The 24 hour gaming marathon for charity

[Thorgrum]

its a good thing to support those who where ones dump during there live,
but still what you are doing is warmongering ...

I am a vet of foriegn wars, it was both the most frightening expirence of my life and the most rewarding. I'll be warmongering for years to come, with a decent amount of disposable income.

Nerf purebloodworg!

[Frisco]

Am I the only one who got a chuckle out of the fact that marathon gaming is one of the few black eyes the culture has?

I mean, when is there a story on the news about gamers?

When one dies after a marathon gaming session.

[Thorgrum]

Am I the only one who got a chuckle out of the fact that marathon gaming is one of the few black eyes the culture has?

I mean, when is there a story on the news about gamers?

When one dies after a marathon gaming session.

Yes and well, lets come out and say it... Sapience isnt a spring chicken, the last update he looked fine but the one in germany the bags under his eyes could have carried bus change. He should probably get someone to do it in his sted but fly boys always have a screw loose.

color me very concerned.

[Rasdun]

Hey, don't bash ME because 90% of charities out there are corrupt, giving less than HALF of what is donated to the people who need it.

Even if that were true (no idea where you are getting that from), it is irrelevant unless you are accusing this particular charity of being corrupt? You're welcome to check out their financial statements and put up some relevant facts.

No doubt that some charities do a better job at keeping their administrative costs down, but we have to understand that a charitable organization is very much like a business and they have to spend money in order to generate more contributions towards their cause.

While it would be great to give 100% donations direct to the cause, the cause is better served when some of those donations are used to generate more donations.

(A) For example, say a charity is able to, by remaining a very small stream-lined organization, give 98% of the donations it receives direct to the cause. That would be considered great, right? So they receive $10,000 in donations and $9,800 goes direct to the cause. And they are able to generate about this same amount of donations every period.

(B) But say an evil, corrupt charity only gives 48% of the donations direct to the cause and uses the rest to generate more donations. So perhaps during the first period the cause only directly gets $4,800. But the charity is able to grow (raise awareness and generate many more donations) such that eventually the charity is directly contributing millions of dollars each period rather than thousands.

No matter the cause -- whether it is cancer research, disaster relief, scholarships, sponsoring kids whose families can not afford certain medical treatments, etc., etc., they are all much better served by having a growing charitable organization behind them like (B) than a very small stream-lined saintly organization like (A)

So while it is easy to mistrust charities when we hear stuff like "less than half of the donations go directly to the people who need it", there are legit reasons for it. That is very much like an obtuse investor complaining that "less than half the profits are being distributed to the share holders".

[monteeburns]

"The Bono nonprofit took in $14,993,873 in public donations in 2008, the latest year for which tax records are available.

Of that, $184,732 was distributed to three charities, according to the IRS filing. ( about 5% of donations taken )

Meanwhile, more than $8 million was spent on executive and employee salaries."

Source - The NY post. http://www.nypost.com/p/news/nationa...2mBJbqyXgp6YoO

Some charities, like Oxfam are very upfront about where the money goes - Only 16p out of every pound goes to admin and adveritising towards future fund raising, the rest goes direct to the people it's supposed to.

The moral? Do some research about your chosen charity before handing your money over. I'm all for giving to charity, just makes sure the people it's intended for are actually the people who benefit from it.

[Eartholloth]

"The Bono nonprofit took in $14,993,873 in public donations in 2008, the latest year for which tax records are available.

Of that, $184,732 was distributed to three charities, according to the IRS filing.

Meanwhile, more than $8 million was spent on executive and employee salaries."

Source - The NY post. http://www.nypost.com/p/news/nationa...2mBJbqyXgp6YoO

Some charities, like Oxfam are very upfront about where the money goes - Only 16p out of every pound goes to admin and adveritising towards future fund raising, the rest goes direct to the people it's supposed to.

The moral? Do some research about your chosen charity before handing your money over. I'm all for giving to charity, just makes sure the people it's intended for are actually the people who benefit from it.

You believe everything that gets posted in the media????

[monteeburns]

You believe everything that gets posted in the media????

When the IRS figures back them up, absolutely. BTW, after an investigation it turned out only 1.2% was actually reaching those it was intended for, as confirmed by the 'charity' itself.

[Sapience]

This was an inspiring post on many levels. Personally I have no problem with Turbine promoting charitable giving on their forums. I think giving charity to those in need a noble thing, I direct my charitable giving to American Veterans causes. Still I think this is a good thing, power to them I hope they raise a butt load of cash.

Thanks for the support. More importantly, thank you for your service.

Both my Father (WWII and Korea) Various Uncles (WWII mostly) and Grandfather(WWI) were vets as are many of my friends. I'm a strong supporter of both Veterans and Children's charities.

Yes and well, lets come out and say it... Sapience isnt a spring chicken, the last update he looked fine but the one in germany the bags under his eyes could have carried bus change. He should probably get someone to do it in his sted but fly boys always have a screw loose.
color me very concerned.

I was SO tired that day. And jet lagged. And I'm not that old! Did I mention it was raining off and on?

