I don't mind my taxes rebuilding coastal homes if I get to come vacation there gratis each summer.

In a more serious vein, one of the things I like about this forum is that many of the ideas seem to be based on two fundamentals of life:

1. We are made to be in community. (We all need to give a hand and to receive a hand during our lives, as Benjammin states above. Humility and shared burdens can unite and ennoble a people.)

2. Nobody rides for free. (Somebody pays, whether willingly or by compulsion. As Grouch alludes above, a gift is given in freedom, with the cost borne by the giver. Reality and gratitude are sisters.)

I have a hard time remembering or acknowledging these things, but I think they are nevertheless true. It seems that a clear-eyed, clear-headed acceptance of The Way Things Are is essential to being well-equipped for life's smooth and rough patches.