Originally Posted by
honedright
AussiePostie,
Speaking for myself, and on behalf of what I believe are the sentiments of most Americans, we have absolutely no problem with "chipping in a few dollars" to help out a fellow country man, a fellow from a different country, or even an entire country.
The fine point I think is: is one to chip in voluntarily, or must one be forced to do the chipping in?
America was founded upon principles of individual liberty and freedom.
In order to remain a free people, we understand that we must all chip into the pot a certain amount of "dues" for the national defense.
Just as one individual might hire a body guard, we all, as a nation, voluntarily hire our national body guard.
Or founding fathers, who were highly educated and very well versed in the history of human civilizations, societies and governments, decided after much debate, that a very limited central government with very specific duties and powers, was the best form of government to protect our inalienable rights, among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Outside of that protection, the founders felt that it was up to us, or the states, to do the rest.
I believe that the record shows that the people of America, of their own free will, are extremely generous.
The bottom line: forcing people to "donate" to charity, either overtly: as at the point of a gun, or in a less obvious manner: as in deducting from ones wages, is inconsistent with the founding principles of this country.
And most Americans, who understand this, object.
Now, I may have not stated the case perfectly, my apologies, but I think I'm fairly close.
