As a conservative/libertarian type, I’m in favor of individual charity rather than the enforced charity that the IRS collects every April 15. As such, any giving to charity should be encouraged and celebrated, both for individual self-worth and the good that charitable giving does for society as a whole.
Having said that, though, the Ice Bucket challenge movement is beginning to annoy me. It’s the “selfie” of charitable giving. It’s the self-absorbed “look at me” mentality that seems to infest social media.
The twelfth century Jewish philosopher Maimonides proposed the following ladder of giving:
1. The lowest: Giving begrudgingly and making the recipient feel disgraced or embarrassed.
2. Giving cheerfully but giving too little.
3. Giving cheerfully and adequately but only after being asked.
4. Giving before being asked.
5. Giving when you do not know who is the individual benefiting, but the recipient knows your identity.
6. Giving when you know who is the individual benefiting, but the recipient does not know your identity.
7. Giving when neither the donor nor the recipient is aware of the other’s identity.
8. The Highest: Giving money, a loan, your time or whatever else it takes to enable an individual to be self-reliant.
I’ll let you judge where the cold water or ice bucket challenges lie on this ladder, especially “calling out” others for the so-called challenge.
I’m no saint and definitely far from perfect, but I have made a different decision for me. For me, I’ve chosen to give the gift of my time. I give my time as a paramedic, volunteering in two different EMS systems. I give my time (usually freely) as an EMS educator, educating our community about the legal issues involved in prehospital care. And I’ve lost count as to the numbers of times I’ve spent on the phone or computer providing some quick, informal legal advice to medics, firefighters, or cops. These are the challenges I’ve chosen to answer on my own, with no towel or recorded message required.
