Ditto: I wonder what would happen if all the money donated to charitable causes were withheld (no more charity)and all
those who volunteer for various causes, stopped volunteering, could the government possibly fill the gap that would be created if this were to happen? I have no way to prove this but I would theorize that all charitable donations and all volunteerism would equal the national budget. Can you imagine the productivity of the nation when you consider these two elements along with the taxation we endure. I wonder if increased taxation will, in any way have an adverse effect on charity and volunteerism? The law of unintended consequences may be hard at work here. Who knows?
I have no way to prove this but I would theorize that all charitable donations and all volunteerism would equal the national budget.
I can't prove it either, but I can disprove it.
"Charitable contributions by individuals, foundations, bequests, and corporations reached $298.42 billion in 2011"
That's a lot of money, but it's less than half of the annual entitlement budget and it covers a much wider set of issues than the entitlement budget. Basically, if the charitable sector dried up, it would be painful, but the pain would probably be highly localized and simply result in a call for an increase in government support.