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It was difficult to change my mind about it, and I still find the fact almost offensive, but I was confronted last year with hard evidence that the most efficie

It was difficult to change my mind about it, and I still find the fact almost offensive, but I was confronted last year with hard evidence that the most efficient way to help people in need is direct no strings attached gifts of cash money. It doesn't appeal to one's ego but the reality is poor people generally use money to improve their lives and frivolous spending does not increase when given cash.

monktastic1 7y ago
Can you elaborate on what you find offensive about it?
- VLM 7y ago
  There's a logical fallacy problem where everyone knows that people with (legal or illegal) addictions spend all their money on their addiction so giving money is just donating to the local liquor store or crack dealer. However the logical fallacy problem is, true, most addicts end up very poor as the addiction proceeds, but most poor people are not addicts. So giving money to an alcoholic merely means they die of liver failure a little sooner which is "offensive" but giving money to people who are generally poor mostly helps non-addicts. Note there are local issues. In big cities the working poor are too busy to take a monetary handout (panhandle) so virtually all opportunities for urbanites to hand out money, involve feeding an addiction, even if the vast majority of the poor people in the city are working poor.
- Causality1 7y ago
  It's difficult to separate the concept of giving money away from the concept of being tricked or taken advantage of. It was not easy to give up the belief that welfare would be best tackled by shipping big boxes of essential supplies rather than a cash or a credit system.
sdfsaf 7y ago
I understand where you are coming from, but I've come to find it horrible to put judgments on a donation. Am I better than the panhandler that I know what he should receive? What should I give a panhandler? A sandwich? Maybe he's has celliac's. Or diabetes. A gift card to the coffee shop? Maybe he needs gloves. Money to buy gloves and a sugar free lunch? Maybe he's an alcoholic. Instead, just donate. Just help. Just see the person lying on the floor as a fellow human being fully deserving in dignity. If you're Christian, see Christ sprawled on the floor and make sure your right hand doesn't see your left hand.

monktastic1 7y ago

Can you elaborate on what you find offensive about it?

VLM 7y ago
There's a logical fallacy problem where everyone knows that people with (legal or illegal) addictions spend all their money on their addiction so giving money is just donating to the local liquor store or crack dealer. However the logical fallacy problem is, true, most addicts end up very poor as the addiction proceeds, but most poor people are not addicts. So giving money to an alcoholic merely means they die of liver failure a little sooner which is "offensive" but giving money to people who are generally poor mostly helps non-addicts. Note there are local issues. In big cities the working poor are too busy to take a monetary handout (panhandle) so virtually all opportunities for urbanites to hand out money, involve feeding an addiction, even if the vast majority of the poor people in the city are working poor.
Causality1 7y ago
It's difficult to separate the concept of giving money away from the concept of being tricked or taken advantage of. It was not easy to give up the belief that welfare would be best tackled by shipping big boxes of essential supplies rather than a cash or a credit system.

sdfsaf 7y ago

I understand where you are coming from, but I've come to find it horrible to put judgments on a donation. Am I better than the panhandler that I know what he should receive? What should I give a panhandler? A sandwich? Maybe he's has celliac's. Or diabetes. A gift card to the coffee shop? Maybe he needs gloves. Money to buy gloves and a sugar free lunch? Maybe he's an alcoholic. Instead, just donate. Just help. Just see the person lying on the floor as a fellow human being fully deserving in dignity. If you're Christian, see Christ sprawled on the floor and make sure your right hand doesn't see your left hand.