his column this morning is titled Friends With Benefits. It begins like this:

Government is not the enemy. Not always. Don’t believe that right-wing malarkey.

In fact, for millions of Americans down on their luck and at the end of their rope, they can quickly find that government is their last friend left. Governmental assistance can prevent the certainty of a hungry night and a homeless tomorrow. It can mean the difference between the comfort of stability and the ravages of poverty.

The column is chock full of data that proves the case. Let me offer this as an illustration, informing you first that S.P.. is the Supplemental Poverty Measure just announced by the Census Bureau:

For instance, the report shows that if the earned income tax credit, a refundable tax credit for low-to-moderate-income workers designed to offset Social Security taxes and encourage work, was not included in the S.P.M., the poverty rate would jump from 16 percent to 18 percent. For children, it would jump from 18.2 percent to 22.4 percent.

Please keep reading.