All manner of Charlotte blog realm holiday thoughts here and here. And some non-ogrish observations from the Ogre:
This also shows why government cannot be successful in giving programs. Government, as an agent to redistribute wealth, is utterly impersonal. The recipient cannot truly show that they are grateful to the giver, because they are insulated from the giver by the government agency. At the same time, the giver cannot see or receive the gratefulness of the receiver.
And let’s not forget that government ultimately extracts its giftable resources from other citizens at gunpoint.
