# Don't Get Me Wrong But -- Should I Really Donate For Japan Quake? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 12, 2011, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443 "2011-03-12T18:56:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![SecondJudith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5ac83/32.png) [@SecondJudith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SecondJudith)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/21 "2011-03-16T12:08:27Z")
I wouldn’t call it sickening. There are starving and homeless people the world over, and I don’t think it’s unreasonable to say, for example, “Haiti needs my money more than Japan does”. FWIW, after their natural disasters, both my Australian and New Zealander friends have expressed the same feelings: “we’re first world countries, there are other countries suffering from the aftermath of disasters that aren’t, they need donations and aid more than we do.” ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/22 "2011-03-16T12:52:49Z")
I’m willing to accept that the fact that I live in Japan biases me heavily. Still, I feel there’s a difference between saying “Other countries need it more” and “Oh, Japan is rich so I don’t need to donate to them at all.” Also, even if one country as a whole needs money than another, suffering is suffering. This is not a game of Risk or a discussion of economic theory. This is people’s lives. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/23 "2011-03-16T13:01:08Z")
> [@Autolycus](#): > > The disaster total so far is at 100 billion dollars. I’m not sure exactly what that means, but it’s not cheap. In any case, the attitude in this thread that because Japan is a developed nation somehow means it does not need our help is really fucking sickening. Sure, you don’t have to feel obligated, but starving and homeless people are starving and homeless people. Grrr… Besides, one gets the idea that those being so selective & stingy about their charity don’t _actually_ give to the more “deserving” causes, either. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/24 "2011-03-16T13:55:10Z")
If we use the needy in the US as a rationale for not helping other nations, then we will never help other nations. Sure, we have homeless in the US. We don’t have entire regions suffering on the same scale as the Japanese. For those of you with religious beliefs, can you imagine St. Peter asking you “How many Americans did you help?” rather than “How many people did you help?” ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/25 "2011-03-16T14:04:39Z")
You all make me feel like a chump. I donated $30 to [Direct Relief](http://www.directrelief.org/EmergencyResponse/2011/JapanEarthquakeTsunami.aspx) because they have one of the [lowest in overhead expenses](http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=3626). I never donate money at all. I don’t even give bums money or food, but I did this time. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/26 "2011-03-16T15:26:30Z")
OP, you’re not the only one wondering. Relevant [Slate article here](http://www.slate.com/id/2288243/). ---
**Author:** ![Headrush042](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a5b964/32.png) [@Headrush042](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Headrush042)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/27 "2011-03-16T15:58:51Z")
Also check with your employer to see if they sponsor any charity programs. The company I work for is matching donations to the Red Cross’s International Relief arm by 100%, so my donation is more or less going twice as far. ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/28 "2011-03-16T16:25:35Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > OP, you’re not the only one wondering. Relevant [Slate article here](http://www.slate.com/id/2288243/). Yeah, and read the comments section to see just how well-received the article was. ---
**Author:** ![manila](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e5b9ba/32.png) [@manila](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/manila)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/29 "2011-03-16T16:38:28Z")
Why should I donate? Hell I just saw a guy saying he had lost everything but in his drive he had four SUV’s three fishing boats and a bullet train all parked there! ( obligatory sick joke) Of course am gonna donate. maybe the value is that it makes me feel as though am actually doing something compared with the amount of cash that’s gets through to the end needy user. I don’t care whether they have a rich economy. I know the international charity organisations will mobilise and I want to help that cause wherever they act. For once I agree with **EvenSven** The charitable societies that are currently helping need their resources maintained and I donate regularly to the red cross and am willing to continue to hep and wish them the best in japan ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/30 "2011-03-16T16:39:14Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > What it really comes down to, is what country you are from, and whether or not “you” are able to donate anything. If you are from a country that is hugely in debt and on the verge of bankruptcy (United States, England, Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Iceland, Italy) then you really are not in a position to give anything. Of course, since the US isn’t on the verge of bankrupcty, you can give freely and ignore people like **Susanann** who veil their racism behind a shield of economic ignorance. ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/31 "2011-03-16T16:42:31Z")
> [@Autolycus](#): > > Also, even if one country as a whole needs money than another, suffering is suffering. This is not a game of Risk or a discussion of economic theory. This is people’s lives. Except that in reality, we do need to play our own games of Risk, and use some kind of economic theory. People are suffering _all the time_. People are getting killed in Bahrain and Libya and Afghanistan and the DRC and Burma and Sudan and trying to recover their destroyed livelihoods in Haiti and Pakistan and living in slums Bangladesh and India and are forced into prostitution in Cambodia and the Philippines and are enslaved in Mauritius and are forced to be child soldiers in Uganda and trying to recover from devastating civil war in Liberia and Cote d’Ivoire. The amount of human suffering in the world is overwhelming, and as a single person with (very) limited resources, I actually do have to make a rational economic decision as to where my meager assistance should go. I can’t just give money to everyone. In the end, I have decided for the moment not to donate to the Japanese aid effort, because of all of the places with people suffering, Japan has the greatest ability to take care of itself. It is a wealthy country with excellent infrastructure and a functioning government. If it becomes clear to me that my $20 would be able to make a real difference, then I reserve the right to change my mind. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/32 "2011-03-16T16:49:47Z")
