Famine in East Africa

[skateluvr]

Millions will die in this drought. !00 billionaires could give a small part of their fortune and save lives. Meanwhile Trump is giving a 2 million dollar dinner this eve for Mitt and bringing up this idiotic birther thing again. I am a poor philanthropist. The news is just devastating. It is easy to see names and pictures of this obscenely wealthy people with mega mansions all over the world. I do no understand what Zuckerburg hoards the money for. He is not into ostentation. He just bought a house. He is personally worth 20 billion. How I wish I had skills to make videos that go viral begging this rich men (and a few women like Oprah) to be happy with a few homes and not 8. The earth is so sick and climate change is causing millions of deaths. So many people don't even make the connection to global warming and thee vulnerable areas (everywhere0 but especially subsaharan africa. Warmest winter in my state virtually no snow in the Northeast and hottest summer predicted.

If everyone on facebook demanded Zuckerburg lead the intl Billionaire fund to immediately help the women and children, or everyone cancels facebook. He has much power but he is nothing without the 500,000,000 users. He is just letting money sit ?. He doesn't spend much but no one sees him doing anything great with his money/power. Quite the opposite. Oh, my, the news is so terrifying. :(((((

[heyang]

There are a lot of billionaire philanthropists. They choose to contribute discreetly. Bill & Melissas Gates and William Buffet have established charitable foundations. There are many US corporations who contribute to various communities financially and by actions. (i.e. my corporate employer allows for community service on company time, has an employee community service committee of employees, as well as giving corporately both at domestic and international level.)

Zuckerburg's money is conceptual and dependent upon stock prices. It's really premature to say that he's going to retire as wealthy as Gates or Buffet. If anything, I prefer is less ostentatious displays of wealth as compared to some of the CEO's of various financial institutions that spent thousands of dollars on garbage cans for their office. Stock in FB has dropped over $6/share since the iPO. His current wealth is based 'paper' value - until he actually sells the stock or collects dividends, he hasn't made actual money. As an young company, money goes back into the company to fuel development and growth - he only collects $1 in salary per year a la Steve Jobs.

There are a lot of worthwhile charities throughout the world - domestically and internationally. The problem with international giving is that it's based upon knowing the region and having the on ground capability to appropriately help the people who need it most. With the various warring factions, etc, it's very hard to ensure that any money is used for it's intended purpose. So, should the money be spent with little guarantees of it helping the right people and not going into the hands of a despot?

BTW, he has pledged money to other charities. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503983_1...10-503983.html

After the earthquakes in Haiti, the advice was 'do' locally - give $ internationally. It's better to work with an established recognized foundation on an international level - one that has established logistical procedures and knows the community.

[Olympia]

Yes, Bill Gates is one of the best examples of someone who started out with no involvement in the world and has ended up doing a great deal. There are many others who have a lot and are giving a lot. One woman I remember from years ago is Judy Peabody, a member of the Peabody family, as close to aristocracy as America gets. She spent most of the last two or three decades of her life as an AIDS activist. I mean, she really was an activist, not just someone who showed up at charity dinners. She volunteered with the Gay Men's Health Crisis, where she served as a care partner for sick men and led support groups for their families.

Then there's Gary Sinise, who's spent time visiting troops and wounded soldiers, here in the U.S. and at their overseas bases. Even the supposedly frivolous Cher has personally purchased protective helmets for American troops.

Would I like for loudmouthed tycoons like Donald Trump to do more? You bet. Your point about how they could do without five houses got a hearty "amen" from me. If I were someone like Kim Kardashian, I'd be ashamed to be known for just raking it in. I guess we have to inch the culture toward disapproval of this extravagance.

[skateluvr]

Yes, Bill Gates is one of the best examples of someone who started out with no involvement in the world and has ended up doing a great deal. There are many others who have a lot and are giving a lot. One woman I remember from years ago is Judy Peabody, a member of the Peabody family, as close to aristocracy as America gets. She spent most of the last two or three decades of her life as an AIDS activist. I mean, she really was an activist, not just someone who showed up at charity dinners. She volunteered with the Gay Men's Health Crisis, where she served as a care partner for sick men and led support groups for their families.

Then there's Gary Sinise, who's spent time visiting troops and wounded soldiers, here in the U.S. and at their overseas bases. Even the supposedly frivolous Cher has personally purchased protective helmets for American troops.

Would I like for loudmouthed tycoons like Donald Trump to do more? You bet. Your point about how they could do without five houses got a hearty "amen" from me. If I were someone like Kim Kardashian, I'd be ashamed to be known for just raking it in. I guess we have to inch the culture toward disapproval of this extravagance.

