[vacri]

Government welfare gets money to all locations over the long term. Private charity does well in short, acute phases (eg hurricane relief), but over the long term, it's only useful for socially attractive services - and even then, it's not enough. 'kids with cancer' charities do a lot better than 'young adults with mental illness' charities, which in turn do better than 'disabled people who need 24-hour care for life' charities.

> poverty was decreasing between the 40s and 60s

... something which had little do to with welfare or private charity.

> I know you'll find this hard to believe but its true the richest in our society give more than anyone else to charity.

I don't find it hard to believe at all. What you're finding hard to believe is that even though the rich give more than others, it's still a drop in the bucket compared to government-supplied assistance.