I’m also suspicious of these vague charities. Would you like to donate to Save the Children? What children? Save them from what? Save them from being “trapped in the wrong body” and give money to their “affirming” care (Big Pharm)? I need details.
One of these things from years ago was actually just donating your money to a certain political party because that party said it was going to do the charitable thing with the money. It was a sneaky political donation under the guise of saving, feeding, helping, whatever.
Rich people donate money to non-profits for tax writeoffs (doesnt work if donating to for-profits).
Non-profit charity gives money to for-profit charity. This is called a “clearing house”.
For-profit charity gives money to political party/candidate.
*this is exactly how George Soros gets tax writeoffs for ~100m per year while still influencing elections, judges, media, school boards, etc. I believe it’s called Open Society Foundation or something like that
A lot of charities do meaningful work, and don’t spend much of donated money on advertising, marketing, politics or high salary executives.
I donate to charities, but usually say no when asked to do so at the cashier. A few cents is no big deal, but I prefer to deal with the first paragraph type of charity. I don’t like to feel pressured or manipulated. I want a tax receipt if making a significant donation. And there are websites like “charity watch” which tell you how they spend donations. FWIW, they give “Save The Children” an A-.
This is really good info. Seriously thank you for explaining things. So, even if it doesn’t hurt anything by helping a corporation receive a tax break, I don’t like the manipulation.
I want it to be a well known fact that our donations help the businesses we patronize. The sneakiness is what makes me not want to donate. I can and have donated to the food bank and many other charities, I don’t need them to help me be charitable.
Absolutely agree, that’s exactly what I’m after. Socially awkward situations are healthy, and I’d like to strengthen the skill of saying no if something feels off.
But there should be a sentence we can say that’ll educate (I hate that word) cashiers on the reality of the situation. Maybe if enough of us say it, they won’t make such a stink when we say no.
Christians should be able to share answers about their faith and it actually turned out kinda cool. But it bothers me that I didn’t have the right words to say about tax breaks.
It’s also probably not a great look to address your faith right after declining a ONE DOLLAR charitable donation.
But if she knew the real reason I declined, she’d probably get it. So that’s why I think we need an explanatory sentence. Also, if more cashiers hear that sentence, they’ll be more likely to say the same thing when they go shopping.
Great info! I used to pay close attention to those sites that graded charities but totally forgot about them. Here’s a link (for anyone dropping in on this log) that goes to Charity Watch which @DoesTheHeavyLifting mentioned and another one called Charity Navigator.
If anyone has suggestions for sites that rank charities, drop them here! Or if you’d like to share some charities you trust, please let us know.
Sometimes the cashier says you owe whatever dollars and ninety-eight cents, and ask if you want to “round up to the nearest dollar”, because they are ordered to ask that. I very occasionally enjoy doing so in as ostentatious a manner as possible (though rarely do this).
I’m going to have to check with my financial team…. If they give the old thumbs up, I think we could possibly consider giving you all of the two cents you are requesting. I’ve just gotta make a phone call…
But I try not to be a jerk. Sometimes the cashier realizes they are asking for two cents but often they don’t since they have to say it to every customer. I’d only say it if feeling flirtatious, or if I think the cashier looks like they have a sense of humour. I don’t say things every time I think them. Still, the situation comes up more often than it should - maybe four times this year?
Whoa! I hear the, “would you like to donate to so and so” question about 50% of the time.
Yesterday it sort of happened at Ulta but the cashier was really cool. She said something to the effect of “the option to donate will pop up on your screen” and I didn’t experience any social pressure from her.
I wonder if certain businesses train their employees to guilt people more than others. Or maybe certain individuals take it upon themselves to pressure customers because they have a heart for giving, but don’t realize what’s going on with their company’s tax status.
Certain businesses are more active in promoting their charities. No doubt some of these “foundations” are “give us the credit for your generosity” or tax schemes. Not all of them.
Here, bookstores (more woke customers?), some drug stores, and the Canadian equivalent of TJ Maxx almost always ask for a donation. Places like Wendy’s have signs offering coupon books for donations and put boxes on the counter but don’t mention them.
When I said “four times”, I was not saying the number of times I was asked for a donation, which is much higher. Four is about the number of times I was asked to “round up to the nearest dollar” when this specifically meant the donation would be under a nickel since the stuff bought came to whatever dollars and 96-99 cents.
I was traveling Friday evening. The shuttle stopped at a Maverik (Mountain West) convenience store. I bought a bag of Wiley Wallaby licorice. (Which I should not have…) Sure as heck, “Would you like to round up your change for (some) donation?” I was in a hurry so I just told the cashier sure. I run into that everywhere.
Yeah that’s super relatable. It’s usually more annoying to say “no” than it is to just pay the tiny donation (social-pressure fee). Actually, that’s what it should be called: social pressure fee.
More people should lean into that. I think it brings a particular joie de vivre.
Ah, that makes sense! I’m mostly English and Irish on my mom’s side. Dad’s side is a mix of Scottish and some other things. Reed is my maiden name. So yeah, we’re basically distant cousins.
What do you think about 23 and Me? My conspiratorial brain is a little nervous about it, but also genealogy is such a cool topic that it kinda sucks to not know all the details of your ancestry when the option is available.