Exactly, Donald Trump is a national embarassment, a womanizer, not self made, and admittedly suffers from Bi-Polar disorder. He is manic. The number of people who would vote for him frighten me. They are not the brightest people, but there are lots of such people these days enamored of the Trumps and the Momager of the Kardashaian Klan.

Zuckerberg has plenty of actual money not just "conceptual." I fully understand what happened since the IPO. It was overpriced and it is correcting. Maybe people just don't see great value in facebook. It is a phenomenon. What he does with his influence is yet to be seen. I don't see him as caring greatly about helping people. He gave !00 million to the Newark scchool system, or some city in NJ I recall right when facebook movie came out. Facebook is a concept and exists on the internet. It is not unique, nor a tangible, necessary product so I can see why lits of investors would back off as the facebook bubble could burst with bad publicity, bad news about Zuckerberg's actions etc. Facebook is something that became very trendy, but no one needs facebook. I am frightened if half of what was written about it's beginning were true. Several lawsuits. Eduardo Saverin is a billionaire now in Singapore having given up his citizenship to avoid taxes. Bill Gates strikes me as a different character than Zuckerberg, but my hope is Zuckerberg tries to influence the world in doing the right thing. I have read his sister who is his right hand lady wants to see anonymity gone from the net. He has stated that signing people up has been the work, and now the next phase. What is the next phase Heyang. Given his character defects, it is frightening to see the influence he has, esp. with young, impressionable people.

I can't delete a photo and it is very hard to get off Facebook. And the information is sold and I have read he makes it available to the US govt. many people have rethought Facebook, and given how it came to be, I would not be unhappy it it went poof. There are other places that do the same thing. His new doctor wife may greatly influence him the way Melinda Gates is said to have changed Bill Gates. Unfortunately, if you reach about the worlds richest 100 people, few of them are doing what Gates or Buffett are doing with their money. The Walton family -4 people have 80 billion in net worth. That is more than the bottom 30 percent of America. As a disabled person through no fault of my own, poverty came with it. I am a trained former social worker, so my nature is giving and doing, and I cannot conceive of having 1 billion dollars. One could lve very very well and still give way 75%. There is a God, though unfathomable, and 25 years of study convice me we go on into eternity. What our existence is like is dependent on what we did with our gifts for others. that is love, and we are judged. Unfortunately, many cultures are involved in the here and now and no longer believe in the soul and the eternal existence. I could be wrong, and many days I feel I am. I do not know your religious belief system heyang, but everything we are and have rots. I cannot conceive of having 6 homes, yachts, jets, gold toilets while my neighbor in Africa and her children starve to death.

Our culture in the USA may lead to financial collapse and the world will collapse. It is very frightening as I have no family, and the govt will be helfd hotage by the millionaire Tea party congressman again this summer. SSDI has NO MONEY after 2016 and Congress wants to cut what keeps me alive. Skating is a love and a diversion. I do what I can for online activism, but it is very frustrating to see people who have never needed food, shelter a ride, running this country. 1 percent own 40 percent and we are headed for global serfdom. The climate is detroyed. These may be the end of any world stability. If I have 90 percent of the pie, the world must live in poverty. We have never seen such a rapid consolidation of wealth, and the Bilderberg group meets again this year. They will vet Romney, who was my Governor (and a lousy one) as they did Obama.

How much money does each walton need? 20 billion is obscene. In the new Testament, jesus said it will be easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than a rich man enter heaven. I am very frustrated that I need help, and I have seen life from every angle. I'd much rather be the helper and it breaks my heart to see starving children. I can only hope there is a God and that his some returns to earth soon. I lose my faith daily, and often cannot watch the news. I care greatly about people. About everyone/everything and it seems it will take 30 percent unemployment before Americans turn off the tube and take to the streets. Globalization, as planned as been horrible for America. I am not that old, and this is a stolen country in my lifetime. We cannot trust our government with anything. Corporations were given the same rights as people in 2010. I wached the Presidency stolen basically, awarded by the Supreme Court in 2000. I cried greatly and everything I feared came to pass. I did not forsee 9/11 but recall watching Bush and I believe he knew what was coming.

Maybe you live in a country where you feel safe or have family, and do not need govt insurance to stay alive. To me, the concept of billionaires is obscene and what was done to this country in 2008 was obscene. The fledgling Occupy movement was destroyed in every city by the police state. Starting with the billionaire mayor of New York. I could live a long time, but with the cuts coming, many will die or want to. Euthanasia is on the ballot this year. When life is not sacred, and we do not answer for our actions after death, then people are encouraged to do and take what they want.

