By: Keith Kappes
Columnist
Carter County Times
From the growing volume of donation-seeking letters in my daily mail, it appears this old saying has been hijacked to mean that private citizens and existing charities are expected to step up and replace the grant funds no longer coming to state and local governments from the federal government.
If that truly is the case, some folks inside the DC Beltway clearly don’t understand that this nation has a long, proud history of helping our own citizens and communities by returning some of the taxes we send to Washington yearly.
And that we have always stepped up to help the less fortunate peoples of this world avoid starvation, disease and other calamities. Some of us Christians believe strongly that reaching out is the Lord’s work and that Jesus Christ should be our role model in helping others.
The first cry for help came from KET which is furloughing several staff members because of losing much of its federal grant money. I pointed that out in this space just a few weeks ago when I asked my readers to think about depriving little children of Big Bird and other programs you only find in public broadcasting.
Today I increased my monthly gift to KET, but it won’t be enough to save anyone’s job or make anyone feel better if Sesame Street disappears. More importantly, my small contribution likely won’t be the life or death difference when folks in the most isolated parts of our country can’t access severe weather warnings from commercial broadcasters.
I can’t imagine the fear and disappointment of those folks losing what we used to call food stamps when the shelves go bare in food banks. Or how those living in dilapidated housing will keep warm when their winter heating assistance funds literally go up in smoke.
It is frightening to consider how many elderly and disabled persons could suffer and die prematurely as their health insurance disappears and many of our rural hospitals close their doors.
Downsizing the federal budget supposedly came about as a means of eliminating fraud, waste and abuse from government. Based on what is happening, someone should have added “compassion” to that list of targets. Contact Keith at keithkappes@gmail.com
