All I wanted to do was lend a hand

[merrylander]

so I sent some money to DAV. They then turned around and sent my name and address to some central clearinghouse for public charities. I sent a bit more and asked them to use it for the vets and forget the 'gifts'.

Now every day sees another of those Chinese calculators or a 'blanket', Glad I have a box full of Sharpies so that I can write "Return to Sender" all over the envelopes.

[d-ray657]

Originally Posted by merrylander

so I sent some money to DAV. They then turned around and sent my name and address to some central clearinghouse for public charities. I sent a bit more and asked them to use it for the vets and forget the 'gifts'.

Now every day sees another of those Chinese calculators or a 'blanket', Glad I have a box full of Sharpies so that I can write "Return to Sender" all over the envelopes.

The problem is that the DAV is not a charity. It is a for-profit business, they just give a percentage to the vets. Essentially, they get their inventory for free, pay their employees crap, and give the vets something akin to advertising fees. Donor lists are pretty marketable too.

Regards,

D-Ray

[Sandy G]

Oh, yeah..I fell for a pic of a particularly sad-looking Dobermann in some propaganda the ASPCA sent me once.. Sent 'em $25, or 50, whatever...An' got back a good 10X that much in dreck from them & about every OTHER animal rights group goin'...My gran turned 100 in '98, we moved her into the apartment over my parents' garage, & you wouldn't BELIEVE the money she was shellin' out to Billy Graham Evangelistic Ass'n, Bible-A-Month Club, I mean they were comin' outta the WOODWORK. Then they started calling, & one guy got REAL snippy as to why they hadn't been getting their moolah from Miss Izzy. I told the sumbich that MRS. GEIGER, my grandmother, was a 100 year old woman, & I would appreciate it if they didn't call back. If they did, & continued harrassing us, they WOULD be hearing from my lawyer. Gravy train's over, boys...There is a reason why I DON'T like mealy-mouth shake-down artiste preachers. I thought Billy Graham would have had more class than acting like Vito Genovese, but what the hell would I know...

[merrylander]

Sometime after the 07 Fest I swore they would never get me on another airplane. I checked with US Airways and found that I could donate my miles to a vets organization. Apparently when they fly them home from the mideast for leave they dump them in the nearest airport and the rest of the trip is their problem, nice Huh.

then I checked with Marriott (from my days as a road warrior I had logged quite a few points). They gave it all to me as Vouchers, $350 worth so I bundled that with some xmas cards and sent it all to Walter Reed. About a week later I get it all back, no explanation.

I called the Red Cross and finally found someone to accept the vouchers - they could cover hotel expenses for family visiting sons or daughters at Walter Reed. They were told the circumstances of the donation. Still about three times a year I get a letter from them "If you could see your way to giving another $350 . . . ".

Todays was a pen that I was supposed to use to write a check for some $$, since I did not open it I have no idea of the suggested amount. Forget it people, all my charity now goes to five kitty cats.

[Charles]

Only outfit that never snuck up behind be was the Salvation Army.

For what it's worth.

Chas

[BlueStreak]

The bogus charity crap that is foisted upon the elderly is sickening. When my mother went off into Alzheimers land, my brother was given POA over all of her finances. She got $400 a month Social Security, and was giving out every last penny of it to "charities". One of them turned out to be some Inidan tribe that was building casinos in the midwest. Undoubtedly with the money that old people like my Mom were sending them. Sickening.

Dave

[d-ray657]

Maybe this is stretching the topic a bit, but Rob has mentioned before that he could practice his faith just fine without organized religion. I agree with him to an extent. The business aspects of building a church, supporting a staff and offering programs require business decisions and fund-raising that can get in the way of the spiritual aspects of the church. My wife changed churches after working for one, and from her description of events, I have borrowed a saying from politics and described seeing religion being made as akin to seeing sausage being made. The day to day routine is not the same as the Sunday morning ritual.

Unfortunately, anyone who is not independently wealthy who wants to "do good works" has to rely on contributions to have the wherewithal to accomplish the mission. I know in many churches the pastors have graduate training the equivalent of a Phd. The training includes counseling as well a religious studies. I believe that someone who has attained such credentials certainly deserves to be compensated like a professional. Something is out of line, however, when the business aspects of the mission overwhelm the service aspects - that's when we get Jim and Tammy and their gold-plated faucets.

It gets pretty hard to draw the line, however. Is it OK for a pastor to be paid seventy to eighty grand but not for an evangelist to rake in ten or twenty grand for a weekend camp meeting? Should a pastor make close to six figures if he is serving in a poor community. Does a pastor who is serving those who have lesser needs be better paid because his church is in an affluent community. I am not wise enough to offer an answer to these questions.

Regards,

D-Ray

[merrylander]

My parents were quite active in the church, that was where I first heard the expression "The willing horse does all the work". Then after coming down here and attending service at Florence's church where you all joined hands with whoever was next to you. Then get outside the doors afterward and hear the back biting. We kind of lost heart after that. Florence being nominally RC the recent scandals did not help. It was not the easiest thing to do because we did like Father Saurwien.

We support Covenant House on a regular basis because personnal experiences make us believe that children do not always run away from happy homes. Our hope is that CH gets to them before the predators do.

[GWAR]

I keep getting letters from the DAV that has a nickel pasted to the letter saying something to the effect of, "the vets could use any spare change you have," which leaves me wondering how many nickels have been sent out. Sometimes I feel like responding back, asking if they need money so badly, then why are they sending me spare change. Its a sad state in which we find ourselves these days, sometimes I feel like we are looked upon as no more than money generators for greedy corporate conglomerates, and sadly, we as a nation have reached our apex and are on our way down the drain. It depresses me severly.

[merrylander]

When you do send them money they sell your name and address to all the others. Now my sharpies get worn out crossing out my name and address and writing "Rteurn to sender" across the envelope. The part that pisses me off is that all the "gifts" they send out are made in China.