While having breakfast at a local diner this morning, I noticed a newspaper editorial that said that charitable contributions in the US are expected to total about $200 Billion this year.
Sounds fantastic, doesn’t it?
The kicker is that only about 10% of these contributions are directed at organizations that help the needy. The remainder goes to museums and colleges and the like.
I have nothing against donating to colleges or museums. But it seems to make so much more sense to donate where the money is really needed. For example, according to the editorialist, many wealthy people still donate huge sums to Harvard, even though it already has an endowment of $30 Billion.
Donations to museums and colleges and the like also carry the same tax deduction benefit that a donation to an organization like the Salvation Army carries. Just doesn’t seem right to me.
I realize this is a departure from the type of articles we normally have here, but this struck me as something I wanted to share with you.