Kudos to the Payson Homeless Initiative

The following Letter to the Editor by Larry Hoffenberg, secretary/treasurer of the Gila County Libertarian Party, was published by the Payson Roundup on December 27,2019.

Kudos to the Payson Homeless Initiative

Founding Father and principle architect of the U.S. Constitution James Madison stated unequivocally: “Charity is no part of the legislative duty of the government.”

Libertarians strongly agree with Madison and we believe that people in need are best served by grassroots private volunteer organizations, rather than by government-run, taxpayer-at-large funded operations, which tend to be heavy on bureaucracy and regulation rather than on actually delivering results and aid to those in need.

In the spirit of James Madison, the Gila County Libertarian Party has made a financial contribution to the Payson Homeless Initiative, and we encourage other political groups in the area as well as non-political civic and charitable groups to get behind the Payson Homeless Initiative and make donations or provide volunteers to help this truly grassroots private sector effort.

Americans are the most generous and charitable people on the planet, and we would do even more if we retained more of the fruits of our labor. Less taxes = more money in private hands = more contributions to productive, private voluntary charitable programs. With less of a tax burden, caring members of society will be even more charitable, and society will be strengthened.

LBJ’s War on Poverty has been an epic failure. 55 years later, homelessness is rampant, especially in California. Tens of thousands of people gather in homeless camps with diseases such as tuberculosis and hepatitis posing great risk to the public at large. There is a better way, and private voluntary organizations such as the Payson Homeless Initiative are a prime example.

The Gila County Libertarian Party extends a well-deserved thank you to all the individuals and organizations that are already volunteering and contributing to the Payson Homeless Initiative. Keep up the great work!

Larry Hoffenberg
secretary/treasurer
Gila County Libertarian Party