There ought to be a Law!! Fundraisers and Money Changers

Rule # 9 . Greed is more devastating than poverty.

Those of you who have known me for years will be surprised that I would suggest making another law. I’m the first person to wail about big government, that congress passes too many laws. Just enforce the ones we’ve got. You know the routine.

It’s still true, but I’ll make an exception this time.

Over the years I’ve watched various “industries” somehow have different standards and laws applied to them. You know what I’m saying, for example, the Bar Association polices it’s own, not the public.

We even expect them to lie, cheat and steal.

Politicians, even more so.

We’ve learned with the Jack Abramoff scandal that lobbyists have joined the ranks of lawyers and politicians. They call this political progress? And that is the TIP of the iceberg in DC.

You didn’t think it was cold enough in the beltway for icebergs, did ya? Ha!

Now, what you may have missed in the K street lobbying scandal is that lobbyists rarely wear one hat. Like their pioneers, the attorneys, who now hold 53% of the Senate/39% House and even more control in the executive branch and ALL of the Judiciary, they’ve learned to “diversify”. Some lobbyists have actually written legislation instead of your elected congressman.

But the carpet bagging de’jour is fund raising. Much of it by lobbyists using the cover of non profit status Grover Norquist and his Americans for Tax Reform , open border lobbing and his many other tentacle organizations is a “comprehensive” example.

This is the ugliness that crawls out of nobel sounding non profit names like The ACLU and The NRA. Curiously, Norquist protests with the ACLU and is on the board of directors of the NRA. Ah, DIVERSITY! Astonishingly, the left believes Norquist is a conservative.

Did you know the Senate in recent days has been hearing on President Bush's’ appointment to head the financial end of Homeland Security of Grover's brother David?

Back to businesses and the rules they all should follow. In banking and finance you must disclose EVERYTHING. Percentage rates, maturity dates, on and on. Go look at the web sites of your favorite non profit fund raiser.

Do they disclose what percentage of your donation dollar that actually goes to the “cause”?

If not, DO NOT SEND MONEY!

The government and the lawyers are so quick to drag business down with regulation, but fundraisers do not even have to disclose on their donation web sites how much of your money they plan on keeping for themselves. Often, these fundraisers are not authorized by people or groups they claim to represent.

This is how it’s done.

Let’s say I have a child with cancer. Triple A Do Gooders offer to fundraise for me. Let’s say I decline. But they set up a web site, use their often sold mailing lists (often recycled and rarely up to date) some talking points by a slick lawyer/lobbyist and bada-bing! We’re in business raking in the donations, bleeding well meaning people and the “cause” all at the same time before anyone notices.

Many don’t even bother with the required federal paperwork, most seem to always be late. It doesn’t matter. In a few months the same enterprise will be carptebagging yet another “cause” under a different name. And the same players show up time after time, one cause after another. The government sees on the reports that the scammers may take 95 cents of every donation dollar toward “administrative” costs, but they don’t care either.

The public must take the responsibility to know where their donations are spent and give without an emotional hook. Realize that these language thieves will twist words and their title to make you think you’re getting something that doesn’t exist. They will use your devotion to a movement with an appeal to save the environment, heal the sick, close the border, open the border, save the dying or end perversion in the name of a Deity. The same way radical Islam or Azatlan recruits.

Then they send out their paid infiltrators to buddy up with posters on internet chat forums, pretending to be “one of us”. After all, one stealth poster over the years can influence thousands of other citizen activists to get out there and spread the word! They not only take your money, they take your time and commitment that could have been spent in more honest endeavors. Talk about cheap labor!

There are enough people who won’t question anything that isn’t emotionally comfortable for them, to provide the money changers with a cushy income for a long time. At least it’s not a partisan thing, they’ll come to your aid no matter what you believe politically or spiritually.

That leaves the “law” to correct the situation when the people won’t bother. Many of the fundraising non profits form political action committees. So the politicians get the benefit of the scam as well. You don’t have to worry about getting a law passed to force non profits to disclose the per cent of donations they keep for themselves in the near future. I’ll bet they’ll find time to push amnesty down our throats again.

For the few of you who will listen, BUYER BEWARE!

And learn Spanish.

Adios y Via Con Dios

TheTownCrier
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These are the Rules: A Baker's Dozen by AuntB Oct, 1998

Many are borrowed; it's hard to improve on perfection. I'm pulling a Ghandi here as well. He once said to judge him by his most recent comments; that he, too, may learn some things and change his mind on a given subject!

1. Protect the innocent.
2. Never ask someone to do something that you are not willing to do yourself.
3. Leave it like you found it, or make it better.
4. Keep your promises and pay your bills - on time.
5. SILENCE IS CONSENT.
6. Slavery didn’t happen because people are black or white. Evil isn’t particular about color.
7. Be careful what you wish for.
8. NEVER LET ANYONE TELL YOU THAT YOU CAN’T MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
9. Greed is more devastating than poverty.
10. Your rights stop where my nose starts.
11. You are only as strong as what you stand next to, that from which you draw your strength.
12. Youth and strength are no match for old age and treachery.
13. Never try to teach a pig to sing; it wastes your time and annoys the pig!! (this is the one I can't seem to get right!)