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Children with cancer scammed out of millions fundraised for their treatment

bbc.com

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Re: Children with cancer scammed out of millions fundraised for their treatment

#211

Post by thorawaytrav »

latexr wrote: post #32
Pooge wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think parent commenter was talking about random people "working"[1] for charities and stopping you on the street. If one wanted to donate, why would they do it through a stranger on the street and not directly to their website? However, if you give a homeless person money and they go buy drugs, I think you effectively made them poorer. I would advise giving them food instead.[2] [1]: Word in quotes because there is…

Not every homeless person needs or wants food at every single time. Certainly not fast food fries covered in salt that get nasty if not eaten right away, that’s not a meal. Sometimes a homeless person needs a blanket, or a bus ticket, or just a safe place for a few hours. If you don’t want to give money, that’s your prerogative, but don’t simply assume food. Ask.

Then why are almost all of them aggressive when I say that I won't give money but offer food instead?

You say "Ask"? I did. I just heard some rehearsed story Oh, your son is sick?" With what exactly? What kind of drugs he need, I can help? Result -> anger. I get more aggression from asking and trying to get helpfull than simply saying "no." I have tons of examples.

Why do they NEVER ask for a job? Why don't they ever offer to do the manual labor I was doing? I would be glad to let them do it and pay for it.

One time they stole my phone. A guy just came near me with a sign, put it on the table while begging, and simply garbed it and have runned away. That was end of I line for me.

Why do they reek of alcohol or drugs?

I used to offer help to people, but after they stole my phone, I just scream "NO." I never want to be stolen from again. I donate to some charities, but that is the end of the line for me. I don't want to pay a guy that is begging out of habit just to buy drugs. I don't want to pay women sedating their children or using them on the street just to earn money. Just watching them beg behind the building.

My main point is that I never could understand the aggression towards the homeless until I was stolen from. My street was filled with alcoholics living in cars, screaming random stuff, and fighting with passersby and each other.

Do you really think they want an answer, or anything else other than buying their drugs? I was really hating people like me, but in the end I was discovered why do they react with defense and aggression. But of course I would be glad to pay for food nonetheless and try to help with anything expect money and I pay for charities that try to provide medical healthcare in places like Gaza, but I don't believe that people in London (for example) need more and places like Gaza.

Re: Children with cancer scammed out of millions fundraised for their treatment

#213

Post by Alex_L_Wood »

sdoering wrote: post #128
nickpp wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Any system needs a resource allocation algorithm. In capitalism it is easy and transparent: price, with the side effect of aligning society interests with those of the selfish individual. Of course the strange and heavily regulated US health-care system is obviously far far away from a free market. In socialism it's much more random: black markets, lists, lotteries, friends and network of connections. The side effect…

Can't think of a socialist country, but invite you to visit the German system. Significantly less costly for society and objectively better for the people falling ill (or just having a baby born). And no, no lists, no lotteries or any of that other lies the conservative US media is spewing out to keep the masses pacified. I strongly believe, that if US citizens were to experience German healthcare for a year and havi…

No lists? Have you ever actually lived in Germany and had to interact with its’ healthcare system?

Re: Children with cancer scammed out of millions fundraised for their treatment

#214

Post by ChrisMarshallNY »

mothballed wrote: post #180
Hendrikto wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Even if you never personally needed health insurance (which is unrealistic), you’d still benefit from a better, safer, less cut throat society. Same with education. I am more than happy to pay taxes for an education system, even if I do not personally have children.

What's 'paid' to the median child in education is a pittance compared to what the payers suck back out of them in old age during social security. Public education is largely a scam to put 'original sin' of debt of children to society so when they grow up there is some plausible explanation that "we're a society" and they must feed into the pyramid scheme.

> What's 'paid' to the median child in education is a pittance compared to what the payers suck back out of them in old age during social security.

I'm not sure what nation you're from, but here, in the US, we pay a fairly significant part of our wages towards something called "Social Security."

