Yet another reason to tell the UN to fuck itself

[Ddrak]

Eid,

You're almost there. Now read the point I made about stinginess not being a bad thing. I think the real problem you're having (and Chants as well) is understanding that my argument is in no way a defence of Egeland's comment. It's ridiculing it for the blatant guilt trip that it was. In fact, my entire argument *is* saying that Egeland is an idiot for making the statement, but not because he was wrong in saying it (as people seem to be going on a bender trying to prove when they can't) - because he was obviously *right* in saying it and it's irrelavent.

I think your analysis on which charities you should give to is fine. My real comment is whether you put your own needs and desires on the same level as the charities you are giving to. Where does your own disposable income go and how do you justify that against someone starving to death in Somalia? Personally I don't, which is why I think the guilt tripping is retarded - my own amusement is far more important to me than someone I don't know in Somalia starving to death although any objective discourse on the issue would damn me to hell for being a self-absorbed stingy bastard.

I don't get in a dither at all about giving X% of my income to charity at all and I'm not suggesting anyone else should. Remember - enlightened *self* interest.


Riggen,

Isn't the government the representative of the people? How can a democratic government "steal" from its own people? There's the problem with your statement. East Timorese are giving via the proxy of their government and unless you have evidence that it's against the express wishes of the majority of East Timorese (which I doubt) then it's hardly theft.

I don't disagree with the government's first responsibility being to it's own, but when they put their own at risk by freely giving to an enemy's need for aid because they perceive a greater risk there then that's generousity above and beyond a nation that gives only what they can "afford". You see - you're now starting to see my original point. Stinginess is not a bad thing in the objective definition of the word, but generousity most certainly can be.

Dd

[Relbeek Einre]

Sidenote:

Bush coughed up $10K of his own money for tsunami relief. Nice.

[Eidolon Faer]

Ddrak,

I think we'd agree on one point: charity is usually undertaken for selfish reasons in the end. That few bucks for a charity makes you feel better about yourself. Whether you regard it as a way to buy PR, a source of cheap good Karma, or a way to say "at least I'm better off than that poor bastard" the giver gains something intangible in the exchange. Robert Heinlien has quite a few pithy comments on altruism from his character, Lazarus Long.

It's why being reliant on charity is not a state many people deliberately seek out. And it's also why someone might derive more pleasure from giving a cup of coffee to someone in need rather than drinking it themselves.

It seems to me that this is the heart of your musings on the concept of stinginess.

[Riggen]

Dd, you can stop playing games. I understood your point way back when you made your first post.

My point is that the East Timoran government is simply transferring their "stinginess" from abroad to their own people.

How can a democratic government "steal" from its own people?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

...no, wait, I'm ok...

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Whew!

That's a good one.

[Ddrak]

So we come full circle, from the contributions of a government being the only measure of generousity to the contributions of a government being no measure of generousity.

In other news, I love saying "told you so" to the leftist nuts that were bashing the US for forming a coalition of nations prepared to respond faster than the UN was able. Powell announced today that they were handing the reins over to the UN, like I said they would.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/asiapcf/0 ... index.html

Dd

[Riggen]

To be clear, I made no such assertions. I'm all for examining each case intelligently rather than applying blanket generalizations.