net to private charity. Yes, let us just pack up Medicaid, Food Stamps and all and give them to United Way and its cohorts.

   We should see that we really have no choice. I'll explain that in a bit, but first let me explain how private enterprise might do a better job. Have you ever gotten a warm feeling about giving your tax money to Food Stamps? Have you ever thought of TANF as your favorite charity?

   Nope, you haven't. But, you might have a favorite private charity, Food Bank or whatever. When they call you for a fundraiser, you  say, "Yes, I'd love to give." Private charity is more apt to involve us, personally, and as a result, we bond.

   We don't bond as well with forking over money to TANF.

    Although all charities don't seek public involvement, they should. When recipients meet those who are doing the giving, they are more likely to be appreciative.

    One of the greatest benefits of private charity is that the service does not get ahead of the ability to pay for it. Maybe it has happened, but I don't believe it is common for a charity to borrow massive amounts of money in order to provide its services. It's government that makes that mistake.

   We wonder, of course, if private charity would be able to provide all the needs our society has. We wonder if it could provide anywhere near the same level of service that Uncle Sam now provides. Well, I will only say, the federal government doesn't have enough money to do all this work, either. The difference is, Uncle Sam borrows. Now, I would not have a person in need go wanting. I would for us as a society to have a social net covering everyone who is truly in need. But, it seems to me the best way to do that is to let the Christianity of the nation rise up and prove itself equal to the task. If the people really believe in caring for their poor, they will do it, they will donate. The alternative is to run up a national deficit  A national deficit should not be the answer to our problems. A national deficit should not have be the answer to how much care we give the poor. A national deficit is why I say we pretty much have no choice but to switch to private charity. 

   There is one huge manhole we will have to sidestep. Already, charity work is abused by those who use the bulk for "administrative" purposes. 'Tis such a grave problem that we might be driven back to government providing the assistance.