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I'm Buying This, And So Should You


PhuturePriest

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PhuturePriest

https://secure.persecution.com/i-am-n/

 

$10 go directly toward helping Iraqi refugees. I also admire the choice of blood red printing, rather than the standard yellow and green we've been accustomed to. The red makes a lot more symbolic sense, plus it just looks cooler and makes for a more bold statement. I'm having issues deciding between long-sleeve or short-sleeve, however. I feel the long sleeve looks cooler, but I couldn't exactly wear it during summer. On the other hand, wearing sleeves in the sun will help to delay my certain fate of skin cancer, so that's a bonus.

Edited by PhuturePriest
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I would not donate. I will also temporarily remove my troll hate and explain why in a serious and non-antagonistic way.

 

They are extremely vague about exactly what the help that there $10 per purchase provides. As far as I can tell from glancing through their 990 forms (this is a document that non-profits provide that acts as a summary of where there money is coming from, who is directing them, and where their money is going) it primarily goes to supporting ministry work, rather that material aid to displaced and opressed Christian populations.

 

There are a few reasons that people here should be wary of that

1-I'm not sure it's allowed for good Catholics like you folk to support the ministry efforts of Evangelicals.

 

2-The only time humanitarian aid is mentioned is when it is in conjunction with ministry efforts (eg Bibles, Christian Literature, and humanitarian aid). This is suspicious. It is well know than many evangelical groups will pose as non-sectarian aid groups and use the draw of promised aid in order to minister to locals. This is extremely bad. One it is highly manipulative and disrespectful to the people being lured in under false pretenses (in Bosnia we ran into a Christian group that claimed to offer free English language instruction, of course this was a cover to attempt to convert Bosnian Muslims) and, more importantly, it puts actual humanitarian organizations who provide substantive aid in danger. People aren't stupid and news of the charlatans quickly spreads. This makes all humanitarian organizations suspect and subject to attack by extremists. This happened a number of times in Somalia when Al Shabbaab began attacking non-sectarian humanitarian organizations because they believed them to be secret Christian ministries working to convert unsuspecting Muslims. If these Christian organizations what to endanger their own lives to preach the Gospel that is their right but doing to in a dishonest way that puts genuinely non-sectarian (of sectarian, Christian groups that focus on actual humanitarian relief rather than these manipulative conversion efforts) is highly unethical and should not be supported.

 

3-They do not list the organizations that they work with on the ground. This should also set off alarm bells. Working in a zone like Iraq would be extremely difficult. Working in a post-conflict zone like Bosnia was incredibly difficult, I can't imagine how much more so working a far worse context like Iraq would be. If you don't have strong local support and are not working with trusted partners that ca help you navigate the issues that arise from working in an environment where traditional institutions have collapsed you are probably going to be working inefficiently and ineffectively. There are lot's of organizations that have been in he area for years now and know the lay of the land, which actors to trust, how to get things done. The fact that they do not mention any such organizations as the ones that they are working with sets off alarm bells for me and makes me suspect that even if they are trying to get actual humanitarian aid to people, and I seriously doubt it given their 990, that money is mostly being wasted.

 

Good organizations provide transparent explanations of how they are spending your money, they don't use aid as a marketing scheme to get you to buy their t-shirts, and they are specific about what their goals are. 

 

 

 

 

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Hasan is right on this. I was an aid worker in the Middle East and I am currently conducting my doctoral research here. There is a problem with certain evangelical groups using aid work as a cover for missionary activity - in which they include converting Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Christians, whom they don't consider to be 'real' Christians. My host family was badly burned by a pastor claiming to represent an aid organisation, who promised to help their daughter get a university education in the UK. She's now abandoned her Eastern Orthodox faith in favour of a particular strain of fundamentalist Protestantism that looks a heck of a lot like a cult to me - she can't talk to her family unsupervised and she spends hours a day at church-related events. Before you donate to any humanitarian organisation, you should look at who their on-the-ground partners are and exactly what they spend money on. Most reputable organisations will provide a breakdown on their website and sometimes there's even an option to specify exactly what your donation goes to - buying winter clothes for refugees, for example, or funding a doctor. Of course there are plenty of reputable Protestant charities out there, but I have to say I'd be wary of this one for all the reasons Hasan gives. If you want to donate to the Iraqi relief effort through a religious charity specifically, I recommend Aid to the Church in Need - they are Catholic and they respect the customs and culture of the local church in Iraq.

Edited by beatitude
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This same principle really applies domestically as well. I'm not on the right-wing email lists but I imagine it's similar to the liberal ones. If you get any email from any organization asking you to 'chip in $5 to support the fight for 'x'' then no matter what they claim 'x' is (protect life, fight for marriage et cetera) what 'x' most likely really is probably amounts to staff salaries and gaining institutional power (which gets you more money but not necessarily more solutions, professionalized advocacy organizations have strong internal incentives to not actually win fights as willing means that they are out of the job). 

 

This is a completely non-partisan point. I get emails all the time from the 501(c)4 that Obama's campaign transformed into after the election. Having some inside knowledge of what they really do I can safely say that it is basically a wellfare program to keep Democratic campaign operatives afloat in between election cycles. 

 

For any organization, if they are not giving you specific things that they will be doing with your money (we give 'x' amount of money to projects 'y' and 'z' and these are our numbers demonstrating the effectiveness of project 'z' and how we plan to get project 'y' similarly up to speed), then you should probably hold onto your cash. Issue advocacy is an industry that provides a nice living to a select group of people. Most of them do very little of substance to actively further their goals. 

Edited by Hasan
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That's what that symbol means? I was wondering why I was seeing it everywhere.

 

Arabic letter N for Nazarene, I've been told. ISIS paints it on the houses of Christians to mark them. To show support, many have put it on shirts, bumper stickers, etc. 

