The National Forum   Donate   Your Account   On Line Opinion   Forum   Blogs   Polling   About   
The Forum - On Line Opinion's article discussion area



Syndicate
RSS/XML


RSS 2.0

Main Articles General

Sign In      Register

The Forum > Article Comments > The origins of World Charity day and some reflections on it > Comments

The origins of World Charity day and some reflections on it : Comments

By Matthew Turnour, published 6/9/2016

In 1996, Hungary introduced what have become known as 'Percentage Laws', which allow taxpayers to allocate a percentage of their income tax to specific not-for-profit organizations

  1. Pages:
  2. Page 1
  3. All
An interesting article. You assume that all charity is good, as a way of helping the poor - faciliating the redistribution of wealth.

On the other hand, I have seen charity as a way for the rich to continually 'dump' their excess on the poor in a way which limits the capacity for these same poor to actually be motivated or organised in a way which makes them eventually self sufficient. In this regard I'm particularly thinking of US food 'aid' to Africa.

Then of course there is the issue of charities that fund activism which closes down small businesses here in Australia. Here I'm thinking of the very rich that invest in superfunds that are currently buying water in the Murray Darling Basin ostensibly for the environment, but with the effect that water is becoming too expensive for food producers. Late last year a prospectus from The Nature Conservancy Australia was encouraging city-based wealthy Australians to invest directly in Murray-Darling Basin water entitlements and water allocations (the Project). This organization was only recently established by US-based Nature Conservancy which has US$ 5.8 billion in global net assets.

Indeed charity is increasingly synonymous for me with big business.
Posted by Jennifer, Tuesday, 6 September 2016 8:26:41 AM
Find out more about this user Recommend this comment for deletion Return to top of page Return to Forum Main Page Copy comment URL to clipboard
Thanks for your comments Jennifer.

Yes, I assume that all charity is good and acknowledge this is contested. There are definitional and cultural issues at play.

By definition charity is good and for public benefit. We should not be surprised that once something has a good reputation others with less charitable motives will try to exploit that. There are two responses to this. The first is to try to ensure that the brand 'charity' is kept pure. At its most pure it is confined to genuine aid to disadvantaged. The second is to acknowledge the contested space and accept that in a free society allowing for the advancement of even polar opposite views can be for public benefit. This wide road leads to a very wide definition of the public benefit that can be encompassed within 'charity'. Australia has taken the wider road but there has always been a clear voice arguing for the narrower road. The way we manage it for tax purposes is to give deductibility to only those on the narrow road (and a long list of exceptions) but allow exemption to those that can be said to be on the broader path.
Posted by MATTUR, Tuesday, 6 September 2016 9:19:12 AM
Find out more about this user Recommend this comment for deletion Return to top of page Return to Forum Main Page Copy comment URL to clipboard
  1. Pages:
  2. Page 1
  3. All

About Us :: Search :: Discuss :: Feedback :: Legals :: Privacy