About ReligionToday.com   A State Worse Than Poverty  March 9,
2009  In my last article, I wrote that we should love our
neighbor, help him, and not tax another neighbor to do so . . .
at least usually.  This post also appeared at On Faith and
elicited a comment I thought worth a quick response.  My critic
said:  What if that charity does not suffice? What is second
best? Do you think it is better to take taxes from people and
feed the poor, or should we let the poor starve?  This column
evades the issue.  Yes, we all agree that taxes are bad in some
ways. The question is: Are they worse than the alternative?  If
we do not have “the right to force other people to help” as you
claim, then by that same rule poor people do not have the right
to live. They may starve or die of easily cured diseases, or
live in tents. Their children may go without schooling or
vaccinations. But we cannot force people who make $100 million a
year to help them. Many of those wealthy people would not pay a
single dollar in taxes if t