The State Cannot Donate

At the first post-9/11 Christmas, perhaps it is appropriate to draw the distinction between the private and governmental assistance provided to the families of the World Trade Center victims. The outpouring of support from the private sector reflected the caring and compassionate nature of the American people because it came from the willing heart of the individual. The U.S. government, scurrying to appear to be caring and compassionate too, also “donated” large amounts of money. But the government money doesn’t reflect anything good about either the U.S. government or the American people. First, the money was taken by force by the IRS, a government agency that relies primarily on the infliction of terror produced by threats of audits, confiscations, jail, and other physical and mental abuse. Second, the distribution of money is authorized and distributed by elected members of Congress and appointed government bureaucrats, who are attempting to be good with the money that the IRS has taken by force. Who’s the caring and compassionate person in all this coercive taxation and largess? The answer is: No one, not even the taxpayer. The more important question is: Who is morally responsible for the wrongful taking of someone’s money for the purpose of giving it to someone to whom it does not belong?