The quality of mercy.

President Bush's remarks in appreciation of private charities and churchs will be sneered at by the likes of Paul Krugman and Harry Reid. There are some important differences that should be considered, but never are.

Government programs create legal rights. People don't feel gratitude for legal rights. They do feel angry when their "rights" aren't delivered ASAP, sometimes even when they are. And when they expect government to take care of them, what incentive do they have to prepare and provide for themselves and others?

Americans are proud of their independence, but they seldom stop to think about the deep meaning of that term. It is used as a synonym with freedom, but it also means self-reliance, not having to have someone else care for you. That's because if you are dependent on someone else, he/she can tell you what you can and can't do, as well as what you must do. For example, the federal government could dictate speed limits to all the states by threatening to withhold funding for highways. It can impose requirements on private universities and colleges by refusing to authorize student loans. If you receive any benefit from government you aren't independent, or free either, if you can't get along without it.

People who pay for government programs by and large don't have any choice in the matter. Their contributions show no compassion. Those who send donations or go volunteer in person know the personal benefit the giver receives from helping others in need. Taxpayers don't. That's probably why people who pay taxes also contribute to the Red Cross and their church. Anybody who thinks his taxes are enough, is a Scrooge. There's no credit given in heaven for paying what you are legally required to.

When you try to help someone and he tells to go to hell or complains that it isn't enough, how does it make you feel? That's part of what the whole concept of charity is about. It's a two-way bond that makes people better and closer. It should be the bond that holds society together. With government in the middle, that bond doesn't form.