To the editor,

David Kruse proposes we finance his compassion, rather than he do it himself in his “Heartless Tea Party” column (Nov.8 Farm News).

Kruse is certainly correct to call out Kristi Noem as a hypocrite when she calls for federal help in South Dakota, but not New Jersey.

But Christian duty can never be forced because in so doing we are justifying the evil means to an end.

It’s proven time and again, once help is available from sources with no personal stake in the results, people will choose to shift their costs to someone else.

An industry, such as insurance regulates risk through prices to limit unsound practices.

It has become well-known that many ranchers in the Dakota snow disaster had no insurance to cover such a loss. Obviously, they were relying on federal disaster relief and opting not to buy insurance.

The same would be true for building houses next to the ocean. If we are expecting our family, as brother Kruse calls everyone in the USA, to bail us out when a hurricane comes, we are more likely to risk building in a dangerous location to enjoy those days at the beach.

But if there were no federal disaster program and the insurance company charged premiums to reflect the actual risk, we might choose to live inland and visit the beach in fair weather.

In creating an environment that increases hidden costs for everyone through unnecessary risk taking, it is people like David Kruse who are the heartless ones.

And as far as being an ideologue, it really only means I have standards that can’t be compromised, such as “Thou shalt not steal.”

I prefer to help those in need without going through the most wasteful bureaucracy on earth – the federal government.

Fritz Groszkruger

Dumont