Hurricane Harvey has wreaked utter devastation in Houston and surrounding areas, and the damage is expected to rival that caused by Hurricane Katrina 12 years ago.
Thousands of people have been affected by the storm and are in need of some sort of assistance. Indeed, there are well over 350,000 people who have registered for assistance with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The Coast Guard has been absolutely instrumental in the impact they’ve made in rescuing people and bringing them to shelter. It is quite clear that the government should be intervening in a situation like this to provide immediate relief.
What comes next is not quite so clear.
Over 185,000 homes have been damaged or destroyed and many people will now face serious hardships in rebuilding their lives. A significant number of them will not be able to do so on their own, and will need some sort of outside help. The question now is where that help will come from.
The left will say that Hurricane Harvey victims should receive government aid to help get them back on their feet, just as they advocate for government intervention in any problem. But there is another way. For years small government advocates have criticized the expansive welfare state, and argued in favor of allowing private charities and religious institutions to provide a social safety net to those in need.
Before people relied on the government to receive aid, they relied on their local communities, oftentimes through their church or synagogue. A large part of the argument against federal welfare is the dependency that it creates among its recipients. Local communities don’t have this problem to the same extent because when someone receives money from their neighbors and fellow churchgoers, they feel indebted them and motivated to pick themselves up off their feet and pay back their debts. People don’t feel the same way when they receive welfare from the government because they don’t connect government money to individual nameless taxpayers the same way they do charity from one’s neighbors.
Even in a situation like this, where national charities will be providing a large amount of aid to the hurricane victims, people still feel somewhat indebted. Many people who receive government aid feel entitled to the money as they themselves are a taxpayer, but when a private organization comes in and provides unsolicited charity the feeling of indebtedness somewhat resembles that of local charity.
Many on the left agree that private charity is better in theory, but they don’t believe the private sector does enough to help the needy when they need it the most. That is why Hurricane Harvey is a test, and an opportunity, for all conservatives, small government advocates, and religious people who want to return to a private sector based social safety net to prove that Americans are more than willing to give aid voluntarily in times of crisis.
There will be no shortage of needy people who want to rebuild their lives after the storm dies down. Will we all put our money where our mouth is and give these people the help they so desperately need?
Yes, We Need Your Help
I hate being “that guy” who asks people to donate because I think our conservative news network is so crucial, but here I am…
When I left my cushy corporate job in 2017, I did so knowing that my family would have to make sacrifices. But I couldn’t continue to watch the nation slip into oblivion and was inspired by President Trump’s willingness to fight the good fight even at his own personal expense. What I didn’t realize then is that conservative media would be so heavily attacked, canceled, and defunded that the sacrifices would be extreme.
Many in this nation are struggling right now even though we weren’t struggling just a few years ago. I’m not alone. But I wake up every morning and operate the sites we’ve been able to build because there’s really no other choice. I refuse to be beholden to Big Tech like so many other conservative news outlets, which is why you won’t see Google ads here. With that said, it’s often challenging to pay the bills and it’s even harder to expand so we can get the America First message out to a wider audience.
The economic downturn has forced me to make a plea for help. Between cancel culture, lockdowns, and diminishing ad revenue, we need financial assistance in order to continue to spread the truth. We ask all who have the means, please donate through our new GiveSendGo. Your generosity is what keeps these sites running and allows us to expand our reach so the truth can get to the masses. We’ve had great success in growing but we know we can do more with your assistance.
We currently operate:
- NOQ Report
- Conservative Playlist
- Uncanceled News
- Based Underground
- Truth Based Media
- Five other conservative news sites
I would even be willing to entertain investments and partnerships at this stage. I’ve turned them down in the past because editorial purity is extremely important. I’ll turn them down again if anyone wants us to start supporting RINOs or avoid “taboo” topics like voter fraud, vaccines, or transgender supremacy. But I’d talk to fellow America First patriots who want to help any (or all) of our 10 news sites. Hit me up at jdrucker (at) substack (dot) com if you’re interested.
For those who have the means and just want to help keep the mission of spreading a conservative, Christian message to the nation, please consider a generous donation.