Poverty sucks

I never give to beggars. Come to think of it, I rarely give to people I don’t know. That doesn’t mean I don’t give. I do my share of charity, and it makes me feel good. I don’t however, want to be forced into doing charity. However, all of us are.

Whenever the Government decides to act Santa Claus and give grants, bailouts, subsidies and whatnots to the farmers, fishermen, students, Tom, Dick and Sirisena, I’m forced into doing charity.

The Government’s job is not that. Fine, intervention is needed at times, but  not total control of money matters, and handing out packets of goodies.

That’s why I’m a fan of P2P Charity. If you have money, give. If you have lots of money, give to many. If you have too much, then get a middle man to give to many. Works pretty well.

What we shouldn’t be doing is to force charity down the throats of people who can’t afford it. What happens in state run forced charity, is that when I get one Rupee as a grant or a subsidy, much more is spent on the processes that bring me that money. Paperwork is expensive. Plus I’m paying for my own subsidy. So take away the middle man (Government) who is giving my own money (or some of it) back to me, and I’ll have that money to spend in the first place.

Cheat on your taxes, or better yet, don’t pay them at all. They would still tax you at point of purchase for many things, and your salary will be taxed if you’re well off, but if you can avoid it, do so as much as possible.

When income reduces, everyone is forced to spend less. And we need more of spending less. A lot more. Because right now being poor sucks.