&gt; I think we would all agree, regardless of level of income, we would rather our own money be allocated to the causes that we support, rather than the causes that 51% of people support.<p>Exactly.  Nobody thinks that the government can make better use of their <i>own</i> money; however, many people want to use the government to tell <i>other people</i> what to do with <i>their</i> money.