[Thorgrum]

I was SO tired that day. And jet lagged. And I'm not that old! Did I mention it was raining off and on?

It was a good update but yeah you looked a little worn. Good luck with this thing Sapience, this is a good event and a great opportunity for community building beyond the scope of the game. You guys should do more things like this in the future, its very easy for us to see you as a representative of company and forget that someone not so dissimilar from ourselves is on the otherside of the screen.

[Rasdun]

"The Bono nonprofit took in $14,993,873 in public donations in 2008, the latest year for which tax records are available. Of that, $184,732 was distributed to three charities, according to the IRS filing.

That is the exception, not the rule. And, to be 100% clear, this 24 hr gaming marathon is not for that Bono "nonprofit"... Honestly, I don't understand why you'd want to post about Bono. If you like research, why not post some facts about the charity in question? Being informed is a good thing, but we don't need to be informed about Bono when considering supporting Children's Miracle Network Hospitals.

"Should I invest in Apple?"
"Here, read about Enron"

[Thorgrum]

"The Bono nonprofit took in $14,993,873 in public donations in 2008, the latest year for which tax records are available.

Of that, $184,732 was distributed to three charities, according to the IRS filing. ( about 5% of donations taken )

Meanwhile, more than $8 million was spent on executive and employee salaries."

Source - The NY post. http://www.nypost.com/p/news/nationa...2mBJbqyXgp6YoO

Some charities, like Oxfam are very upfront about where the money goes - Only 16p out of every pound goes to admin and adveritising towards future fund raising, the rest goes direct to the people it's supposed to.

The moral? Do some research about your chosen charity before handing your money over. I'm all for giving to charity, just makes sure the people it's intended for are actually the people who benefit from it.

You've missed something and its the spirit in which the charity is given. Now I dont dispute the validity of your post or your position, you are correct. However the desire to give has value beyond the dollar value, empathy for others is a trait we loose a little bit of as time passes IMHO. Im guilty of it as well as I dislike most everyone, however humility dosent allow me to dismiss it out of hand.

The willingness to give creates a more empathetic outlook and often results in more people doing small things that benefit others. That is priceless.

[Tailborn]

That is the exception, not the rule. And, to be 100% clear, this 24 hr gaming marathon is not for that Bono "nonprofit"... Honestly, I don't understand why you'd want to post about Bono. If you like research, why not post some facts about the charity in question? Being informed is a good thing, but we don't need to be informed about Bono when considering supporting Children's Miracle Network Hospitals.

"Should I invest in Apple?"
"Here, read about Enron"

Dude, reread his post, he said more or less exactly the same thing as you? Research your given charity.
90% is a figure that has obviously been pulled out of some dark crack in the earth because most small charities will send off the money the generate. Oxfam as previously mentioned is one of them honest and upfront charities.

Despite what people are saying, I literally despise ANYONE that thinks donating to charity is wrong, regardless of your reasons. Charity whilst also going to improve lives is also giving the people who donate a warm feeling, knowing that somewhere, someone has benefited from their donation, that is the real deal about Charity giving. Every year our High School would run a sponsored walk around the Ribble Valley in Lancashire, the following day, they would advertise how much was donated to charity, as well as how much they earned from it and to follow that up they'd present a cheque to the charity in question to actually show how the money was going.

Not everyone in this world is a thief.

-Tails-

[maxjenius]

Despite what people are saying, I literally despise ANYONE that thinks donating to charity is wrong, regardless of your reasons.

Pretty sure no one is saying there's anything wrong with donating to charity.

[Rasdun]

Dude, reread his post, he said more or less exactly the same thing as you? Research your given charity.

Maybe the point of my post was not clear. If he left it at "research your given charity" or prefaced with some facts about the charity in question, rather than writing about a worst-case scenario exception, then I would not have replied.

Maybe it is just me, but I worry that when people post worst-case scenarios that have nothing to do with the specific case we are faced with, it may unnecessary cause us to hesitate to give... In other words, let's focus on the positive here -- IMHO, there was no reason to bring in Bono nonprofit into this thread. And my original post in this thread was to counter the "90% of charities are corrupt" poster. Hope that helps.

[monteeburns]

That is the exception, not the rule. And, to be 100% clear, this 24 hr gaming marathon is not for that Bono "nonprofit"... Honestly, I don't understand why you'd want to post about Bono. If you like research, why not post some facts about the charity in question? Being informed is a good thing, but we don't need to be informed about Bono when considering supporting Children's Miracle Network Hospitals.

"Should I invest in Apple?"
"Here, read about Enron"

As tails pointed out, I agree with you. I thought I made it clear earlier I thought the Turbine event was a good thing
, but as important as it is to give money to charity, it's equally important to ensure that the charity you give to passes it on to the people it's going to help. Otherwise, it defeats the whole purpose. I don't think all charities are corrupt in any way, just that some clearly aren't doing anything like what people would expect with their donations, so it's important to spend a little time before handing over cash to ensure it's actually going to end up where you'd like it. It wasn't directed at the charity involved here, just a general point. The way I see it, the more people who know the truth about what can happen to charity money, the more will end up in the right hands. Not a worst case, just a realistic one. Do you always check how your donations are being spent? I never used to.

