# Am I right to feel uncomfortable about this commercial? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 4, 2002, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-right-to-feel-uncomfortable-about-this-commercial/135187 "2002-11-04T07:46:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2002, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-right-to-feel-uncomfortable-about-this-commercial/135187/41 "2002-11-07T16:33:51Z")
Suspenderzzz, I’m confused. First, you’re angry that these people are making gross generalizations about the condition of the poor and under-resourced. Then you go on to make gross generalizations about the poor and under-resourced. It sounds to me that you have no idea what you’re talking about. ---
**Author:** ![Suspenderzzz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@Suspenderzzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suspenderzzz)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2002, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-right-to-feel-uncomfortable-about-this-commercial/135187/42 "2002-11-07T17:48:39Z")
**Munch** I know you don’t, and I won’t hold it against you. A complex issue sometimes has some seemingly contradictory aspects. (Most complex issues do.) You have to be open-minded in order to have the guts to acknowledge all of them and admit that they sound contradictory. There are no easy answers, and with this whole issue there is no clear “good guy” and “bad guy”. All parties involved carry some of the blame. However, most people have a need to neatly wrap their views of things into a tight little package and pigeonhole it. That’s a pity, but it’s perfectly understandable. Hang in there, pal. You are admitting you are confused, so that is a positive first step towards broadening your mind. ---
**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2002, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-right-to-feel-uncomfortable-about-this-commercial/135187/43 "2002-11-07T18:00:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Suspenderzzz \* > \*\*A complex issue sometimes has some seemingly contradictory aspects. (Most complex issues do.) You have to be open-minded in order to have the guts to acknowledge all of them and admit that they sound contradictory. Openminded like this, your first post: > [@](#): > > Any conversation with them that is initiated by rich people is dumbed down to whatever the rich think the poor probably care about and can comprehend. Condescending, pseudo-heart warming crap. Grrrrrrrr. Hate it. Or this one, also you: > [@](#): > > People DO resent it, even if it is at a deeply subconscious level and they are not aware of it themselves. They feel they have to act grateful (guilt factor), and human nature dictates that that gives a person an inferiority complex in the long run. See, what you’re doing is avoiding the issue. Munch’s point is that you’re making generalizations while bitching about other people making generalizations. This is called hypocrisy. To avoid answering Munch’s question, you try a condescending attitude (“Hang in there, pal.”). This is what people do when they have no argument to make. The reason people might not know where you’re coming from or what you’re talking about is that you are contradicting yourself. You try to speak for the less fortunate, yet you admit you’re not one of them. How can you possibly speak for them? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2002, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-right-to-feel-uncomfortable-about-this-commercial/135187/44 "2002-11-07T18:06:10Z")
Great attitude, Suspenderzzz, I’m sure it’ll get you far here on the boards. Glad you found it. However, as I am getting a Master’s in Philanthropy as well as in Public Administration (conc. in Non-Profit Management), I was curious as to how you came up with your conclusions on the motivations of both donors and volunteers, as well as the psychological condition of the recipient - current literature on the subject would be soundly on the other side of the fence. Since you have such a firm grasp of the psychology in the matter, I can only assume that you’re a researcher and just haven’t published these brand new findings that would most certainly turn conventional wisdom on its ear. Please share - I know many people who would be very interested in your findings. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-right-to-feel-uncomfortable-about-this-commercial/135187.md?page=2)