The federal government has proved to be a single point of failure for many people. They rely, mostly for reasons that aren’t their fault, on federal assistance for daily needs. With the federal shutdown, it may be shut off. Was this properly the job of the federal government in the first place? No, helping people is best done locally and voluntarily. With the Democrats and Republicans fighting it out, it has to come back to that. Thanks to the effort of many people, it is.

There are many local assistance programs which help out people who need it, and they’ve just become a lot more important. Check who’s doing it in your neighborhood, and decide what level of help you can reasonably give. I favor the New Hampshire Food Bank. It’s affiliated with Catholic Charities but keeps religion separate from its mission (unlike the Salvation Army, which I don’t recommend). Many organizations are running food drives, collecting nonperishable donations. Giving money is better, since it lets them buy in bulk, but many people like the feeling of giving stuff that someone else can eat.

Libertarians and classical liberals should be especially ready to do this. We know that the initiative of individuals is the best defense against suffocating and unreliable governmental direction of everything. By providing assistance where it’s really needed, by your own choice, you support freedom.