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PhuturePriest

I would not donate. I will also temporarily remove my troll hate and explain why in a serious and non-antagonistic way.

 

They are extremely vague about exactly what the help that there $10 per purchase provides. As far as I can tell from glancing through their 990 forms (this is a document that non-profits provide that acts as a summary of where there money is coming from, who is directing them, and where their money is going) it primarily goes to supporting ministry work, rather that material aid to displaced and opressed Christian populations.

 

There are a few reasons that people here should be wary of that

1-I'm not sure it's allowed for good Catholics like you folk to support the ministry efforts of Evangelicals.

 

2-The only time humanitarian aid is mentioned is when it is in conjunction with ministry efforts (eg Bibles, Christian Literature, and humanitarian aid). This is suspicious. It is well know than many evangelical groups will pose as non-sectarian aid groups and use the draw of promised aid in order to minister to locals. This is extremely bad. One it is highly manipulative and disrespectful to the people being lured in under false pretenses (in Bosnia we ran into a Christian group that claimed to offer free English language instruction, of course this was a cover to attempt to convert Bosnian Muslims) and, more importantly, it puts actual humanitarian organizations who provide substantive aid in danger. People aren't stupid and news of the charlatans quickly spreads. This makes all humanitarian organizations suspect and subject to attack by extremists. This happened a number of times in Somalia when Al Shabbaab began attacking non-sectarian humanitarian organizations because they believed them to be secret Christian ministries working to convert unsuspecting Muslims. If these Christian organizations what to endanger their own lives to preach the Gospel that is their right but doing to in a dishonest way that puts genuinely non-sectarian (of sectarian, Christian groups that focus on actual humanitarian relief rather than these manipulative conversion efforts) is highly unethical and should not be supported.

 

3-They do not list the organizations that they work with on the ground. This should also set off alarm bells. Working in a zone like Iraq would be extremely difficult. Working in a post-conflict zone like Bosnia was incredibly difficult, I can't imagine how much more so working a far worse context like Iraq would be. If you don't have strong local support and are not working with trusted partners that ca help you navigate the issues that arise from working in an environment where traditional institutions have collapsed you are probably going to be working inefficiently and ineffectively. There are lot's of organizations that have been in he area for years now and know the lay of the land, which actors to trust, how to get things done. The fact that they do not mention any such organizations as the ones that they are working with sets off alarm bells for me and makes me suspect that even if they are trying to get actual humanitarian aid to people, and I seriously doubt it given their 990, that money is mostly being wasted.

 

Good organizations provide transparent explanations of how they are spending your money, they don't use aid as a marketing scheme to get you to buy their t-shirts, and they are specific about what their goals are. 

 

It appears no one selling this type of shirt online does so without "proceeds to Iraqi Christians in the Middle East", but none of them elaborate on what exactly that means.

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It appears no one selling this type of shirt online does so without "proceeds to Iraqi Christians in the Middle East", but none of them elaborate on what exactly that means.

 

Aid to the Church in Need are selling T-shirts, badges, and wristbands with the 'Nun' symbol on them here. Their "How we help" section provides details on how they use funds. They primarily support catechesis and pastoral ministry, but they also distribute practical emergency aid.

 

A few years ago they gave a grant to a small Palestinian Catholic community organisation that I was working for at the time. They always do their work through local Christian partners on the ground, who understand the issues facing the population first-hand. Their T-shirts may not be as snazzy as the other ones (and there is no sweatshirt option) but they are a lot clearer about their finances and from my dealings with them I can say that they're pretty efficient in what they do. If you really want a black sweatshirt with a red 'Nun' symbol, perhaps you could design one yourself on a shirt-printing site and just send a donation to a humanitarian organisation?

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PhuturePriest

Aid to the Church in Need are selling T-shirts, badges, and wristbands with the 'Nun' symbol on them here. Their "How we help" section provides details on how they use funds. They primarily support catechesis and pastoral ministry, but they also distribute practical emergency aid.

 

A few years ago they gave a grant to a small Palestinian Catholic community organisation that I was working for at the time. They always do their work through local Christian partners on the ground, who understand the issues facing the population first-hand. Their T-shirts may not be as snazzy as the other ones (and there is no sweatshirt option) but they are a lot clearer about their finances and from my dealings with them I can say that they're pretty efficient in what they do. If you really want a black sweatshirt with a red 'Nun' symbol, perhaps you could design one yourself on a shirt-printing site and just send a donation to a humanitarian organisation?

 

Thanks. Unfortunately they don't have it in a small (which is the only size that will properly fit me; even a fair few of shirts I've seen in small are way too wide for me), but it's cool that they're doing it, and that they are actually saying where they put their money.

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It appears no one selling this type of shirt online does so without "proceeds to Iraqi Christians in the Middle East", but none of them elaborate on what exactly that means.

 

I hate it when this happens, I'd typed up a whole response, only to accidentally hit backspace and go to the thread. 

 

Anyway, I was going to say found it. Although the website doesn't list all the charities they donate to, they do list one, the IOCC, which seems to put most of its money into relief. I looked them up, looked up the 990 form like Hasan said, and they seemed legit. Here's their form for anyone who wants to take a look. Yes, it's for 2013, but I would hope that the way they operate hasn't changed drastically since then. Who knows. 

 

Also, FP, if you really, really wanted one of these shirts, and wanted to make sure your money was going to charity as much as possible, maybe email the people selling the shirt I linked above. They listed an email down at the bottom of the page. Ask them which charities they donate to, and how much of the amount you're paying for the shirt goes to them. 

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PhuturePriest

:coffee:

 

If you really drank as much coffee as your posts suggest you'd have an arrhythmia.

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