Charity

Sometimes, rich people give stuff to charities. Good Will donations. Mailing checks to charitable organizations. Slipping some cash to a panhandler. That kind of thing.

I don't think that makes them good people, really. I typically look at that and see it more as a donation to one's own conscience, rather than true concern for one's fellow man.

It's different when people that aren't well off give. When a poor person gives $100 to a charity, it's an entirely different animal from when a rich person does it, even if the rich person gives way more. When it's cutting into your basic needs to give, I totally buy it. If a rich person gives and is still rich, it's not as compelling.

My issue with charity is that it changes very little in systems where the impoverished are at a disadvantage. Like, you could slip a homeless person $100, and feel like you did an awesome thing, but they're still homeless. All manner of systems failed them, so they can't afford shelter.

If their income doesn't increase, or rent doesn't decrease, they're still fucked. Tiny changes in systems can turn a person's personal situation from net losing to net saving or vice versa. Increase rent by $50, for a person whose monthly income only went up by $25, they could be going $25 in debt every month.

If a rich person were to direct their wealth into systemic change, removing the advantages that rich people enjoy, where wealth freely generates more wealth without providing value, then I'd think they were a good person.

Maybe that's too harsh. Maybe people who do basic charity are good people, but aren't smart enough to see that they're not helping in a meaningful way.

Either way, if you're rich, and you give to charity, but you're also anti-labor rights, and don't think minimum wage should be a living wage, and want to lower your tax rates or whatever, I probably still think you're an asshole.

And I wish you weren't fooling anybody, but you probably are. At least yourself. Otherwise, why bother, right?