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So, I guess Americans aren't all bad...Follow

#1 Jun 25 2007 at 12:15 PM Rating: Good
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We sure do excel in the charitable giving market!
The Tribune wrote:
Americans gave nearly $300 billion to charitable causes last year, setting a new record and besting the 2005 total that had been boosted by a surge in aid to victims of hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma and the Asian tsunami.

Donors contributed an estimated $295.02 billion in 2006, a 1 percent increase when adjusted for inflation, up from $283.05 billion in 2005. Excluding donations for disaster relief, the total rose 3.2 percent, inflation-adjusted, according to an annual report released Monday by the Giving USA Foundation at Indiana University's Center on Philanthropy.
[...]
"What people find especially interesting about this, and it's true year after year, that such a high percentage comes from individual donors," Giving USA Chairman Richard Jolly said.

Individuals gave a combined 75.6 percent of the total. With bequests, that rises to 83.4 percent.

The biggest chunk of the donations, $96.82 billion or 32.8 percent, went to religious organizations. The second largest slice, $40.98 billion or 13.9 percent, went to education, including gifts to colleges, universities and libraries.

About 65 percent of households with incomes less than $100,000 give to charity, the report showed.
[...]
Gaudiani said Americans give twice as much as the next most charitable country, according to a November 2006 comparison done by the Charities Aid Foundation. In philanthropic giving as a percentage of gross domestic product, the U.S. ranked first at 1.7 percent. No. 2 Britain gave 0.73 percent, while France, with a 0.14 percent rate, trailed such countries as South Africa, Singapore, Turkey and Germany.
Say whatcha will about the government, no nation has citizens more willing to open their wallets in the name of charity than the United States.

And I'm not sure how Germany got lumped in with S. Africa, Singapore and Turkey.

Edited, Jun 25th 2007 3:16pm by Jophiel
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#2 Jun 25 2007 at 12:19 PM Rating: Good
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Jophiel wrote:
Say whatcha will about the government, no nation has citizens more willing to open their wallets in the name of charity than the United States.


And certainly there is no shortage of charities calling one's home every single night looking for donations.

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#3 Jun 25 2007 at 12:21 PM Rating: Default
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Say whatcha will about the government, no nation has citizens more willing to open their wallets in the name of charity than the United States.


Its the saddest thing that the all pervasive 'loud in voice and clothing, a bit naive, but ultimately well-meaning' reputation that the USA has had for so long, was allowed to be so easily squandered by so few people in the last few years, .....
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#4 Jun 25 2007 at 12:48 PM Rating: Decent
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Jophiel wrote:


The biggest chunk of the donations, $96.82 billion or 32.8 percent, went to religious organizations. The second largest slice, $40.98 billion or 13.9 percent, went to education, including gifts to colleges, universities and libraries.


I know many of the church donation programs are just clever tax-fraud schemes. For example, you donate $100 to your church, in return your church gives you a $100 coupon to a church member's grocery store. The church gets a donation, you get a tax deduction and your local grocer gets your shopping. Actual charitable donation? ZERO.

Pretty much every church in this area has some sort of deal like that.
#5 Jun 25 2007 at 12:51 PM Rating: Decent
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paulsol the Righteous wrote:
Quote:
Say whatcha will about the government, no nation has citizens more willing to open their wallets in the name of charity than the United States.


Its the saddest thing that the all pervasive 'loud in voice and clothing, a bit naive, but ultimately well-meaning' reputation that the USA has had for so long, was allowed to be so easily squandered by so few people in the last few years, .....


Yeah, we're not fond of Bush either.


