Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Modern School: Dysfunctional Do-Gooders

Modern School: Dysfunctional Do-Gooders:


Dysfunctional Do-Gooders


“The nonprofit sector, which roots for the underdog, supports tax breaks to the wealthy because charitable deductions help us.”
--Jan Masaoka, CEO of the California Association of Nonprofits (quoted in the Bay Citizen)

Corruption or Rational Response to an Irrational Premise
Non-profit organizations are often the strongest advocates for the neediest Americans, yet they also tend to be strong advocates for tax breaks for the nation’s millionaires. From their perspective, this is not a corruption, but an expedient: they desperately need money and the wealthy are the ones most able to provide it. Not only do the rich have more disposable income to give away, but the tax system provides incentives for them to give to charities by allowing them to write-off their donations.

This may seem paradoxical, but only because charities and non-profits start with an irrational premise. Some believe they can solve a social problem by giving money or services to its