In response to the last part, should I invest in Apple, I think the appropriate response would be, make sure you pick a broker who isn't going to run off with your money.

[Witch0King]

Wish you guys the best of luck, It's a noble deed and many will appreciate it, hope you guys have fun. Whenever me and my friends get together we always do some of the old classics like Carn Dum and such

If I may ask a question which is a little bit off topic, but do you guys usually play together or are you playing on different servers?

[BowOfFSAndDecay]

Guys I was going to make a thread about this but someone has done so already.

I just wanted to say I know times are tuff for alot of folks here. If you can donate a little bit it would go along way to help out the kids, this is a great thing that turbine is doing.

Happy hunting guys and 18 days till RoR!!!! : )

[Sapience]

Wish you guys the best of luck, It's a noble deed and many will appreciate it, hope you guys have fun. Whenever me and my friends get together we always do some of the old classics like Carn Dum and such

If I may ask a question which is a little bit off topic, but do you guys usually play together or are you playing on different servers?

It depends. Some do, some play with friends and family. It's also very likely many players have played with one or more of us, but company policy prohibits our mentioning who we are in game while on our personal accounts. So you may never know.

[Celestrata]

It depends. Some do, some play with friends and family. It's also very likely many players have played with one or more of us, but company policy prohibits our mentioning who we are in game while on our personal accounts. So you may never know.

Think of that. We could be in your kinships right now, and you won't know it! OooooOoOOoEeeeeeEEEEoooooo!

[Erasluindor]

Think of that. We could be in your kinships right now, and you won't know it! OooooOoOOoEeeeeeEEEEoooooo!

Looks like Celestrata plays a tank judging by the cat obviously yelling at the hunter

[Rasdun]

As tails pointed out, I agree with you. I thought I made it clear earlier I thought the Turbine event was a good thing
, but as important as it is to give money to charity, it's equally important to ensure that the charity you give to passes it on to the people it's going to help. Otherwise, it defeats the whole purpose. I don't think all charities are corrupt in any way, just that some clearly aren't doing anything like what people would expect with their donations, so it's important to spend a little time before handing over cash to ensure it's actually going to end up where you'd like it. It wasn't directed at the charity involved here, just a general point. The way I see it, the more people who know the truth about what can happen to charity money, the more will end up in the right hands. Not a worst case, just a realistic one. Do you always check how your donations are being spent? I never used to.

In response to the last part, should I invest in Apple, I think the appropriate response would be, make sure you pick a broker who isn't going to run off with your money.

Well, I think your intention was good and we do agree about the general point you're making.

And if you wanted to make that general point in this thread, which is supposed to be about a specific an event that supports a specific charity *Children's Miracle Network* (not the Bono non-profit you posted a bunch of details about, nor Oxfam, the charity you briefly mentioned as being a good one), then that was your prerogative.

But by providing the details of a corrupt charity that has nothing to do with this charity event and telling people to be very careful about giving to charity, do you realize you could unnecessarily be dissuading people from supporting this specific charity event?

You could have made your general point in a more positive way, perhaps by researching this particular charity and letting us know they are worthy of support.

Since my attempt at an Apple/Enron analogy did not go over well, how about:

If this thread was for inviting people to join an upcoming cruise, would you be in here detailing the tragedy of the Titantic to emphasize marine safety? Well, that is the way in which I read your post and why I responded the way I did.

[Armitas]

It depends. Some do, some play with friends and family. It's also very likely many players have played with one or more of us, but company policy prohibits our mentioning who we are in game while on our personal accounts. So you may never know.

Looks at lucky kinmate hunter that seems to win every roll and links horseshoe everytime. Grrr

[maxjenius]

If this thread was for inviting people to join an upcoming cruise, would you be in here detailing the tragedy of the Titantic to emphasize marine safety? Well, that is the way in which I read your post and why I responded the way I did.

If you're going to engage in this off-topicality, the Titanic sank a long time ago. There are corrupt charities swindling people today (and that's just a general comment, not to imply that Children's Miracle Network is necessarily swindling people).

[JeauxLOTR]

Think of that. We could be in your kinships right now, and you won't know it! OooooOoOOoEeeeeeEEEEoooooo!

Well if you are, the Kin House Rent is Due.

[hauntedautumn]

I appreciate all the kind comments, but Turbine deserves them, not me

On a more angry note.... I am appalled at how my post has been responded to by some of you. Absolutely disgusted. All I was doing was making suggestions about how Turbine could do other things to raise money besides a gaming marathon that would be healthier to it's players. I could give a rat's behind less about conspiracy theories, giving the money to fix the game instead, blah blah blah.

If you want to be idiotic, please leave my thread alone.

Looks like my Warden has some people to boot in the face and steal their waffles after all....

Thank you Sapience and Celestrata for posting, I really enjoyed reading what you wrote.