I think the role of government is limited to that of protecting constitutional rights of citizens. People in impoverished countries live with extended family and share income and get along just fine. We shouldn't violate rights of individuals to facilitate a welfare program. That should be handled by families, communities, religious institutions, etc.
That is your opinion. The role of government should be whatever the citizens decide through democratic processes. If they want the government to go around feeding people from milk bottles, that is what it will be. If they decide it is to run the fight club that decides who eats and who dies, that will be its role. Americans have decided that the role of government is going to be closer to the second than the first, as is their right. Other countries lie in a different points in the continuum, but they are not any more wrong.
