Newsflash guys. Open your eyes to the needs of your own communities and people. There are so many in need of a great many things. Some times it's a coat. Some times it's a good meal. Other times a simple smile will do. Stop making "charities" and "foundations" rich. There's an endless and never-ending supply of sob stories for every sap. You're the sap they are gunning for and the wish-washy Westerner that'll "fall for anything" that they are hoping to run across. Stop being so gullible. Were we always this stupid?
There are rules to life. The number one rule that I figured out really quickly growing up is that when people are appealing to a sense of sympathy, SHUT THEM DOWN. I know it sounds harsh but truth may be evident when we open our eyes to see it. When your emotions are being appealed to rather than your reason, you will not see things for what they are. Needless to say, it's probably bullshit. Beware.
Besides, it's always been my thinking that if we want to help out people, there are people all around in our own communities and circles and at our varied economic levels that could use a helping hand. Not more than a figurative arm's length away, people are in need.
I could tell you all kinds of stories of people in rough, impoverished areas that don't know where their next meal's coming from. I can also tell you stories of so-called middle class people living in what where I come from would be considered a castle (not a row home) but they couldn't really provide food for their family or shoes for their kids or where the children are under-nourished. Don't presume to know. M'kay?
You are out there everyday seeing people but you never really take a look do ya? But you'll hand some change to one of those "charity" people out on the street or drop some money somewhere where somebody's asking for it. You have to stop and take the time to lend a helping hand to someone in your community that is TRULY in need folks. How are you gonna know who is in need? People truly in need aren't coming out asking for help. They're the one you have to look for if you wanna really do a good deed. You need to get to know the people around you. Open your eyes.
I met a really nice lady in my twenties at a job I was working but sadly lost contact with her over the years. Michelle. She and her husband had a really nice family. They lived in K&A in Philly. Had about 3 or 4 kids. A really nice family. K&A's a really rough area, even back then. Extremely economically depressed and overrun with druggies and such. The first time I drove Michelle home from work we walked over to pick up her kids from school. Adorable children. White blonde hair, beautiful blue eyes. I picked the one little sweetie up (about 4 years old) to carry her as we walked home so she would not lag. I marveled at how light (in weight) she was compared to my sister's kids. We got back to the house and Michelle said, "give me a minute. I have to make the kids dinner". I smiled and had a nice little conversation with the kids about their day and all fun things kids talk about. The kids' dinner was a single slice of white bread (white death imo) and a strip of Steak Ums and some ketchup.
Now I do not presume to judge because what a family can provide for themselves is not my place (nor the government's) to approach. We must have fundamental respect for people. Life is hard out there. But out there is not Africa. It's not Asia nor is it South America or where ever your misplaced bleeding heart is catapulting your mind. Life is hard right here. Probably right next door to you.
Ngl, I got a bit of a lump in my throat but they were happy children. Well-adjusted. I would have loved to have had the opportunity to help them more but I was young and poor too. The entire situation reminded me of Oliver Twist because of the level of poverty but the cheer and the hope rang a bell.
Also, don't fail to have a family because you fear poverty. I know you hate to hear it but struggle builds character if that is the way it must be. The truth is that you will be happier in that poverty than when you wind out of it.
You have got to build your communities people. Life is about people and it has got to be a group effort to making any thing of this world. You must stop looking at your fellow man as inferior because of economic plight. Soon the playing field will be leveled. Build your communities now. Don't look down at a man who has fallen on his luck but because he is a white man he is unworthy. I have seen white people do this. This has got to be a sickness of the mind to turn someone of your own kind/group away just for that reason. You better read some Charles Dickens.
For real guys. Open your eyes in your own communities.
How would you feel if you donated money to help disaster victims or cancer patients and you later found out that more than 97 percent of the money that you gave never got into the hands of the people that needed it? Sadly, that is happening all over America today. In fact, in some of the worst cases, less than a penny of every dollar that is donated ends up in the hands of those that need the help.
If you can believe it, right now there are 6,000 charities in the United States that use for-profit companies to raise money for them, and in many of those instances the for-profit companies end up keeping more than 50 percent of the donations for themselves. In addition, many charities end up paying their employees “salaries” that are far greater than the total amount of money that the charities actually give to the needy.
The Tampa Bay Times, CNN and the Center for Investigative Reporting recently teamed up to conduct an investigation, and they came up with a list of the 50 worst charities in America. They discovered that those charities raised more than $1.3 billion over the past ten years combined, but that nearly $1 billion of that total went to the for-profit companies that raise their donations for them. The American people are being scammed out of an enormous amount of money, and people need to learn the truth about this.
According to the report that was put out, the “Kids Wish Network” is the absolute worst charity in America. The following is how the Tampa Bay Times describes them…
The worst charity in America operates from a metal warehouse behind a gas station in Holiday. Every year, Kids Wish Network raises millions of dollars in donations in the name of dying children and their families. Every year, it spends less than 3 cents on the dollar helping kids.
Most of the rest gets diverted to enrich the charity’s operators and the for-profit companies Kids Wish hires to drum up donations.
In the past decade alone, Kids Wish has channeled nearly $110 million donated for sick children to its corporate solicitors. An additional $4.8 million has gone to pay the charity’s founder and his own consulting firms.
110 million dollars is a colossal amount of money. Imagine how much good that could have done if it had actually gone to sick kids. Instead, it went to enrich scammers that own shady companies that run pushy telemarketing operations.
Apparently “charity work” has become one of the most prominent “get rich quick” schemes in America. The following is how CNN summarized some of the most important findings of the investigation…
– The 50 worst charities in America devote less than 4% of donations raised to direct cash aid. Some charities gave even less. Over a decade, one diabetes charity raised nearly $14 million and gave about $10,000 to patients. Six spent no cash at all on their cause.
– Even as they plead for financial support, operators at many of the 50 worst charities have lied to donors about where their money goes, taken multiple salaries, secretly paid themselves consulting fees or arranged fund-raising contracts with friends. One cancer charity paid a company owned by the president’s son nearly $18 million over eight years to solicit funds. A medical charity paid its biggest research grant to its president’s own for-profit company.
– Some nonprofits are little more than fronts for fund-raising companies, which bankroll their startup costs, lock them into exclusive contracts at exorbitant rates and even drive the charities into debt. Florida-based Project Cure has raised more than $65 million since 1998, but every year has wound up owing its fundraiser more than what was raised. According to its latest financial filing, the nonprofit is $3 million in debt.
– To disguise the meager amount of money that reaches those in need, charities use accounting tricks and inflate the value of donated dollar-store cast-offs – snack cakes and air fresheners – that they give to dying cancer patients and homeless veterans.
When you get a call at dinner time asking for money for sick children or to help support your local police, there is a good chance that call is coming from a “boiler room” that is being staffed by whatever shady characters that particular for-profit telemarketing firm was able to hire. If you give them money, there is a very good chance that most of the money will be kept by the telemarketers.
And you never know who is on the other end of that telephone. According to the Center for Investigative Reporting, it is often convicted felons that are taking down the credit card numbers of people that think that they are donating money to a good cause…
Yeah I'm with you for 99% of this, however my personal situation of poverty does not make me happy, I'm fucking miserable and depressed 100% of the time mostly because every effort I make to get me and my kids out of poverty fails