Charity

[~Kronos~]

Do you think it's better to give a little to many, or to give a great amount to a few.

Say you have a million dollars to give to charity. Is it better to give 2,000 people $500, or is it better to give 100 people $10k. Assuming they are extremely needy the $10k wouldn't necessarily be in cash. Instead give them an apt with some pre-paid rent, food, hygeine items, clothes, and phone, a counselor, and some job ideas.

Which is the most worth while in your opinion? Which has the greatest impact? What other thoughts do you have on the topic?

[Quina Quen]

Forced to choose between the two I would likely give a lesser amount to many as opposed to more money to fewer.

[Kit-Fox]

Removed

[deni]

Or just pick a local project to support - like the local soup kitchen. It works best imo.

If you want to do something more than just give money, you can always help kids from underpriviledged families with their lessons. Education is the only way out of misery and worth much more then just $.

[MEZZANINE]

Or just pick a local project to support - like the local soup kitchen. It works best imo.

If you want to do something more than just give money, you can always help kids from underpriviledged families with their lessons. Education is the only way out of misery and worth much more then just $.

As a member of St Johns Ambulance and working for a Housing Association which is a registered charity I often attend community events as a first aider. On the donations front we also have what we call a 'staff charity' which all staff member vote on which charity to support each year, all monies raised by staff in various ways throughout the year are match-funded by the Housing Association.

As for the original question, choosing a charity to support comes down to where you live and personal priorities ( People who have lost friends/family to Cancer will often support Cancer support/research etc ). I wouldnt give to individuals, I would always give to a proper charity who know how to use the donation most effectively, and I think a single large donation will have more effect than lots of small ones.



Problem with charities

1) There are too many, lots of new ones appear every year with a 'watering down' effect meaning that each charity gets less each year, or worse still established charities lose out to newer which are less effective but have better marketing.

2) Many of the things charities cover IMO should be paid for by central government out of our taxes. These are what I would call 'cop out' charities set up for back door taxation.

[Lore]

Given the 2 choices I would go with giving fewer people more money, but I would be pickier about who received it. I would want the people receiving it to use it properly and not squander it.

[Ashu]

Help whomever you can, give to who would need it.

[Gohan]

"Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

I don't believe in 'God' as say, but i do think a lot of the teachings in the bible are still relevant in our day and age. We're all one, and as a collective we can't strive forward in a truly pure society when there is such a divide between every one. If you have a meal and only eat half, why didn't you just cook half and offer the rest to the needy? I also believe in the idea of teaching a man to fish, rather than giving him a fish. I wouldn't just hand out money and think the problem is solved. I would rather give a small amount to many people, people who need it to start their way up and out of their current bad situation. I also think that a poor man who only has £100 who gives it all to charity means more than a rich man who has £10,000,000 who gives £1,000,000 to charity.

[Soifon]

As stated in an above post it would be beneficial to invest in schooling I'm my oppinion, as education opens up a new world of possibilties and can get people jobs or give skills that can be of use, thus helping the person(s) move on instead of just giving them some food and shelter prolonging/staying in the same dilemma.

Ofc food and shelter are equally importaint but there are lots off other charities that could work with schools to offer meals.

Just my opinion .

[Field Marshall]

I also think that a poor man who only has £100 who gives it all to charity means more than a rich man who has £10,000,000 who gives £1,000,000 to charity.

Any person who gives up 10% of their wealth is extremely worthy in my eyes and shouldn't be diluted in your posting...take Bill Gates, his contribution to charity, is still huge. He spends a lot of time promoting charity and gives huge percentages of his income to charity.

Regardless of the amount, if everyone gave 10% of everything they had, we could wipe a few of the worlds most dire situations straight off the list.

[Semper]

I donate money and would happily donate more to local causes, cancer research etc etc. I would NEVER donate to 'feed the world' and all that rubbish.

The western world could sort Africa and all that out, poverty wise. It chooses not too. I believe giving to one or two villages is like dropping a pebble in a ocean and even that little good is often useless or pointless under the crushing wheels of the next dictator that drives through. It's terribly tragic but Africa needs to be Africa, it will sort itself out eventually and when it does i'm sure it'l become a monster to shadow China, the UK and the US but until them i'm content letting them get on with it.

Children starving? There are children starving and dying in the UK and US too...

[Ashu]

I donate money and would happily donate more to local causes, cancer research etc etc. I would NEVER donate to 'feed the world' and all that rubbish.

The western world could sort Africa and all that out, poverty wise. It chooses not too. I believe giving to one or two villages is like dropping a pebble in a ocean and even that little good is often useless or pointless under the crushing wheels of the next dictator that drives through. It's terribly tragic but Africa needs to be Africa, it will sort itself out eventually and when it does i'm sure it'l become a monster to shadow China, the UK and the US but until them i'm content letting them get on with it.

Children starving? There are children starving and dying in the UK and US too...

A very good and level headed opinion!

[Slim87R]

A good question. The less money an individual has, the more that individual hangs on to it. If you were to give fewer people a larger amount, probably 5k would be better than 10k, they would actually go out and spend it. But then again, the world is where it is now because the few holding the money over the many.