Comments on Marty Nemko: Holiday Presents, Bah, Humbug! (There's a Better A...

That would be a wonderful idea in a small office w...

2009-10-31T15:14:10.883-07:00

That would be a wonderful idea in a small office where there actually were staff meetings everyone attended together. I'm not sure it would work in my situation, which is a huge office with staff meetings segregated by position type. But you've sold me on SmileTrain. I think I'll use it as the charity for this year's plan of attack. :)

Kelly, why not show more initiative: for example, ...

2009-10-31T09:28:10.877-07:00

Kelly, why not show more initiative: for example, at the next staff meeting, propose that everyone in the office agree to donate, in the recipient's name, to either the donor's favorite charity or one charity, selected by vote among the staff? I've developed a preference for SmileTrain over Embrace because the latter will be keeping alive preemies, who, as a group will be more likely to have big problems (e.g., retardation.)

Marty, I am so in agreement with you on this, and ...

2009-10-31T09:12:01.208-07:00

Marty, I am so in agreement with you on this, and I have a way to make this a career-relevant discussion, too. How do I, as a (discontented) legal secretary, tactfully get my three bosses to donate to a charity instead of giving me yet another ill-considered trio of $50 gift cards for Christmas? I have a fiendish plan this year (my 7th with them) of donating to charities in their names, in the same amounts they always spend on me. Do you think that's a good idea, generally speaking? They are decent sorts, and it's (mostly) not their fault I hate my job so much.

I agree that donations to worthy causes in lieu of...

2009-10-28T12:15:11.388-07:00

I agree that donations to worthy causes in lieu of Christmas presents are much more in keeping with the spirit of the holidays. My favorite charity is Seva Foundation which has a variety of wonderful programs. These include giving the gift of sight to people with cataracts in Tibet, giving to healing circles on Indian reservations, and to rural villages that need sanitation and plumbing installations in Central America.

"So when we cure an Indian child's cleft palate, i...

2009-10-27T10:26:04.025-07:00

"So when we cure an Indian child's cleft palate, it strikes me that we are likely to be unleashing especially good potential that otherwise would go for naught"

It is true that Indians in America have high IQ scores. This is because we select from India the cream of the crop. The average IQ in India is only about 81, which is less than Blacks in the US. Of course nutrition could help them reach their current genetic ceiling, though, which would be higher but probably not more than 100.