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naraburns  nihil supernum  1yr ago (text post)   2800 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for January 13, 2023

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

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Entrepreneurial charity...

I'm pretty well off but I haven't given a lot of money to causes recently because they all suck. I mean, really, they suck. Many I've dealt with are just incompetent. To the point where they can't even cash checks in a timely manner or return phone calls. I shouldn't have to nag you to cash my $20,000 check. Others enable the very thing they are trying to solve. Breast cancer charities don't want to cure breast cancer. Homeless charities don't want to end homelessness. Many non-profits exist merely as grifts to employ non-productive college graduates. But the worst problem is that nearly every non-profit seems to be infected with the woke mind virus. Even if they were doing good work (which I doubt in most cases) I wouldn't feel good about donating to a non-profit that supports that stuff.

But I'm still an altruist at heart and I have more money than I need. So I'd like to go solo and do charity work on my own.

I've done a few things that are really minor like pick up trash or shovel the sidewalk near my house. But I think there are a lot of opportunities to do something bigger. What's something that a person could do with their time and money to make the world a better place. Something that doesn't involve interacting with any institution at all? Should I just straight up send people cash?

What are you trying to accomplish with your charity? You say

Homeless charities don't want to end homelessness.

so maybe you want to do something that will reduce homelessness or help people get out of homelessness. Maybe providing more permanent housing than a shelter? Maybe helping them get jobs (which could take a lot of forms)?

Other posters suggested getting involved with government somehow. Actually working on campaigns (or running for office yourself) isn't the only way to influence policy. There's also single-issue activist/lobbying organizations like FairVote. If there's some policies you believe in, maybe you could be working to convince other people of those policies, which may be preferable to getting directly involved in government.

Also, while I do feel the same desire to try to direct charity towards fixing problems instead of treading water dealing with them... even if they work structural fixes are slow and people are poor right now. Long-term fixes are important but I wouldn't completely dismiss the value of short-term band-aids.

(If you're writing any charity a check of any sizable amount, you may be missing out on the tax benefits of donating appreciated stock. See your brokerage for more information.)

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