Unpopular Opinion
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I think there's a little difference between charity in general and "charity events" or "fundraisers".
One one hand, you've got people personally deciding to give some money towards something they chose to support, which is great.
But sponsored fundraisers are actually a bit weird.
Fundraiser: "Hi, would you like to donate £10 to help cure cancer?"
Potential donor: "I'm an incredibly wealthy man, so I can easily afford that... but... you just want me to give you some money in exchange for nothing?"
Fundraiser: "It's not nothing - you get to know you've helped a worthy cause, made the world a better place..."
Potential donor: "No... unless... no, sorry, that's ridiculous..."
Fundraiser: "No, wait! Tell me your idea!"
Potential donor: 'Well, I could probably give you some money... if someone suffered."
Fundraiser: "Suffered?!?"
Potential donor: "Yes, I want you to make a fat, asthmatic man run a marathon, dressed in a really awkward, incredibly warm costume that makes him look ridiculous. If he suffers enough, you can have your £10 for whatever it was you were on about."
Fundraiser: "Curing cancer is seen to be a good cause - are you sure you couldn't just donate the money?"
Potential donor: "Yes. I can only give away a tiny pittance of money if there is suffering. You could also make the man sit in a bathtub full of beans for a whole day. I imagine that's unpleasant enough to appease my hunger for suffering."
Surely we all agree this whole concept is a bit weird?
I have no idea about the bean thing, I assume there’s some missing context there. But charity runs are not about suffering, people do them because it’s a fun activity to organize around. It has nothing to do with forcing people to suffer lol that’s ridiculous.
In the UK, at least, the beans thing is simply:
Will you give money to charity?
No
If someone sits in a bathtub full of cold baked beans for eight hours, will you give money to charity?
Yes
As for the suffering, it might sound ridiculous, but it appears to be a recognised tactic for fundraisers.
The Conversation: The Martyrdom Effect - Why your pain boosts a charity's gain