Said Thanks to a Rich Person Lately?

a reply to: Edumakated

I only thank people who have done something to be thanked for. Rich or poor. In my experience though, the rich people I know wouldn't give a dollar to a starving person...but it is the poor people who donate the most to local charities and help people in need. That is what should be thanked in my opinion - when they help people in need.

a reply to: Edumakated

You raise a good point.

However, your ride your motor bike across the country. The rich person writes out a cheque.

While you are definitely not complaining about riding across the country, it appears to me that you are giving far more than them, depending on how wealthy they are of course.

How many of the rich give till it hurts them as much as you hurt riding across the country?

Unfortunately while undoubtedly some of the rich support hospitals etc simply because they want to, many also are not so much giving to the hospital, as they are buying publicity, good will with the public. buying a good image with the public, credibility with the public and a reputation for generosity.

Many of the rich do this to protect themselves from allegations and investigations by authorities into possible wrong doing on their part. There reputation as a major doner to a children's hospital greatly assists any allegations of wrong doing go away. So, in a sense they are buying insurance against the various skeletons they have in their cupboard.

A final question is, its not so much how much they donate in number terms but, how much of their net worth are they donating?

a reply to: Edumakated

Define 'Rich'.

Just sayin.

you'd be surprised at the amount of charity that can be found in the poorer neighborhoods. they may not have as much to give, but when you open your home for a homeless friend and feed them at your dinner table.. it's more like you're giving them a share of everything you have. of course, it's more like an investment, since you know that next time it might be you that loses your job and needs the help and you are hoping that someone will be just as kind to you...but...
still, they seem to be giving more to me than just writing a check, probably with the idea that it will make a nice tax break someone down the line... paying others to actually do the messy part of having to actually be on the ground dealing with the mess that poverty creates. I mean, who deserves your thanks more?? the ceo of large grocery chain I happen to shop at or that nice lady at the cash register that greets me with a smile and checks you out, or the nice lady that notices when I have had trouble getting through the store at to the cash register and offers to load the groceries into the car?

I'm sorry, but if any of those rich people happen to have played a part in creating a disaster like that in flint michigan, where we will probably be seeing the effects on people's health for decades... well, they probably should be doing more than just donating a small portion of the payoff to their local hospital!!

I'm not saying that there are some good wealthy people who deserve thanks, but I totally reject the idea that they deserve my thanks based solely on the fact that they have donated a small portion of their wealth to some charity that they found worthy...
who knows, maybe they've accumulated all that wealth thanks to my and my fellow taxpayers subsidizing their company's payroll throughout the year, or those nice gov't grants, contracts, and "job creation" schemes, ect... which, by the way, we didn't have the choice to donate, but were kind of forced to pay into, money that we had a more worthy cause to spend it on!

nope, sorry, give a man a fish, you've simply fed him for the day and made yourself feel good...
teach the man to fish, let the man keep his fish, don't dump your toxic waste into the lake he is fishing in, or pay the man enough to fish for you if you want his fish so badly, then you have reduced his need for your charity.
but, na, the man isn't wise enough to determine what is a worthy expenditure and he doesn't have enough ambition to learn how to fish himself. and it just costs too much money to pay him a decent livable wage! and, and.... I just feel so good after I write that check out knowing that I am helping others.

sorry, don't buy it...
and, those rich people usually aren't around for me to thank, I don't think. But if they ever are, and open a door for me, or in some other way act kindly toward me, I will thank them, just like I will thank the homeless guy who does the same.

originally posted by: randyvs
a reply to: Edumakated

Flame away..

Best part of the whole thread.

It was predictable given all the naked greed seen daily.

Most people don't pay attention to names or they resent them when they go to all the nice things we wouldn't otherwise have without philanthropy (i.e. someone with a lot of money giving substantial chunks of it away).

And, yes, we did thank the last set of plumbers who came out to our place. They got one of their tools stuck in the city sewer line and lost it. Had to break it to get it out, and they spent over 5 hours on what should have been a routine job. Not even our fault, but the city's for having a crap sewer line. We did thank them.

