>Well I'm English so my opinion may not count but (there's always a but)
>
>IMO part of the success of the USA is its size and if you want to be in it then yes you do have a responsibility for every bit of it.

Sure and I served in the military and I pay my taxes as part of that responsibility.

Let's be clear - my mother - a young widow - was only able to raise her sons because of federal assistance.
My brother and I were only able to get through college because of the GI bill
Most of the people here in my community are only able to spend their retirements in relative comfort because of Social Security and Medicare, so Victor's barbs notwithstanding, I'm in favor of a strong central government.
Given a choice, I'd slap a 90% tax on estates over a million dollars and use that money to relieve poverty.
If I could get more money out of the fat cats and get it to poor people in West Virginia, I'd do it in a heartbeat.
So, I'm the re-distributor-in-chief.
But, unlike the bureaucrats, I won't tell the people in West Virginia how to spend it.

The department of Ed and EPA don't just redistribute money.
They often seek social goals, and person A's idea of a good social goal is not necessary person B's idea.
We have state and federal laws against egregious behavior and can pass more if needed.
We don't need bureaucrats telling people how to live.