I'm glad that we as a nation did so much to help others, but the pessimist in me wonders how much of those donations will actually reach the people that need it.
#6 Jun 25 2007 at 1:00 PM Rating: Excellent
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Deathwysh wrote:
I know many of the church donation programs are just clever tax-fraud schemes. For example, you donate $100 to your church, in return your church gives you a $100 coupon to a church member's grocery store. The church gets a donation, you get a tax deduction and your local grocer gets your shopping. Actual charitable donation? ZERO.
I'm not willing to get into a debate about it, but I'd assume that the church buys the coupons for under $100 which results in a net charitable gain for the church. Just like raffle tickets or those $2.00 candy bars. There's really no reason for the church to engage in a zero-gain tax scam.
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Wow. Regular ol' Joph fan club in here.
#7 Jun 25 2007 at 1:58 PM Rating: Decent
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You know it's just the liberal media talking right Joph?
#8 Jun 25 2007 at 2:31 PM Rating: Decent
Jophiel wrote:
while France, with a 0.14 percent rate, trailed such countries as South Africa, Singapore, Turkey and Germany.


In their defense, the tossers do pay crazy amounts of taxes, and must feel that it's included in the package.

But yeah, it's nice to see stuff like that from the US.

Red approves.

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#9 Jun 25 2007 at 4:50 PM Rating: Decent
I donated to Stem Cell research. I think we all know how that ended Smiley: glare
#10 Jun 25 2007 at 5:55 PM Rating: Good
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Jophiel wrote:
Deathwysh wrote:
I know many of the church donation programs are just clever tax-fraud schemes. For example, you donate $100 to your church, in return your church gives you a $100 coupon to a church member's grocery store. The church gets a donation, you get a tax deduction and your local grocer gets your shopping. Actual charitable donation? ZERO.
I'm not willing to get into a debate about it, but I'd assume that the church buys the coupons for under $100 which results in a net charitable gain for the church. Just like raffle tickets or those $2.00 candy bars. There's really no reason for the church to engage in a zero-gain tax scam.

I'm with you on that one Joph. But I do wonder how many donations there would be if people didn't get tax credits for it. Not that it really matters, as long as those with the means, keep giving.
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#11 Jun 26 2007 at 6:57 AM Rating: Default
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but the pessimist in me wonders how much of those donations will actually reach the people that need it.




Judging by what happened after Katrina, None of the money will get to those who need it.
#12 Jun 26 2007 at 8:03 AM Rating: Decent
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Abadd wrote:
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but the pessimist in me wonders how much of those donations will actually reach the people that need it.




Judging by what happened after Katrina, None of the money will get to those who need it.


Idiot. Don't post anymore. Spare us your "intelligence", *** clown.

The majority of the monies donated to the Red Cross for Katrina relief went to the people affected by the hurricane. Same with most church charities. I remember a story reported locally where a Red Cross spokesman claimed that around .70 of each dollar was actually making it down to New Orleans, and several churches were using 100% of donated monies to help those in New Orleans.

The only thing that really pisses me off about the aftermath (don't get me started on the time leading up to the storm landing) is how much food, water, ice, and other misc. items went to waste because they couldn't get it to the places that needed it.
#13 Jun 26 2007 at 9:43 AM Rating: Decent
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Monsieur RedPhoenixxx wrote:
Jophiel wrote:
while France, with a 0.14 percent rate, trailed such countries as South Africa, Singapore, Turkey and Germany.


In their defense, the tossers do pay crazy amounts of taxes, and must feel that it's included in the package.

But yeah, it's nice to see stuff like that from the US.

Red approves.


/poke

Yeah. If only other nations around the world would allow their citizens the freedom to keep their own money and then choose for themselves who to give it to... ;)
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#14 Jun 26 2007 at 10:19 AM Rating: Decent
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gbaji wrote:
/poke

Yeah. If only other nations around the world would allow their citizens the freedom to keep their own money and then choose for themselves who to give it to... ;)


Meh, atleast they still have freedoms.
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#15 Jun 26 2007 at 11:36 AM Rating: Decent
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Uglysasquatch Esquire wrote:
gbaji wrote:
/poke

Yeah. If only other nations around the world would allow their citizens the freedom to keep their own money and then choose for themselves who to give it to... ;)


Meh, atleast they still have freedoms.



