How about paying the warehouse employees more?
Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless
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Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless
#12So brave of him to donate 1.2% of his vast fortune to a PR project with his name on it! This really makes up for the whole FOXCONN-level human despair harvesting labor practices thing imo. Hell, we don't even need to go through with that legislation any more.
Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless
#13[deleted]
Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless
#14I have always wondered which one is better: 1. Contribute early on little by little 2. Contribute nothing to very little for a while amassing huge fortunes (and compound interest magic), then donate big. Pretty much the same question as lump sum vs dollar cost averaging in investing. Have there been studies on this?
I think history gives a bit of the answer. There's always been work done to help homeless people, and it never really got better.
Worst part IMO is that it's not to be a money sink. I deeply believe that homelessness is mostly emotional, these guys need deep moral support and a bit of material support. But you can't buy moral support. Having someone drop 2B might help motivate society and finally realize how to fix the problem, even if not all the money is spent.
Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless
#15I hope this works and is successful. Still I can’t help but be reminded of the saying that roughly goes “the people who are paid to solve a problem end up having a vested interest in the problem not being solved.”
Specifically with regards to homelessness, the problem seems to be the critical shortage of housing for people in general, leading to a total crisis of affordable housing, rather than a specific problem of insufficient services exclusively for “the homeless.” Certainly there are people who need support above and beyond affordable housing, but isn’t the bedrock of this whole crisis the shortage of homes in the places where people are trying to live and work?
Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless
#16Nice, maybe now those Amazon warehouse workers will be able to find a home they can afford.
Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless
#17I don’t agree with Bezos on a few things, but this is big. It’s about time companies care for their down and out compatriots. Progressives make all kinds of noise and virtue signal for people outside our care, but where the rubber meets the road, they fall short on helping fellow Americans—this is a nice start. Let’s see where it goes. Wonder if he’ll get Bernie to contribute (tongue in cheek)
The best way for companies to care for their down and out compatriots is to pay their workers their due instead of profiting handsomely from underpaying them.
Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless
#18I have always wondered which one is better: 1. Contribute early on little by little 2. Contribute nothing to very little for a while amassing huge fortunes (and compound interest magic), then donate big. Pretty much the same question as lump sum vs dollar cost averaging in investing. Have there been studies on this?
1. Usually will end when you pass away.
2. (Especially if establishing a foundation.) Will outlive you and continue on for potentially hundreds of years into the future. For example:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Foundation
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnegie_Endowment_for_Interna...
Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless
#19I don’t agree with Bezos on a few things, but this is big. It’s about time companies care for their down and out compatriots. Progressives make all kinds of noise and virtue signal for people outside our care, but where the rubber meets the road, they fall short on helping fellow Americans—this is a nice start. Let’s see where it goes. Wonder if he’ll get Bernie to contribute (tongue in cheek)
> Progressives make all kinds of noise and virtue signal for people outside our care, but where the rubber meets the road, they fall short on helping fellow Americans
Can you expand on this?
Re: Amazon's Bezos Launches $2B Fund to Help the Homeless
#20Call me cynical, but shouldn't this $2B go towards compensating his employees well enough to not have to use government welfare programs? [0] [0]: https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-takes-walmarts-spot-w...
There is more glory in philanthropy than in paying your employees. The ROI in terms of reputation is higher.
Addition: the same is true for funding something like a computer lab at a school. Lots of good PR for funding a new one but nothing for keeping an existing one funded for the next few years. Although I think it's more valuable to make sure existing infrastructure stays funded.