[rfloz]

This thread has made me think about my own charitable giving and I suspect it has done so for others as well.

I never give money to people panhandlres. Hard-hearted bastid? Maybe, but I have watched these people take money and go straight to the liquor store for booze. I am not going to enable alcoholism.

Some years ago I gave a small donation by check to one of the downtown missions claiming to feed the homeless. Over the next two years I received too many slick soliciations from this group to count. I swear they spent more for those brochures than I gave them. One appeal a year, fine, 15-30, no thanks.

I mostly give to scholarship funds now. At least the recipients are trying to better themselves. Or so I tell myself.

As to the big screen TV - meh. Bad decisions do not necessarily make them bad people. They may not even realize how foolish that expenditure was. And, most likely, it is their sole form of entertainment. A "gimme" attitude on the other hand is not going to open my wallet.

Time vs. money: My partner and her daughter went to Mexico last year with their church group to help build housing for some desparately poor people in Tijuana (sse picture above for an example of how they live). Not only were the recipients extremely grateful, but they worked right alongside the church members who supplied both building materials and labor.

Hard to beat that and the daughter got a really worthwhile lesson in just how good she had it. I am going to try to get my own daughter to do something similar with me this year.