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Post by rockjunquie on Apr 26, 2019 15:30:09 GMT -5
First I want to say my Wife and I try to give generously to various charities. That said, One of my pet peeves is going to a store (Fire House Subs, Panda Express, Walgreens) and they want you to round up your change for ... what ever charity. What a scam. Until they raised the personal deduction in 2018 we always took off charitable deductions on taxes. If you give to a corporation they can take that $$ off on their taxes and it cost them nothing. I know this just comes down to tactics but it all boils down to making you feel guilty for not giving in order to get contributions to help their bottom line. I read a bible verse in I Chronicles 21:24 KJV "And king David said to Ornan, Nay; but I will verily buy it for the full price: for I will not take that which is thine for the LORD, nor offer burnt offerings without cost." It was one of those things that you wonder about. But have no good frame of reference. then we had a storm and I cut a tree off the neighbors house. They would not come out, they did not say thanks, then 3 years later they knocked on the door and gave my wife some random food that had been given to them that they did not want. they said we owe you for cutting the tree here is this stuff we were given and we do not want. First off they acknowleged the open handed favor of just trying to be a good neighbor so ok we were cool before so we were still cool now. Then it hit me, is it gratitude when you give someone something that means nothing to you. I remembered that verse and understood it. They sound like very strange, anti-social people. Who says stuff like that? Here you did us a solid, so that this crap off our hands.
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Post by miket on Apr 26, 2019 16:08:49 GMT -5
First I want to say my Wife and I try to give generously to various charities. That said, One of my pet peeves is going to a store (Fire House Subs, Panda Express, Walgreens) and they want you to round up your change for ... what ever charity. What a scam. Until they raised the personal deduction in 2018 we always took off charitable deductions on taxes. If you give to a corporation they can take that $$ off on their taxes and it cost them nothing. I know this just comes down to tactics but it all boils down to making you feel guilty for not giving in order to get contributions to help their bottom line. I read a bible verse in I Chronicles 21:24 KJV "And king David said to Ornan, Nay; but I will verily buy it for the full price: for I will not take that which is thine for the LORD, nor offer burnt offerings without cost." It was one of those things that you wonder about. But have no good frame of reference. then we had a storm and I cut a tree off the neighbors house. They would not come out, they did not say thanks, then 3 years later they knocked on the door and gave my wife some random food that had been given to them that they did not want. they said we owe you for cutting the tree here is this stuff we were given and we do not want. First off they acknowleged the open handed favor of just trying to be a good neighbor so ok we were cool before so we were still cool now. Then it hit me, is it gratitude when you give someone something that means nothing to you. I remembered that verse and understood it. That bugs me at stores also. And about the neighbor story: first, good for you for helping them! As for what they said...WTF?
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Post by Rockindad on Apr 26, 2019 17:43:54 GMT -5
While the original graphic may contain substantial inaccuracies as far as names and amounts given, there are significant other issues with many of the charities listed. We have a friend who used to work at the local Red Cross chapter as an events coordinator- mostly planning parties for the local bigwigs to slap each other on the back. She left that job after a couple of years after being so dismayed by the waste she saw. We have not donated to them since.
This thread has been a wake up call for me. I just checked one of our biggest beneficiaries (listed as one of the good ones) and was dismayed to see that some of the executive salaries more than doubled about five years ago. I now plan on evaluating our donations annually- looking at the 990's, watchdog websites, etc. Sadly, I do not know how many of the current ones will make the cut. I just want the value of our contributions to be maximized, we work way too hard for it to be squandered on excessive salaries.
Al
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Post by 1dave on Apr 27, 2019 10:07:24 GMT -5
we had a storm and I cut a tree off the neighbors house. They would not come out, they did not say thanks, then 3 years later they knocked on the door and gave my wife some random food that had been given to them that they did not want. they said we owe you for cutting the tree here is this stuff we were given and we do not want. I've been thinking about your neighbors. what kind of emotional scaring is in their past to cause that behavior? How do they survive without interacting with others? How much courage did it take for them to finally come out and try to repay you from their meager resources? You may be the first chance for them to come out of their protective shell.
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Post by Rockoonz on Apr 27, 2019 10:26:09 GMT -5
we had a storm and I cut a tree off the neighbors house. They would not come out, they did not say thanks, then 3 years later they knocked on the door and gave my wife some random food that had been given to them that they did not want. they said we owe you for cutting the tree here is this stuff we were given and we do not want. I've been thinking about your neighbors. what kind of emotional scaring is in their past to cause that behavior? How do they survive without interacting with others? How much courage did it take for them to finally come out and try to repay you from their meager resources? You may be the first chance for them to come out of their protective shell. Yeah, me too. Sometimes people who are used to being crapped on can't comprehend simple acts of kindness.
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Post by parfive on Apr 27, 2019 11:51:51 GMT -5
Or the house is plastered with dog shit and the kids are locked in cages.
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Post by mohs on Apr 27, 2019 13:44:47 GMT -5
Love Thy Neighbor
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Post by Peruano on Apr 27, 2019 14:43:03 GMT -5
Big salaries are only part of the question. Think in terms of overhead. How much money is spent on raising more money or actually hitting the street as good deeds. If you spend 30% of the funds on slick newsletters or money campaigns that's waste compared to 10%. If you have too many staff no matter what they are paid you are diluting the good deeds unless they are efficient. My money goes to undergraduate scholarships at the local community college. Even if 1 or 3 of 10 drop out or don't continue right away, the other 7 are boosted as wage earners and productive citizens (and yes single or couples acting as present and future parents that will help others get educated.) If your charity has too much of a political agenda, its likely to loose its focus on charity.
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Post by 1dave on Apr 27, 2019 21:44:27 GMT -5
A surprising thought occurred to me some years back.
Time spent visiting the sick is time not available for feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, etc.
We can't do it all. All we can do is help where we can, and where need is most obvious.
"The cobbler's children go without shoes." Giving needs to begin at home.
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Post by rmf on Apr 28, 2019 12:14:59 GMT -5
A surprising thought occurred to me some years back. Time spent visiting the sick is time not available for feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, etc. We can't do it all. All we can do is help where we can, and where need is most obvious. "The cobbler's children go without shoes." Giving needs to begin at home. Nobody has the rescources do do it all like you say 1dave We all have our area of gift even on here. some tumble, some cab, and some write really good info articles. Thanks to all for your contributions here and in the real world.
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Post by stephan on May 5, 2019 20:21:30 GMT -5
As a rule, if they call me, they get nothing.
I tend to give more to local than to national or international organizations.
That said, for large organizations, Heifer isn’t bad. They teach people to be self-sufficient, and they are very transparent. Fundraising costs are a tad high at 19%, but overall, not bad.
And lately, especially now that I’m paying for multiple college tuitions, I give my time, rather than money.
Speaking of tuition, I’m taking donations (only partly kidding). 😬
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