To the Point
The Effectiveness of Our Charitable Giving
Aristotle said "to give away money is an easy matter…and in any man's power. But to decide to whom to give it, and how large and when, for what purpose and how, is neither in every man's power nor an easy matter." Many Americans will be making those decisions in the final days of tax year 2007. Guest host Lawrence O'Donnell explores how we can target our charitable giving to be most effective. Also, this year's lackluster holiday sales, and the tiger attack in the San Francisco Zoo.
By Lawrence O'Donnell • • 1h 0m ListenAristotle said "to give away money is an easy matter…and in any man's power. But to decide to whom to give it, and how large and when, for what purpose and how, is neither in every man's power nor an easy matter." Many Americans will be making those decisions in the final days of tax year 2007. Guest host Lawrence O'Donnell explores how we can target our charitable giving to be most effective. Also, this year's lackluster holiday sales, and a 350-pound tiger escaped from its enclosure and killed a man at the San Francisco Zoo yesterday. The same animal mauled a zookeeper last year. Are tigers safe enough for public zoos?
In this episode
3 storiesLackluster Retail Sales Bring Little Holiday Cheer
The numbers are in and retail sales this holiday season have increased a lackluster 2.4%, falling short of industry forecasts. Shoppers aggressively pursued deep discounts, leading to a last minute surge in spending that saved the industry from negative results.
Read the story6 minWhat Happens to Our Charitable Contributions?
T'is the season of charitable giving, but how well do charities use the money we give them? Americans will donate about $300 billion to charities this year. Will the money be used the way the donors think it will? How effective is our charitable giving?
Read the story37 minTiger Kills Visitor at San Francisco Zoo
Near sunset on Christmas Day at the San Francisco Zoo , a Siberian tiger named Tatiana escaped from her grotto and attacked three visitors, killing one. This same tiger was involved in another incident last year in which she mauled a zookeeper. Steve Rubenstein has been covering the story for the San Francisco Chronicle .
Read the story6 min