Of the seven deadly sins, Greed is what they all stem from. The Earth is a place of spiritual warfare. Our souls are claimed and counterclaimed in this war which many do not think is real. If I have two coats and you have none and I see you freezing, I am responsible to help you. This is what the Christ taught, and all religions really. I am my brother's keeper. I could not sleep with multi-millions and good health without helping. The money does not always go to despots and there are not tribal wars at present. Drought is the problem, and the oil barons burning fossil fuels are responsible for great suffering on this planet. They know and care not for the next generation. So many are suffering from the massive pollution. Cancers of all kinds. Since the 1940's we have seen it increase. Water, air, food is toxic.

Sadly, it will take the collapse of all that is for people to return to simple living from the land. But in the meantime, people are dying, and those sitting on mountains of money are not doing what they must.

Anyway, this is a skating site and most are young and in their own bubble. I guess this was moved to politics. All life is politics, including skating. Anyway, my feelings are strong and I poured them out. If it makes one person realize that the distribution of wealth in the world will lead to it's demise, I suppose it was worth it. Revolutions are happening everywhere. I expect our second one before long, and it will be beyond any suffering. I pray the Lord is real and returns as is promised in the New Testament. I guess our collective prayers are what Mary has been asking for to millions in a hamlet called Medjugorje, Bosnia, a place I visited 20 years ago. There was no question She was there, giving messages to 6 young people. Supernatural events abounded. Unless we live as God has asked, he will allow us to perish in the mess we have made.

Forgive the typos. I can spell, but since no one reads the political thread, I am too tired, too late to correct as I type very fast and badly. Anyway, as Mary has asked in all her appearances over the last 30 years in this once tiny hamlet. 'Pray, Pray, Pray." And act as if all depends on us. As it largely does.

[Tonichelle]

The reason we have a politics folder is so that the more heated discussions (or potentially heated) can be discussed without having to worry about hurt feelings and the like. Where most of the board is light-hearted, politics is anything but and is quite divisive. This is political in many ways, and as such is safer in here where it's got a clear "warning" that almost anything goes.

[skateluvr]

Understood Toni. However I disagree the Edge is light hearted! Some are ubers and take all to heart. I'm sure I get testy when someone disses a skater I find exquisite. But all life is politics, esp. figureskating where the results often depend on where the comp is held. It is always nice when the judges get it right, fair and square. But that doesn't always happen-it is just something we fans accept. Hope you are having good weather. It has been hot here with rains and tornado warnings today. It gets very scary, our Mother Nature.

[dorispulaski]

While we had a very warm winter in Groton, Connecticut, it has been a cold April and May. My tomatoes are in, and are doing well.

Internet wealth, of the sort Zuckerberg has amassed, can go to nothing very soon.

Halsey Minor of CNET had the largest bankruptcy ever in California history (and it's a big state, and many have gone bankrupt there, obviously).

Perhaps what makes me angriest is that so much money that people give to charity never gets to the people those charities are supposed to serve.

Many charities claiming to help children, veterans, cancer victims, or victims of disasters turn out to be scams.

The FBI has tips on how to avoid charity scams.

http://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/pre...bution-schemes

However, there was a big scandal about Red Cross people pocketing money donated for Katrina, for example. http://articles.cnn.com/2005-12-28/j...aims?_s=PM:LAW

At even the biggest charities, there are problems.

Some of the church charities are the big offenders, too.

The recent "Pope's Butler Leaks Information" story was about the man leaking information about financial misdealings at the top levels in the Catholic church, and if the information is true, it is no surprise.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...84R0B520120528

http://ncronline.org/blogs/ncr-today...ancial-scandal

It isn't the first time that there has been financial misdealings in the Vatican, if these leaks are true.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institu...ks_of_Religion

If I had a lot of money, and as a retired person with a disabled, retired husband, I don't, it would find it puzzling to know where to donate it, other than to local charities, where I know what the money is used for. In fact, what I do donate is to local food banks and soup kitchens.

[Olympia]

I think that's a good approach, Doris, to give locally.

When people are really wealthy, they have other resources to find out if a charity is spending money correctly, or they can even direct that money. Some people sit on the boards of various charities and foundations. Or they start their own, the way Christopher Reeve and Michael J. Fox did, or Susan Komen's sister. Then the rest of us can follow them along.

I think it's the religious charities that hurt the most when they go wrong. People give to them out of their deepest convictions, and some people tithe to them without question. Religious leaders who divert charity money are the lowest of the low.

[Tonichelle]

Steven Spielberg gives to charities... he's even started several foundations in the Middle East... not just focussed on the Jewish Nations either. He had a project a few years ago giving cameras to children in Israel and Pakistan to film their lives, after a year they gave the film to "the other side" to show that their lives aren't all that different...

not sure if the experiment has worked, but it was a nice idea.

