DADvocate

Hint - Conservatives

Another story comes to light concerning giving and caring. Philanthropy expert Arthur C. Brooks has written a book "that concludes religious conservatives donate far more money than secular liberals to all sorts of charitable activities, irrespective of income."

This is not the first time the charitable giving of conservatives has been pointed out. Michelle Malkin made a very nice colored chart of The Generosity Index, compiled by The Catalogue For Philanthropy that showed that 25 red states that voted for Bush ranked more charitable than any blue state. Of course, there were the surprised liberals when Dick Cheney's charitable donations were made known in his tax return.

More on Brooks and the book:

The child of academics, raised in a liberal household and educated in the liberal arts, Brooks has written a book that concludes religious conservatives donate far more money than secular liberals to all sorts of charitable activities, irrespective of income.

In the book, he cites extensive data analysis to demonstrate that values advocated by conservatives -- from church attendance and two-parent families to the Protestant work ethic and a distaste for government-funded social services -- make conservatives more generous than liberals.

The book, titled "Who Really Cares: The Surprising Truth About Compassionate Conservatism" (Basic Books, $26), is due for release Nov. 24.

When it comes to helping the needy, Brooks writes: "For too long, liberals have been claiming they are the most virtuous members of American society. Although they usually give less to charity, they have nevertheless lambasted conservatives for their callousness in the face of social injustice."

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Harvey Mansfield, professor of government at Harvard University and 2004 recipient of the National Humanities Medal, does not know Brooks personally but has read the book.

"His main finding is quite startling, that the people who talk the most about caring actually fork over the least," he said. "But beyond this finding I thought his analysis was extremely good, especially for an economist. He thinks very well about the reason for this and reflects about politics and morals in a way most economists do their best to avoid."

Brooks' findings parallel my personal observations.

Caring demands a sacrifice and/or effort on the part of the caring person whether in parenting or some other aspect of life. Telling your children that you love them is fine and dandy. But, unless you spend time with them, spend money on them, work and sacrifice for them, they won't feel that you love and care for them.

Many liberals believe that caring for the poor and down-trodden means taking money from some via taxes and giving it to others is caring. It's not. It's placating the masses. Socialism is a greater opiate than religion ever has been or will be.