Neighborly Giving vs. Government "Giving"

My Father said when he was growing up during the height of the Great Depression, his Mother would make extra dinner once a week, enough food to feed the family at the end of the street with 6 kids. During the Depression, only one person per household was allowed to work to spread out the jobs. The father had lost his job. The mother had to raise those 6 kids. They were poor. They were thin and starving. All the neighbors took turns. Everyone pitched in to help this family in need. The neighbors were only too happy to share what little they had with their neighbor not as fortunate as they.
America was not a wealthy country, yet, people appreciated what they had. Respect for each other and respecting a neighbor's feelings was paramont. One never embarassed another person for any reason. What we now refer to as "Old World" values and ideals were the rules of the day. Upon meeting someone, the first questions one would typically ask were: "Who is your family?", "Where are you and your family from?", and "What is your education." Families lived within their means.
We started this country for the purpose of small government and in the 1930's, government was still small. There was no public assistance, no food stamps, no Section 8 housing, no Social Security and workers had few rights. With progress came the good and the bad, but have we now bought into the mindset that government owes us everything as a "Right?" Please, help thy neighbor, treat others as you would wish to be treated. Please, be responsible for onself, one's children and one's family.