In this day and age, it's an amazing and beautiful thing
to me when people "do good".
There's so much bad news out there that it's easy to be
negative about the world and the human race in general.
It seems normal to be jaded since our society reflects more
bad news than good news. I guess bad news sells better
in our social environment and brings in bigger ratings which in
turn means more money for that media outlet. I think much
of what we do and see is amplified via social media outlets,
celebrity based voyeurism, political bias, corporate greed,
religious views and way too many reality TV shows.
We're also huge consumer addicts as credit cards became
our new bffs and brought our economy to what it is, today.
What values and truths are we really teaching our children?
Our world is filled with so much misinformation, special
interests, corporate greed, political machines, marketing
madness, fear mongering, dysfunctional families, debt
consumption, self medicating, youth obsessed, instant
gratification, hateful oppression, class division, economic
anxieties, social bigotry and we could go and on about all
the things that are wrong with the social fabric of our
society today.
But I see a glimmer of hope in the horizon...I see a new
movement towards something beautiful and bright. I see
people making a conscious change to be less selfish,
more giving, kind and willing to help others in need.
The most amazing news story this week barely made it into
the main stream medias' consciousness. Which really makes
me wonder why it was left out? This story should be the
leading news story of the day instead of what the media
keeps reporting as news. Stories like these are so profound
and will help teach our children good values that can inspire
them in the future. So I had to blog about it and bring some
good news to give us something to smile about.
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The $600 Billion Challenge
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40 Billionaires Pledge to Give Half
Their Wealth to Charitable Causes
On Tuesday, May 5th, 2009 -- Warren Buffet and Bill Gates
invited a group of billionaires to pledge half their wealth to
charitable causes. Warren Buffett started by talking about
philanthropy, describing their first meeting as "exploratory".
He asked each person, going around the table, to describe
his or her philosophy of giving and how it had evolved.
"The charitable causes discussed in those stories covered the
spectrum: education, again and again; culture; hospitals and
health; the environment; public policy; the poor generally.
Bill Gates, who found the whole event "amazing," regarded
the range of causes as admirable:"
"The diversity of American giving," he says,
"is part of its beauty."
Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Mayor Bloomberg
among billionaires signing up for
'The Giving Pledge'
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Forty wealthy families and individuals have joined Microsoft
co-founder Bill Gates and billionaire investor Warren Buffett
in a pledge to give at least half their wealth to charity.
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With this inspiring story, I hope it will lift your hearts and give
you a new and hopeful outlook. We can all do something to
make a difference in our world. It could be donating food to
your local homeless shelter, volunteering at your local schools to
help kids with their homework, reading to seniors, building
homes for the homeless, donating clothes, donating books
to your local libraries, doing an act of kindness for a stranger,
saying hello to your neighbors and so much more. It will make
a big difference in our world and bring a smile to your heart. ❤
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Here are some links to charities and volunteer
centers in your local areas and around the world:
6 comments:
Isn't that fabulous? NPR covered it as one of their top stories yesterday. I found this especially amazing:
"Gates And Buffett estimate their efforts could generate $600 billion in charitable giving. In 2009, American philanthropies received a total of about $300 billion in donations..."
Hi Jenn,
Yes, it is beyond amazing and truly incredible!! I hope more people will do good and help bring a more positive movement to our world. We need more love, understanding and compassion to create a better place for our children. :)
Wonderful post!
I cannot fathom having more than a billion dollars, and did not realize there were so many people out there that did. I'm glad at least 40 of them are willing to share that much with those much less fortunate. That is definitely a glimmer of hope for the future!
Wonderful and refreshing post Vol!
Hi Aquariann & Jenn,
Thank you for your comments! I just thought it was such an amazing story about giving and generosity. We should see more stories like these in the news because I think it would help shape our world towards renewed and better path.
Have a wonderful weekend, chicas! xo
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