I like how this thread has become a competition over who gives more: rich vs. poor.

It wasn't the OP.

The OP was merely stating that the evil rich give too as much as that concept burns like acid thrown in your face for many people.

Just like anything, the idea that people give is not constrained by anything other than the individual. There is no magic economic or ideological line that says "Beyond Here Charity Dare Not Go" like many seem to want to believe.

originally posted by: ketsuko
I like how this thread has become a competition over who gives more: rich vs. poor.

It wasn't the OP.

The OP was merely stating that the evil rich give too as much as that concept burns like acid thrown in your face for many people.

Just like anything, the idea that people give is not constrained by anything other than the individual. There is no magic economic or ideological line that says "Beyond Here Charity Dare Not Go" like many seem to want to believe.

Yes, a lot of people don't get it. They can't see past their own envy. However, these same people will gladly go to a museum or attend a university that was largely funded by the uber wealthy for their benefit.

They can't and won't recognize how the freedoms we have in this country and the ability to earn immense wealth is why we have so much.

Individual charity is far more efficient than government. We'd never have the arts, culture, and other services that we do if we solely relied on government to provide them.

Being wealthy does not mean you don't care or don't have issue that are important to you.

Philanthropy is a great tax write off...and a great way to keep the (wage)slaves from storming the castles(high rises)

Just sayin

Thank you rich people!

a reply to: abeverage

It isn't only the super wealthy who can write off their charity. Just sayin' ...

a reply to: Edumakated

I don't know if you are a Christian but this is what Jesus has to say:

www.openbible.info...

a reply to: Edumakated

Every year I participate in a long distance motorcycle ride to raise money for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. A network of hospitals for children.

"Hey, rich people give to charity too," says the well meaning OP.

"What, you trying to say rich people are better than poor people. Poor people give more than rich people. Stupid rich people. Hey!...Hey! Everyone can you believe this guy is trying to say that rich people are better than poor people. The nerve of this guy," says the raving mob.

"Uhhh...I didn't actually say that," says the slowly backing away OP.

"Unintelligible screams!"

originally posted by: Edumakated
Individual charity is far more efficient than government. We'd never have the arts, culture, and other services that we do if we solely relied on government to provide them.

Not even close. The wealthy donate a couple hundred million for a hospital. Government spends a couple hundred billion inventing treatments for a disease that didn't previously have any.

Look at the subsidies companies like Pfizer get. Private charity is in no way set up to create those kinds of returns.

originally posted by: Edumakated
Every year I participate in a long distance motorcycle ride to raise money for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. A network of hospitals for children.

This makes zero sense what so ever to me. WHY would people waste money on gas for these long distance drives, or getting to the runs somewhere in the country for some 5k charity run, INSTEAD OF DONATING THAT TRANSPORTATION MONEY directly to the cause in the first place?

Logic dictates because it's an ego stroke, not genuine care. I would never, ever waste money to reach an event to "raise" money, I donate directly. It's a far better use of my money than wasting it on gas to show up and say "See? Look where I went for charity!"

In my town, the wealthy bankrolled a school for the mentally disabled. Wonderful of them, until you realize their industries and waste practices caused the disabilities.

Same for the local hospitals- millions donated by companies whose products have documented negative consequences on human health. So you can forget any meaningful research there; we've been named a cancer cluster yet our health department insists our cancer rates are "in line" with the state and country.

Just pointing out that sometimes donations and good will are a small price to pay when the bad guys want to play.

originally posted by: Nyiah

originally posted by: Edumakated
Every year I participate in a long distance motorcycle ride to raise money for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. A network of hospitals for children.

This makes zero sense what so ever to me. WHY would people waste money on gas for these long distance drives, or getting to the runs somewhere in the country for some 5k charity run, INSTEAD OF DONATING THAT TRANSPORTATION MONEY directly to the cause in the first place?

Logic dictates because it's an ego stroke, not genuine care. I would never, ever waste money to reach an event to "raise" money, I donate directly. It's a far better use of my money than wasting it on gas to show up and say "See? Look where I went for charity!"

