Holiday Myths: Giving to Charity

[GuidoHunter]

What if they don't have kids, but still have trouble paying for their life. Maybe they grew up in with parents who lived in a slummy neighborhood and they were poor from the start. Their parents being poor isn't necissarily their fault.

No, but their being poor is their fault. America isn't called "The Land of Opportunity" for nothing.

--Guido

http://andy.mikee385.com

[Tasselfoot]

no, but even the poor can go to college. get student loans. no one is too poor to go to college. there are thousands of scholarships for poor people to go to college, plus loans. there is no excuse.

[flypie743]

It's not always that easy for them.

[GuidoHunter]

It's not always that easy for them.

God forbid you have to work to change your social status. Hey, I've got an idea! I don't like to work, so I'll vote democrats into office so they'll start (and keep) all sorts of government programs that just dole out money to me!

Whoops, sorry, Q, for the off-topicness.

--Guido

http://andy.mikee385.com

[flypie743]

Well, some of them just can't get into college like that. Some of them do work and they still can't manage. You are only stereotyping.

[Enigma-7]

Maybe they just have jobs that have low pay, mentioned above, but surely they can keep that job for now and find another job with better pay and quit the first one.

[Tasselfoot]

ya know something flypie.... stereotypes came to be for a reason. care to know what that reason is? because its TRUE!!!

[stretchypanda]

It's not always that easy for them.

If work was easy it would not be work. This is nothing but a sorry excuse.

Donations to charity are fine, but most charitable organizations prefer donations of time and effort much more than anything else.. or donations of materials, rather than money. Most soup kitchens get free food from grocery stores, or thrift bakeries. Animal shelters use adoption fees to buy food and spay/neuter the animals they house.

I've done all kinds of volunteer work -- walking dogs at the humane society, serving breakfast to people down on their luck on their way to (gasp!) work, performing in a play to raise awareness for a children's home. I do it because my efforts are appreciated. If they were not, I would probably find something else to do with my time.

This is not the time of year for charity. Every day is the time of year for charity. Any kind.

[evilbutterfly]

Ya know, I don't think it's fair to say that being poor is completely a person's fault. In this country, though, people are much more socially mobile. Starting poor can make people despair and feel like they'll never catch up, but really, most people don't change their social class. People who grow up middle class tend to be middle class, poor people tend to stay poor, and the rich...well, the rich can lose it all really quickly.

But seriously, being poor in the US is awesome compared to being even middle class in other countries. My sister isn't too well off, so she gets food stamps. She was telling me yesterday how much food she got with her food stamps, and hot damn was it a lot. In fact, I think she may get more food than my family does, and she only has to provide for her and her husband, not a family of 4. She just works at Wal-Mart for not much at all, and she's doing just fine.

Of course, life in the ghettos is rougher than her semi-ghetto area, but you still have food stamps, unemployment checks, and other government aid. With that, you can at least get your kids to go to school and be educated so they can get better jobs. The government gives tons of money for kids to go to college, plus individuals and businesses give many scholarships specifically for people who don't have much money. Clawing your way up out of poverty is hard work, but so is clawing your way from middle class up to high class, but this is more common. I think the main thing is the despairity. Poor people think they can't get any better, so they don't try. Middle class kids are constantly told to be the best they can and grow up and get rich, so they, very early on, set goals to get them into college so they can have the high paying jobs. Anybody can do it, but middle class people are more motivated to do it. I think one of the most important things for the lower class people is encouragement and a little bit of a boost to set them moving and show them that it's possible.

[Enigma-7]

Ya know, I don't think it's fair to say that being poor is completely a person's fault. In this country, though, people are much more socially mobile. Starting poor can make people despair and feel like they'll never catch up, but really, most people don't change their social class. People who grow up middle class tend to be middle class, poor people tend to stay poor, and the rich...well, the rich can lose it all really quickly.

But seriously, being poor in the US is awesome compared to being even middle class in other countries. My sister isn't too well off, so she gets food stamps. She was telling me yesterday how much food she got with her food stamps, and hot damn was it a lot. In fact, I think she may get more food than my family does, and she only has to provide for her and her husband, not a family of 4. She just works at Wal-Mart for not much at all, and she's doing just fine.

Of course, life in the ghettos is rougher than her semi-ghetto area, but you still have food stamps, unemployment checks, and other government aid. With that, you can at least get your kids to go to school and be educated so they can get better jobs. The government gives tons of money for kids to go to college, plus individuals and businesses give many scholarships specifically for people who don't have much money. Clawing your way up out of poverty is hard work, but so is clawing your way from middle class up to high class, but this is more common. I think the main thing is the despairity. Poor people think they can't get any better, so they don't try. Middle class kids are constantly told to be the best they can and grow up and get rich, so they, very early on, set goals to get them into college so they can have the high paying jobs. Anybody can do it, but middle class people are more motivated to do it. I think one of the most important things for the lower class people is encouragement and a little bit of a boost to set them moving and show them that it's possible.

Totally true. If people in the low class actually get the encouragement to do better, the CAN do it. Middle-class people already have something so they thing that it is possible to have more, whereas high-class people think they have it all and then spend it all on expensive things therefore they are brought down.
What I'm saying is, all that poor people need is a bit of encouragement, and they can claw their way out.

[The_Q]

Ya know, I don't think it's fair to say that being poor is completely a person's fault. In this country, though, people are much more socially mobile. Starting poor can make people despair and feel like they'll never catch up, but really, most people don't change their social class. People who grow up middle class tend to be middle class, poor people tend to stay poor, and the rich...well, the rich can lose it all really quickly.

Not necessarily true. Although the U.S. has the largest gap in wealth than any other nation it also has the largest number of poor becoming rich (and vice versa). In fact, both of my parents come from poor families. My dad now makes over 80k a year and mom adds 40k to that. The only reason they grew to such a level of prosperity is through the same hard work and dedication you've been lectured to about since 1st grade (although not so much on my dad's part . He likes enjoying his time).

Whoops, sorry, Q, for the off-topicness.

Thank you, Guido, for trying not to hijack the thread. I appreciate it.

This is not the time of year for charity. Every day is the time of year for charity. Any kind.

I beg to differ. This is the one time every year that everyone feels the need to give. Even then, it doesn't always turn out as good as it could have.

Q

[stretchypanda]

See, what I meant was, it shouldn't be an act committed out of a sense of obligation, brought on by a holiday. It should just be done.

[AZN_Kaibigan07]

See, what I meant was, it shouldn't be an act committed out of a sense of obligation, brought on by a holiday. It should just be done.

I agree with this. If charitable acts only existed when some major holiday comes around, what's the point of establishing charity organizations? I don't claim to know a lot about this kind of stuff, but I'm just saying what I feel. People set up charities and all that stuff for a reason. They expect to gain support from people all year round, not just during holiday weekends or whatever. If that was the case...well, I dunno. I would think that charities would fade away and become part of the seasonal culture, maybe.

[flypie743]

ya know something flypie.... stereotypes came to be for a reason. care to know what that reason is? because its TRUE!!!

No. Not all stereotypes are true. Tass, that was such a retarded post.

[GuidoHunter]

Flypie, seriously... Did he claim that all stereotypes are true? No. On top of that, stereotypes are not part of this thread, so please just leave it.

--Guido

http://andy.mikee385.com