Another RM10 down the drain.
 

It bugs me (alot) that there are people going around eateries or makan places holding a card or booklet or stationeries, asking for money. I may sound heartless but that’s the truth. Sometimes they just pisses me off. Worst still is there are times when the people asking for donations haul along a handicapped person so those enjoying their meals will either feel sympathetic or uncomfortable so they have no choice but to hand over some money just to get rid of them or like me get rid of the guilt.

I recall that RM5 used to be the conventional minimum but RM5 just doesn’t do it nowadays. The minimum is RM10 because now the stationeries or stickers or even tissues are priced at RM10 each.

It would be fine if i knew that my money goes to the right place where it would actually help unfortunate people. But with all the scams and fraud going around, i have my suspicion which i’m almost positively sure they are frauds lar. Where got so many organizations going around asking for money ler.

Whatever it is (scam or no scam) i find it really annoying coz the guilt of not giving money scares the hell out of me how they approach people asking for donation and wouldn’t bugger off especially while i’m eating. I mean like, maybe they think it’s good timing since we have our hands full and mouth stuffed with food that we can’t protest.

Yesterday i was approached at the bookstore which is a first for me…. in a bookstore. I thought she was going to ask for direction or something. However before i could duck for cover and run for my life (coz i was too engrossed with Scott Adams’s hilarious book to have noticed the tell tale sign of her holding car stickers and a green file filled with information how i could eat grass for the rest of the week so i could help some stranger) she quickly launched into a long monotonous speech on the topic of spastic cerebral palsy and how i could do my part to help. God help me.

It’s ingenious actually asking for donations in a bookstore. I assume majority of people who go to bookstores actually likes to read or at least likes to pretend that they like to read. And i deduct that people who like to read are less prone to reject a donation request rather than people who do not read. And people who pretend that they read feels more morally inclined to donate so they feel that they belong to a higher class of society. Plus how big is a bookstore. You can’t run away that easily. That means a higher chance of raking in the funds. Don’t argue with my theory. I’m still gonna think that i’m right.

Anyways, apparently RM10 could help 1 spastic kid. After she finished with her rehearsed speech and she said “So… how many kids do you want to save today?” i almost choked. I nudged Mr. Bf and he reluctantly hand over a RM10. I hope the girls genuine, not a fraud. Hey, we love helping people but how many could we help right?

Let’s calculate based on true life experience.

Let’s only take into account of one meal a day instead of 3 (only dinner minus breakfast and lunch).

We sometimes dine out during weekdays but usually on weekends. So lets not take weekdays into account.

Each time we eat out (not in those classy restaurant or malls lar) we would surely encounter people asking for donations. So that’s RM10 twice a week making it RM20.

If i were to give RM10 for donations each weekend means it would amount to RM80 (RM20 x 4) per month.

How much of these RM80 is going to real genuine organization for people in need and how many are the money actually going to a scam syndicate? I would never know.

This is what pisses me off. I get utterly annoyed and disturbed by people practically begging for money and have a nasty guilt trip only to end up wondering whether my money goes to the spastic kid needing a surgery or to the filthy rich pirated-DVD mogul part-timing as a child trafficker.
 

Here’s an idea. Do it like the WWF. Let people choose if they sincerely want to donate by signing up for credit card deductions each month. I would happily sign up. Or better still why can’t everyone with a certain income level get taxed for charity. I mean charge a small amount for genuine organization of their choice (be it for orphanage or spca or spastic kids or whatever) in the yearly income tax. Then everyone is compelled to give and each organization get’s their share. Of course we will curse and complain when we pay tax but we are already complaining so what the heck.

Of course we won’t be sure that our money goes completely to the organizations with so many corrupt officials in our country but still… at least the needy gets a portion of it…. er… nope. Let’s roll back to the WWF idea.

Oh, what the hell. Anything, as long as i don’t get approached by scammers asking for donations again. Spare me the guilt trip please!