Well, strictly speaking, if you donate your $20 to the Red Cross or a similar organization it won’t go to Japan even if you want it to. It will replace funds which _are_ spent in Japan, but in effect it will really being going to whatever disaster comes next. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/33 "2011-03-16T16:57:26Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > Meh, charity is a pretty popular thing hereabouts, and plenty of people will be donating money even though we’re not in the best shape financially anymore. > I actually can’t imagine how we could even recover from a similar disaster. In 1847, Choctaws living in Oklahoma were moved by stories of the Great Famine. So they collected $170 (or maybe $710–stories vary) & sent the money to Ireland. This was not long after the Trail of Tears. I’m sure the Choctaw didn’t have much money to spare. And the Famine was not their problem. Surely the great & wealthy British Empire could take care of “its own” people! The gift was [commemorated in 1992](https://pantherfile.uwm.edu/michael/www/choctaw/retrace.html). (Payday is this weekend; I’ll contribute a bit. Besides, Tsunami Damage reminds me of Hurricane Storm Surge Damage. I’ve witnessed that aftermath, although [This Storm](http://www.1900storm.com/photographs/index.lasso) was before my time.) ---
**Author:** ![SecondJudith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5ac83/32.png) [@SecondJudith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SecondJudith)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/34 "2011-03-16T17:28:15Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > Except that in reality, we do need to play our own games of Risk, and use some kind of economic theory. People are suffering _all the time_. People are getting killed in Bahrain and Libya and Afghanistan and the DRC and Burma and Sudan and trying to recover their destroyed livelihoods in Haiti and Pakistan and living in slums Bangladesh and India and are forced into prostitution in Cambodia and the Philippines and are enslaved in Mauritius and are forced to be child soldiers in Uganda and trying to recover from devastating civil war in Liberia and Cote d’Ivoire. > > The amount of human suffering in the world is overwhelming, and as a single person with (very) limited resources, I actually do have to make a rational economic decision as to where my meager assistance should go. I can’t just give money to everyone. In the end, I have decided for the moment not to donate to the Japanese aid effort, because of all of the places with people suffering, Japan has the greatest ability to take care of itself. It is a wealthy country with excellent infrastructure and a functioning government. If it becomes clear to me that my $20 would be able to make a real difference, then I reserve the right to change my mind. Thank you for putting it more eloquently than I have. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/35 "2011-03-16T17:30:08Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > Except that in reality, we do need to play our own games of Risk, and use some kind of economic theory. People are suffering _all the time_. People are getting killed in Bahrain and Libya and Afghanistan and the DRC and Burma and Sudan and trying to recover their destroyed livelihoods in Haiti and Pakistan and living in slums Bangladesh and India and are forced into prostitution in Cambodia and the Philippines and are enslaved in Mauritius and are forced to be child soldiers in Uganda and trying to recover from devastating civil war in Liberia and Cote d’Ivoire. > > The amount of human suffering in the world is overwhelming, and as a single person with (very) limited resources, I actually do have to make a rational economic decision as to where my meager assistance should go. I can’t just give money to everyone. In the end, I have decided for the moment not to donate to the Japanese aid effort, because of all of the places with people suffering, Japan has the greatest ability to take care of itself. It is a wealthy country with excellent infrastructure and a functioning government. If it becomes clear to me that my $20 would be able to make a real difference, then I reserve the right to change my mind. So, who is getting your $20? (Sorry if I seem abrupt. But most of these “contributions” are strictly theoretical.) ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2011, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/36 "2011-03-16T18:31:25Z")
I say let China handle this one. After all, they are going to be the economic power house of the new world and this is right at their back door, and they could use the practice. I am only kidding a little. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2011, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/37 "2011-03-17T01:39:06Z")
> [@Bridget\_Burke](#): > > So, who is getting your $20? (Sorry if I seem abrupt. But most of these “contributions” are strictly theoretical.) In the last month I have contributed $748.48 to a combination of 501(c)(3) organizations and individuals in need. Certainly that’s higher than my monthly average, but still, I’m about contributed out for right now. So take your theoretical and retheorize it. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2011, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/38 "2011-03-17T12:59:13Z")
I would say to all of you who are confident that Japan will bounce back from this series of catastrophes - Why don’t you then invest heavily on the Nikkei? You will help Japan in the short term, and when it rebounds and you sell off at a healthy profit, you’ll be taking hard-earned money from Japan back to your own country. There will never be an easier time to get in on the ground floor. Personally, I believe in contributing to charities on a local, national and international level. ---
**Author:** ![SecondJudith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5ac83/32.png) [@SecondJudith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SecondJudith)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2011, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/39 "2011-03-17T14:26:22Z")
> [@Bridget\_Burke](#): > > So, who is getting your $20? (Sorry if I seem abrupt. But most of these “contributions” are strictly theoretical.) Speak for yourself, please. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2011, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443/40 "2011-03-17T17:16:51Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Of course, since the US isn’t on the verge of bankrupcty, you can give freely and ignore people like **Susanann** who veil their racism behind a shield of economic ignorance. [Moderator Note]If you have accusations, take them to The BBQ Pit.[/Moderator Note] [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-get-me-wrong-but-should-i-really-donate-for-japan-quake/574443.md?page=3)