Primetime, One More Time

As I mentioned yesterday, I appeared on Primetime on ABC last night, commenting on the fact that while philanthropy in this country is up, the amount donated to the poor is down.

One of the things I said was, "If you're working with citizens in this country who are not eating tonight, to me, that's a much more worthwhile cause than people who like to hear a symphony."

I believe that, with every fiber of my being. As a father, I would trade all the music in the world if it would mean that children in this country wouldn't have to go to bed hungry. But I must point out that this sentiment is not the official position of Charity Navigator. It is mine, and mine alone.

Here, we treat every charity equally, in terms of mission. We make no judgments on worthiness of individual charities, and stick solely to evaluating their financial health. As a result, we consider charities as diverse as The Michigan Opera, The NRA Foundation, and the Foodbank of Santa Barbara to all be 4-star organizations.

But I did feel that, given the opportunity to reach a national audience, I had a moral obligation last night to point out that giving to nearly every type of charity in this country is up this year, with the notable exception of those who work with the poor. And I find this worthy of lament and great sadness. But that's just one man's opinion.

Mine.