[Olympia]

I think Spielberg had the right idea. Using the arts is one of the best ways to bring people together. Another good one is sports, of course.

Daniel Barenboim has worked with both Israelis and Palestinians using music. I think he was even given honorary Palestinian citizenship, which as you can imagine is kind of unusual for an Israeli Jew.

CNN always has articles on heroic acts of charity, which often involve small foundations that are down on the ground with people actively taking part in every aspect of the work. You still have to vet these groups before giving anything, because they could be well-intentioned but completely chaotic, but there are ways of evaluating them.

As for not being able to be a big donor, often even a small donation makes a difference. There's a reason that one charity was called the March of Dimes. The name symbolized the grassroots participation of anyone who could spare nickels and dimes to pay for polio care and research. You'll notice the charity succeeded. Both Salk and Sabin were funded largely by this organization. Now the efforts of the March of Dimes have shifted to help premature babies and those with birth defects.

[Tonichelle]

I agree, instead of worrying about what others are doing, focus on what you can do to improve the world around you - financially, spiritually, physically. I honestly don't care one iota what Trump or Zuckerberg does with THEIR money. Most of the time the folks with lots of $$ don't have access to most of it. it's not as "liquid" as we all assume it is. It's locked up in all sorts of ways... it's not like they're doing the Scrooge McDuck swim in the money bin.

[skateluvr]

Trump is known for and proud of his ostentatious everything. Right now he is giving money to promote the bither thing. He has to be the worst example to many non americans. George F Will the consrvative icon taught me a new word in the Donald description-blovirating ignoramus-- perfect.

It is very bad when churchmen rake it in and live like King David. One can find exposes on the TV preachers everywhere, tho.

[Olympia]

I heard that one this week: bloviating ignoramus. What a perfect description of this guy who thinks that people are hanging on his every word. George Will has a great turn of phrase, doesn't he. There's one thing we have to be grateful to Trump for: he makes ostentation look as cartoonish and off-putting as it truly is. Who'd want to follow in his footsteps?

[heyang]

I agree, instead of worrying about what others are doing, focus on what you can do to improve the world around you - financially, spiritually, physically. I honestly don't care one iota what Trump or Zuckerberg does with THEIR money. Most of the time the folks with lots of $$ don't have access to most of it. it's not as "liquid" as we all assume it is. It's locked up in all sorts of ways... it's not like they're doing the Scrooge McDuck swim in the money bin.

Totally agree with you, Toni. We can only control our own actions. There are ways to influence people, as well, but if you don't have that power, there's no point in focusing on what's out of one's control.

True, if everyone abstained from facebook, Zuckerberg would lose his wealth. However, that would just mean that he wouldn't have money to contribute, as well. A person shouldn't be blackmailed into contributing to charity. His career is still relatively young. He has expressed interest in supporting charities, but he also needs to live his life and continue to invest in his company. He'll likely do more later in life.

as for Trump, he does his own bit for charity, too. There are some things I like about the man - by all reports, he's a good father. However, i definitely don't agree with his politics and 'switch off' when he starts spouting.

[Olympia]

as for Trump, he does his own bit for charity, too. There are some things I like about the man - by all reports, he's a good father. However, i definitely don't agree with his politics and 'switch off' when he starts spouting.

I must agree with you, Heyang, that Trump seems to be a good father. His two sons and oldest daughter seem steady and hardworking. I think they all went to business school and put in their share of sweat and muscle in the real estate company. Ivanka Trump is no Paris Hilton space cadet.


If we need to contemplate a celebrity who managed to stay both sane and generous, by coincidence, this morning there was an interview with one of the Shriver sons about Sargent Shriver. This is a guy whose infirmity (Alzheimer's) and death were a real loss to America. It was his hard work that went into the founding of not only the Peace Corps but also I think VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) and the Job Corps. He worked tirelessly with his wife Eunice Kennedy on the Special Olympics. Something I didn't know was that when JFK was murdered, Jackie Kennedy turned to Sargent to organize the state funeral. John Kennedy died on Thursday. The funeral was the next Monday, with heads of state from all over the world attending. This says something for Shriver's organizational skills and dependability. I grew up with him in the news, so I kind of took him for granted, but near the end of his life I researched a bit about him, and the magnitude of both his actions and his character floored me. And his wife, Eunice, was similarly dynamic and selfless. I'm not offering them as role models, because I suspect their capabilities were rare and even unique. But it's nice to know that it's possible for such people to exist. Yes, they both had a lot of advantages, but they certainly gave back their share and more.