Talk about paranoid. [:tinfoil:] Sheesh.
#16 Jun 26 2007 at 11:40 AM Rating: Decent
gbaji wrote:
If only other nations around the world would allow their citizens the freedom to keep their own money and then choose for themselves who to give it to... ;)


Well, in fairness, France gives more aid as a % of gdp, so... I'm not sure how much of a difference it would make... ;)

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#17 Jun 26 2007 at 11:45 AM Rating: Decent
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Monsieur RedPhoenixxx wrote:
gbaji wrote:
If only other nations around the world would allow their citizens the freedom to keep their own money and then choose for themselves who to give it to... ;)


Well, in fairness, France gives more aid as a % of gdp, so... I'm not sure how much of a difference it would make... ;)



And yet it's still less than half of what we give. Still, you should get high marks for effort.

I take that back, based on the population of 61 million (2006 census), that's not too shabby.

Edited, Jun 26th 2007 3:47pm by Metastophicleas
#18 Jun 26 2007 at 11:47 AM Rating: Decent
Metastophicleas wrote:
And yet it's still less than half of what we give. Still, you should get high marks for effort.


But we are tiny!

Comparing in absolute terms is not really fair. Pick on someone your own size, like the EU or something...

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#19 Jun 26 2007 at 11:48 AM Rating: Decent
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Tiny my ***. Small population, yes, but you have a ton of land.


Import more Mexicans. They could singlehandedly double your population in 10 years.


Oh, and I edited the above to reflect the fact that I missed the population numbers. For some reason I was thinking France was closer to 160 million total population.

Edited, Jun 26th 2007 3:49pm by Metastophicleas
#20 Jun 26 2007 at 11:50 AM Rating: Decent
Meta wrote:
Small population, yes, but you have a ton of land.


Even if you count Belgium and and the good bit of Switzerland as being French, which some people consider "controversial", we're about the size of Texas.


Metastophicleas wrote:
Import more Mexicans. They could singlehandedly double your population in 10 years.


We've got Muslims for that, but thanks anyway.



Edited, Jun 26th 2007 7:51pm by RedPhoenixxx
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#21 Jun 26 2007 at 11:55 AM Rating: Excellent
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Monsieur RedPhoenixxx wrote:
Even if you count Belgium and and the good bit of Switzerland as being French, which some people consider "controversial"
Namely the Swiss and the Belgiums.
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#22 Jun 26 2007 at 12:00 PM Rating: Decent
Jophiel wrote:
Namely the Swiss and the Belgiums.


Yeah.

Traitors Smiley: oyvey



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#23 Jun 26 2007 at 12:03 PM Rating: Decent
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For some reason I thought France was larger than that...I guess that everything just seems large because of the major cities.
#24 Jun 27 2007 at 1:16 AM Rating: Decent
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Yeah.

Traitors


I think the Flemish would gladly donate the ****-poor Waloon region to the french :-P
#25 Jun 27 2007 at 6:40 AM Rating: Default
Metastophicleas wrote:
Abadd wrote:
Quote:
but the pessimist in me wonders how much of those donations will actually reach the people that need it.




Judging by what happened after Katrina, None of the money will get to those who need it.


Idiot. Don't post anymore. Spare us your "intelligence", *** clown.

The majority of the monies donated to the Red Cross for Katrina relief went to the people affected by the hurricane. Same with most church charities. I remember a story reported locally where a Red Cross spokesman claimed that around .70 of each dollar was actually making it down to New Orleans, and several churches were using 100% of donated monies to help those in New Orleans.

The only thing that really pisses me off about the aftermath (don't get me started on the time leading up to the storm landing) is how much food, water, ice, and other misc. items went to waste because they couldn't get it to the places that needed it.



unless you live down here. and actually know what's going on, Shut the @#%^ up, Cunt.

Edited, Jun 27th 2007 9:41am by Abadd
#26 Jun 27 2007 at 8:56 AM Rating: Decent
Charity my ***. I just wanted some damn Girl Scout cookies.
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