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Voluntary

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Americans and citizens from many other countries already give to charity through their tax dollars. Some of the charitable contributions the United States gives are to fight AIDS/HIV and other opportunistic diseases, to assist in disaster relief through such agencies as FEMA, to fight world hunger, and to help the poor through such programs as Food Stamps. This is a type of compelled charity. However, aside from the charity our country does, citizens should not be compelled to give. It should be voluntary and based on personal values and ability to give.

Doris Buffet, sister of the famed Warren Buffet, started a group called the Sunshine Ladies, a charitable group that gives scholarship and other assistance case by case. For instance, her group might pay for someone's college tuition or books or put in an air conditioner for someone in need. She feels that paying for things people need is more effective on a case by case system rather than going through another agency which might have high administrative costs and less efficiency. Many groups are modeling her group's method of giving because they see the impact and the efficiency.

I believe that people want their charitable donations to have significant impact. When donors discover that a huge chunk of their donation is going to pay for advertising, paying for telemarketers, mailings, and other administrative costs, they get a bad taste in their mouths towards donating.

People are much more willing to give when they see the direct impact of their contribution. When they can do something beneficial for someone in their community, they have first hand knowledge that they have made a difference in someone's life. There is a distrust of the handling of monies given to large organizations. News of mishandling of funds, high administrative costs, and inefficiency and waste in the distribution of charity discourages people from giving.

The causes people choose to support come from personal value systems. For instance, if someone has a child with a disorder such as autism, that person will want their contributions to go to autism research. If someone has had the experience of having a difficult time paying for college, they may wish to pave an easier path for the next generation and give to scholarship funds. Compelling people to contribute to charities not of their choosing decreases their ability to give to causes dear to their hearts. That is imposing someone else's priorities and values on a broad base of people.

One of the problems we have in Washington is the influence of lobbyists. Many of these lobbyists use their influence and powers of persuasion to garner funds for charitable causes. Thus, charity becomes a political struggle. Do we want politicians to be supporting charities because of the clout of lobbyists and the blocs of people they represent? Many of these so called charitable contributions end up hidden in other bills as ear mark spending. The tax money goes to support some project in a state, may benefit just a few, and adds to our ever growing and expanding government and budget. The more money that needs to be distributed, the more people need to be hired to do it and oversee that it gets done properly. So, how efficient can that be?

At this time when many Americans are struggling to pay bills, the issue of compelled charity registers resoundingly and is a cause of anger. The discussion is: does charity begin at home or abroad? Shouldn't we be able to take care of our families before we are compelled to take care of others? As this economic situation becomes more dire, the American people will demand some answers to this question.

Learn more about this author, Elizabeth Wordsmith.
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