Tom,
I think your final sentence gets it right on for me. I don't know what motivates other folks to give - whether it is Bill Gates or my next door neighbor. And I'm not sure it matters. What I can affect - and what really matters to me - is what I give, why I give it and how I give it. Your Greenleaf quote is a good reminder for all of us of the motivations to avoid in our giving.
Thanks,
Kent
Kent,
Thanks for the thoughts. Greenleaf's words seem to always carry great reminders on how to live life well.
Tom
I think you really touched something here. If you pick up this topic in the future, be sure to look into the recent news about the Gates Foundation.
Some critics asserted that the charity was funding projects which hurt the environments they claimed to be helping.
In reaction, the Gates Foundation did not defend itself. It did not take a long time to deliberate the possible truthfulness of the accusation.
No, they immediately removed the "do good" clause from their mission. Essentially, they ducked leadership.
After studying the pattern of their endowments, I find the charity veil to be very thin indeed. What I see are Large Customers of Microsoft getting dubious grants to conduct commerce in regions they might have anyway or should have done on their own volition. In shallower moments, some of it looks like elaborate kickbacks.
Commenting by HaloScan