Did it ever cross your mind that some people enjoy going on long motorcycle rides? We raise money and get to enjoy a couple days riding our bikes. Yes, we could easily just write a check, but that really isn't the point. We've raised over $500,000. We ride and present a check to the hospital located in our destination. We also get to meet some of the children/families that have benefited from the hospitals.

a reply to: Nyiah

Have you ever known a long distance runner?

The point is to run. They love going to those runs to run. They love the idea that what they love doing is also able to be helpful to someone else because people will sponsor them to run, so they go to all those runs because it's what they do -- they run. They can't not run.

originally posted by: Edumakated

originally posted by: Nyiah

originally posted by: Edumakated
Every year I participate in a long distance motorcycle ride to raise money for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. A network of hospitals for children.

This makes zero sense what so ever to me. WHY would people waste money on gas for these long distance drives, or getting to the runs somewhere in the country for some 5k charity run, INSTEAD OF DONATING THAT TRANSPORTATION MONEY directly to the cause in the first place?

Logic dictates because it's an ego stroke, not genuine care. I would never, ever waste money to reach an event to "raise" money, I donate directly. It's a far better use of my money than wasting it on gas to show up and say "See? Look where I went for charity!"

Did it ever cross your mind that some people enjoy going on long motorcycle rides? We raise money and get to enjoy a couple days riding our bikes. Yes, we could easily just write a check, but that really isn't the point. We've raised over $500,000. We ride and present a check to the hospital located in our destination. We also get to meet some of the children/families that have benefited from the hospitals.

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: Nyiah

Have you ever known a long distance runner?

The point is to run. They love going to those runs to run. They love the idea that what they love doing is also able to be helpful to someone else because people will sponsor them to run, so they go to all those runs because it's what they do -- they run. They can't not run.

Thank you both for unwittingly admitting while fawning about it that it's simply furiously stroking that ego while trying to claim charitable intentions. My bet is if these events ceased as of tomorrow morning, many "participants" would have no reason to continue any kind of interaction with their charity of choice. There'd be no personal reward for them without the events. Which tells you everything you need to know about about the true intentions of a person -- charity has no obligation to give anything back to the donor, that's the entire point of charity. It's for others, not you.

originally posted by: Nyiah

originally posted by: Edumakated

originally posted by: Nyiah

originally posted by: Edumakated
Every year I participate in a long distance motorcycle ride to raise money for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. A network of hospitals for children.

This makes zero sense what so ever to me. WHY would people waste money on gas for these long distance drives, or getting to the runs somewhere in the country for some 5k charity run, INSTEAD OF DONATING THAT TRANSPORTATION MONEY directly to the cause in the first place?

Logic dictates because it's an ego stroke, not genuine care. I would never, ever waste money to reach an event to "raise" money, I donate directly. It's a far better use of my money than wasting it on gas to show up and say "See? Look where I went for charity!"

Did it ever cross your mind that some people enjoy going on long motorcycle rides? We raise money and get to enjoy a couple days riding our bikes. Yes, we could easily just write a check, but that really isn't the point. We've raised over $500,000. We ride and present a check to the hospital located in our destination. We also get to meet some of the children/families that have benefited from the hospitals.

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: Nyiah

Have you ever known a long distance runner?

The point is to run. They love going to those runs to run. They love the idea that what they love doing is also able to be helpful to someone else because people will sponsor them to run, so they go to all those runs because it's what they do -- they run. They can't not run.

Thank you both for unwittingly admitting while fawning about it that it's simply furiously stroking that ego while trying to claim charitable intentions. My bet is if these events ceased as of tomorrow morning, many "participants" would have no reason to continue any kind of interaction with their charity of choice. There'd be no personal reward for them without the events. Which tells you everything you need to know about about the true intentions of a person -- charity has no obligation to give anything back to the donor, that's the entire point of charity. It's for others, not you.

Oh please, you have no idea what anyone does for their charitable giving or their motivations.