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Charitable giving is tax deductible and manages reputations for the wealthy. Furthermore, many of the charities throughout our history haven't actually contribu
by WhompingWindows 6y ago
Charitable giving is tax deductible and manages reputations for the wealthy. Furthermore, many of the charities throughout our history haven't actually contributed to the common man's well-being, many are niche interest causes like art, opera, elite universities, prohibition, pro-religious rights, etc. If Americans truly wanted to help the world, they'd allocate their charitable giving more towards bug nets, HIV treatment, food, housing, and causes that help the poor around the world.
Side note on HN etiquette, to say the parent comment displays a "total lack of understanding of the USA" is an ad-hominem overstatement, ratchet back the language and turn up the civility.
- thekyle 6y agoI don't think Americans want to help the world any more than Canadians, Europeans, or the Chinese want to help the world. I don't see anything particularly wrong with that. It's only natural people look out for their own self interests.
- nickff 6y agoAn ad-hominiem attack would have been to accuse the grandparent of being a shill or an idiot, and I did neither of those. I said their post betrayed a lack of understanding (A.K.A. ignorance); I argued their points on their terms, and did not accuse them of malice or straw-man their argument. On the other hand, the grandparent did make a statement which could be considered ad hominiem: >"The US has always been a land for the rich to oppress the poor: the system encourages this. Those who care about the less fortunate are the minority."