Volunteering abroad is stupid

[Brazen]

I think you ought to have to volunteer in your local community first, nothing like cleaning out old people's potties to ground you. Which is something I did - with the Girl Guides, not for my first offence 

The one thing that winds me up more than voluntourism is people who ask for charity sponsorship for something that costs them no time or effort but is something they've always wanted to do. Train six months for a marathon, sure, but sky-dive, nuh-uh.

[Warspite]

I think you ought to have to volunteer in your local community first, nothing like cleaning out old people's potties to ground you. Which is something I did - with the Girl Guides, not for my first offence 

The one thing that winds me up more than voluntourism is people who ask for charity sponsorship for something that costs them no time or effort but is something they've always wanted to do. Train six months for a marathon, sure, but sky-dive, nuh-uh.

Yeah, what the hell's up with that? Maybe I should ask my friends to sponsor my next trip to a Croatian beach for charity?

[derspiess]

My cousin's kids are getting all into this via their church.  The older one is a junior in high school and is saving all the money from his part time job to pay for his trip to Guatemala this summer to help build some stuff in a village or something. 

I'm sure my kids will be too self-centered and lazy at that age to even think about doing something like that.

[Ed Anger]

Ugh. Church trips.

Half of their own country is falling apart and they want to go nursemaid foreigners. Disgusting.

[derspiess]

Ugh. Church trips.

Half of their own country is falling apart and they want to go nursemaid foreigners. Disgusting.

In fairness both kids have already done a lot of volunteer work down in Kentucky & Tennessee.  Our poor here have it a lot better than the shit-poor in the third world.

But I generally agree with you guys.  What Dickens said long ago about "telescopic philanthropy" still applies.

[Ed Anger]

Ugh. Church trips.

Half of their own country is falling apart and they want to go nursemaid foreigners. Disgusting.

In fairness both kids have already done a lot of volunteer work down in Kentucky & Tennessee.

You aren't making it easy for me to do one of my anti foreigner diatribes.

[derspiess]

About the only volunteer stuff (and it was forced) I did with my church youth group was going to hang out with really old church members that were shut-ins.  I thought it was bad when we had to go to the ones who still lived in their own houses.  Then I got my first experience inside a nursing home.

[Phillip V]

Here is one in India. She will make these Indian females equal and treated with respect, and hopefully she does not get raped by a frat guy when she returns home.

[CountDeMoney]

Yeah, I've seen some positions for Victim Advocacy for various overseas concerns, to help lovely ladies like that deal with their issues and criminal cases after they've been gang raped six ways from Sunday in whatever 3rd world shithole they think they're trying to make a difference in.

[Grey Fox]

Nice eyes. Hidden boobs

[Neil]

My cousin's kids are getting all into this via their church.  The older one is a junior in high school and is saving all the money from his part time job to pay for his trip to Guatemala this summer to help build some stuff in a village or something. 

I'm sure my kids will be too self-centered and lazy at that age to even think about doing something like that.

See, those make a little more sense.  The goal with those isn't to improve the third world, but to trick some of the locals into adopting Protestantism in gratitude.

[Valmy]

Here is one in India. She will make these Indian females equal and treated with respect, and hopefully she does not get raped by a frat guy when she returns home.

Way to turn the misogyny over 9000 there pal.

Anyway we have had many threads about this.  If you really want to help the third world you need to do your research and find what is actually needed.  It is rather annoying how big of a con industry this is, you really have to be careful.  The fact that most of us know precisely jack and shit about these other countries makes it really hard to have a significant positive influence.  I guess if I was doing it I would try to find particularly philanthropic locals and see what they need.

[Neil]

Because the locals in Africa would never scam you.  Why one time, I got an email from a local prince, who just needed to borrow my bank information and he'd be able to give me some money.  I'm just waiting for it to come through now....

[Valmy]

Because the locals in Africa would never scam you.

Well right I would have to really know what I am doing and who is on the up and up.  Did I not just say that in that exact paragraph?

[Neil]

Because the locals in Africa would never scam you.

Well right I would have to really know what I am doing and who is on the up and up.  Did I not just say that in that exact paragraph?

No idea.  I just saw that you weren't advocating the only moral position (letting the Africans genocide each other) and got angry.