A recent Discovery Institute-sponsored speech by Arthur Brooks, author of "Who Really Cares", revealed that conservatives tend to give more to charity than do liberals. The latter, of course, are more in favor of the government (also known as "other people") giving funds. Since the compassion chorus almost always emphasizes what government ought to be doing, the media reputation for generosity has usually--and wrongly--attached more to liberals than conservatives.
The same seems to go to the reputation for international charity. The U.S. routinely is chastised for giving less per capita to international development than do certain European countries or Japan.
Now there is a study that shows that U.S. private charity far eclipses U.S. government charity in overseas aid, and, as a result, also eclipses the highly touted aid given by other developed countries. This reality should be obvious to anyone who has traveled widely. At every corner in some developing countries one stumbles over an American-financed aid organization. It actually is one of this nation's proudest attributes and should be encouraged at every opportunity. I believe it goes back to our religious roots and the values of service that were instilled by our ancestors. Regardless, it is real and is a tradition that either is non-existent or weak in many other developed lands.
Hats off to Hudson Institute for this interesting study.
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