# It's hard to be charitable nowadays **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 9, 2005, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-hard-to-be-charitable-nowadays/293637 "2005-03-09T05:07:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![jali](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ecae2f/32.png) [@jali](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jali)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-hard-to-be-charitable-nowadays/293637/61 "2006-01-31T20:00:51Z")
> [@Indygrrl](#): > > But, I don’t feel bad when I donate to PBS. That I can handle. I gave to PBS for years…and then I worked for WNET 13, the NYC PBS station during the Christmas holidays. (my sister was then a permanent employee and got me the holiday gig) The employee holiday party was beyond lavish - piles and piles of jumbo shrimp, crab claws and other, more expensive goodies there for the taking - the food went on fo’ days! The disc jockey was a well known radio personality (pretty expensive hire) If the local PBS station was able to afford such decadence, they could survive without my hard earned cash. I give to a scholarship in my dad’s name at DSU and to the United Way. ---
**Author:** ![scotandrsn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a4c791/32.png) [@scotandrsn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotandrsn)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-hard-to-be-charitable-nowadays/293637/62 "2006-01-31T20:50:19Z")
> [@BobT](#): > > Which does remind me of last Sunday’s (1/29) Simpsons episode where Marge bemoans the fact that she didn’t sell much of anything at her yard sale and she will have to take it to the Salvation Army. As she says that, a Salvation Army truck passes by and the driver yells “We don’t want it!” Several years ago, I was dating a woman from a Salvation Army family, and, inspired by our expanded exposure to their excellent work, my sister felt moved to donate her old couch to them. Same deal as you describe, the drivers suddenly declared they didn’t want the item. After a bit of conversation, it became clear to my sister that they more or less expected her to _bribe_ them into taking it. Confronting my then-girlfriend with this development, she did some asking around, and the story is that many of their drivers are not church employees per se, but the people the church is trying to help. They don’t exactly screen for scruples, and not all of their drivers are above looking for a quick buck, even if it tarnishes the image of the organization. The SA generally tries not to get too much attention called to the phenomenon. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-hard-to-be-charitable-nowadays/293637/63 "2006-01-31T21:25:24Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > I’d like to give to Doctors Without Borders, but I’m a little afraid of my mailbox at this point. This is, for me, the big frustration with trying to give to charity. CARE is the worst. I sent 'em a C-note last year for the tsunami relief effort, and I swear to god they’ve spent it all on postage sending me a new solicitation every three or four days ever since. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-hard-to-be-charitable-nowadays/293637/64 "2006-01-31T23:15:23Z")
> [@Scarlett67](#): > > **BobT,** I totally hear you. I signed up to send items regularly to a program for inner-city kids. I also sent a non-trivial donation right around Christmas to an online colleague who reported having fallen on hard times. > > Not a peep from either one. > > It makes me want to stand up and scream, “YOU’RE WELCOME!!!” > > I don’t expect to be worshipped, but an acknowledgment would be nice. Thank you for increasing the amount of good karma in the world. **BobT** , if you’re looking for an appreciative charity, I would send you a thank-you note AND a Christmas card if you gave me money. Honest! 😃 **Biffy** , we donated to a local homeless charity last Christmas, and of course I’ve started to receive mailouts from them. I think I will send them a letter saying I like their charity, I like the work they do, I know where to find them, and if they send me one more piece of mail, they will never see another dollar from me. See how that goes. ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-hard-to-be-charitable-nowadays/293637/65 "2006-01-31T23:18:02Z")
All I get for my financial donations are phone calls during dinner asking for more money. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-hard-to-be-charitable-nowadays/293637/66 "2006-01-31T23:28:03Z")
Okay, I promise not to call you during dinner, either. What more could you want? 🙂 \<–see my friendly, smiley face? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-hard-to-be-charitable-nowadays/293637.md?page=3)