Giving money to charities is not altruism.

[MattRose]

Why do we revere people who donate money to charities, but if I buy myself a nice car people don't revere me?

 

[salida]

Giving to others makes for a better world and isn't self centered. Buying a car? A car is a need in my country. Materialism isn't contentment; people are not going to take their money with them when they die.

 

[MattRose]

Giving to others makes for a better world and isn't self centered. Buying a car? A car is a need in my country. Materialism isn't contentment; people are not going to take their money with them when they die.

Giving to others is very self-centered, and your comment about the car is not related to what I said about buying a car.

 

[razeontherock]

I don't know of anybody being "revered" for giving to charity, but can you explain your comment about it being somehow self-centered?

 

[Maky]

H

 

[MattRose]

Ok, Maky caught me. I am cynical of giving to charity. Although I personally do it sometimes and I think it's good and necessary, I think most people view charitable people in a better light than someone who doesn't give to charity. Hence the dozens of news articles every year about how so-and-so gave a million to an orphans' home. What are the 3 top reasons that someone would give to charity?


I'm really bored this week so I'm just trying to have a friendly debate.

 

[razeontherock]

I'd like to see you answer my question above.

 

[laconicstudent]

I only really give as I feel led. Like once I went to a Mass (cuz when your in Italy and cycling through all these churches with great artwork, if you walk in during Mass, why not?) and going in I bypassed a beggar, since they are fairly ubiquitous, but on my way out I felt convicted and gave her a Euro. *shrug* what can I say.

 

[LondonAssyrian]

Hi Mat Rose,

You responded on 2 of my threads so I thought I would write in one of yours.

I can remember about 4 years ago I was standing in a queue at morrisons buying somthing or other when I noticed a coloured man shaking a charity coin thing for children nearby. I was given £5 note in change and some coins.

I walked to the guy and put the £5 note in his hand and he looked at me with a weird sort of amazement.(it was only £5).
"Thank you buddy"<--- For 5 pounds he said this in a weird way to me as if he had never seen generosity like this before.
In return I recieved a shiver up my spine I had never experianced soo strong before.
You must know what I mean. When you watch somthing inspiring on tv?

Why do you come to a site like this and ask questions like you do?
You seem soo cynical of what? Charity?
I can't figure you out.
why would you start a thread like this? Explain
What is it exsactly your against?

Was there any need to describe the man as ''coloured''?

 

[Asvin]

Ok, Maky caught me. I am cynical of giving to charity. Although I personally do it sometimes and I think it's good and necessary, I think most people view charitable people in a better light than someone who doesn't give to charity. Hence the dozens of news articles every year about how so-and-so gave a million to an orphans' home. What are the 3 top reasons that someone would give to charity?


I'm really bored this week so I'm just trying to have a friendly debate.

Id rather hear news about people giving millions to charity than those articles mentioning hollywood stars and their out-of-control lives..

To answer your original question, people who give to others are "recognized" because they made someone else's life so much better and happier.. I think this is something that is common sense..

Also, most people do view "charitable" people in a better light.. there is nothing wrong with that as long as one doesn't say that all those who don't give to charity aren't nice or caring

 

[MattRose]

Well this isn't taking the direction I anticipated, so I'm going to show my hand. People don't give to charity to help others. The primary reason people give is because it makes them feel good. Hence my premise that helping others is not altruistic. One gives for a very basic and selfish reason... It makes me feel good to help another. The cause and effect are inverse to common thinking. To back up this argument is the fact that you don't give to a charity that you disagree with even though there are people on the receiving end who need help. What christian here has given to an openly gay charity that helps AIDS victims?

 

[razeontherock]

I'd still like you to answer my previous question and if you did you'd see I saw "your hand" all along, and there might actually be some benefit in following that train of thought which is why I brought it up.

And there are plenty of charities that help AIDS victims. I've been involved with the cutting edge of that for quite some time; very cost effective. How can an organization be gay? It's attracted to other similar organizations?

 

[MattRose]

I'd still like you to answer my previous question and if you did you'd see I saw "your hand" all along, and there might actually be some benefit in following that train of thought which is why I brought it up.

I thought I did address your question. Can you give it again and maybe reword it as I apparently didn't get it completly. And I figured most people would quickly see where I was heading, but I was curious if my premise was really a revelation to anyone.

How can an organization be gay? It's attracted to other similar organizations?

I was going to type "LOL", but technically I chuckled quitely to myself (CQTM?).

 

[laconicstudent]

Well this isn't taking the direction I anticipated, so I'm going to show my hand. People don't give to charity to help others. The primary reason people give is because it makes them feel good. Hence my premise that helping others is not altruistic. One gives for a very basic and selfish reason... It makes me feel good to help another. The cause and effect are inverse to common thinking. To back up this argument is the fact that you don't give to a charity that you disagree with even though there are people on the receiving end who need help. What christian here has given to an openly gay charity that helps AIDS victims?

That's because true altruism simply does not exist. What is your point?

 

[razeontherock]

Can you explain your comment about giving to charity being somehow self-centered?


Perhaps your complete answer was, simply, that it makes you feel good.
And I suppose some people would do that if there were nothing more to it.

Now if we compare that to the God kind of love described in the Bible, what we rapidly conclude is obeying His commandments is for our highest good. And of course being completely selfish is also (designed to be) for our highest good. So "sin," the idea of an archer missing his mark, really IS a relevant term

Was that too fast for ya, do you need that broken down into smaller steps?

 

[MattRose]

Did ya have to bring God into it? I mean what sort of forum... oh wait, hmm I see your point.

Yes one gives to charity primarily to feel good and secondarily to help others. If they don't get safisfaction from giving they wouldn't do it at all.

 

[laconicstudent]

If they don't get safisfaction from giving they wouldn't do it at all.

How do you know that?

 

[razeontherock]

If they don't get safisfaction from giving they wouldn't do it at all.

Depending on who "they" is, you could be entirely correct. Hey, it's a start. Various aspects of life require us to actually 'give' more, (in some way) to be successful.

You could call this process maturity. Mothers tear into that with a bang, called giving birth. And tend to develop complexes caused by doing nothing for their own needs, to an unhealthy extent.

I don't see altruism as really a goal and certainly not any gold standard, but the God kind of love He keeps trying to get through to us is very worthwhile. And giving money to charity can, in some instances, be just another way of avoiding that

Not usually, but it's a trippy concept to try to wrap your head around

Some will say that the whole point of life, the universe and everything, is to learn to love God and your fellow man. Or to put it another way, to be a more human human being.

Hard to argue against that!

 

[MattRose]

How do you know that?

I'm extrapolating from the evidence I have collected. If you disagree then prove your view.

 

[laconicstudent]

I'm extrapolating from the evidence I have collected.

*holds out hand expectantly*

If you disagree then prove your view.

No. You are the one making a claim, not I.