If we pay a lot, during our working time, we can draw more, after retirement (and it is nowhere near a living wage -it was never meant to be).

In my country, we pay for education with property taxes.

Re: Children with cancer scammed out of millions fundraised for their treatment

#215

Post by mlrtime »

sdoering wrote: post #124
hermanzegerman wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With Universal Health Insurance as all other developed countries do

Thanks. I never understood why intelligent people, comparing for example the German to the US system can even blink and decide that the German system doesn’t work. Yes, there is quite a bit to improve in the German system. No doubt there. But if I compare it to the abysmal situation in the richest country on this planet, I am left standing awestruck asking myself why. I really, genuinely cannot wrap my head around.

I would take my insurance over public German healthcare in an instant. I would not trade.

Now maybe when I stop working that may be a different comparison. And its not like there is a choice, voting for a D doesn't magically get German healthcare.

Re: Children with cancer scammed out of millions fundraised for their treatment

#216

Post by stinkbeetle »

sdoering wrote: post #128
nickpp wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Any system needs a resource allocation algorithm. In capitalism it is easy and transparent: price, with the side effect of aligning society interests with those of the selfish individual. Of course the strange and heavily regulated US health-care system is obviously far far away from a free market. In socialism it's much more random: black markets, lists, lotteries, friends and network of connections. The side effect…

Can't think of a socialist country, but invite you to visit the German system. Significantly less costly for society and objectively better for the people falling ill (or just having a baby born). And no, no lists, no lotteries or any of that other lies the conservative US media is spewing out to keep the masses pacified. I strongly believe, that if US citizens were to experience German healthcare for a year and havi…

Healthcare in the US seems to cost about double per capita what it does in other developed countries with universial/social healthcare. Public spending in US is on-par with others, and then private spending is that much again. Standard of healthcare I've heard (and would hope) is world class if you can pay, but still something seems broken there to be sure.

But you have lists, queues, lotteries, whatever you call it. That's not a lie. The fact you think lists are a vast right wing conspiracy demonstrates your government is not really forthcoming about your healthcare system. There are lists everywhere. There are ambulance wait times, hospital emergency wait times, various levels of urgent and elective treatment wait times. There are procedures and medicines and tests that are simply not covered at all.

Now, obviously USA has queues and lists too. And I could be wrong but I'm sure I've heard that US private insurance companies are notorious for not covering certain treatments and drugs as well. I don't know what it is exactly these right wing people are saying about healthcare, I thought they did not like the American "Obamacare" though.

Re: Children with cancer scammed out of millions fundraised for their treatment

#217

Post by meindnoch »

brador wrote: post #191
huijzer wrote: post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We have over the years raised billions (maybe trillions) for cancer treatments and we seem to have made negligible progress in actually curing cancer. Will it ever succeed? So maybe there is a root cause for your root cause?

[flagged]

The brain cannot function outside the body. The brain needs your bone marrow to make red and white blood cells. The kidneys and the liver to filter and break down metabolic waste. Various other hormonal systems that affect how the brain works (c.f. the HN favorite "gut-brain axis"). A brain separated from the body could survive for a few weeks, but long term it would certainly die from neuron loss (i.e. dementia).

Re: Children with cancer scammed out of millions fundraised for their treatment

#218

Post by czl »

mothballed wrote: post #180
Hendrikto wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Even if you never personally needed health insurance (which is unrealistic), you’d still benefit from a better, safer, less cut throat society. Same with education. I am more than happy to pay taxes for an education system, even if I do not personally have children.

What's 'paid' to the median child in education is a pittance compared to what the payers suck back out of them in old age during social security. Public education is largely a scam to put 'original sin' of debt of children to society so when they grow up there is some plausible explanation that "we're a society" and they must feed into the pyramid scheme.

I hear you on intergenerational stuff. I just don’t think “public education is a scam” fits what most kids actually receive.

Kids are not only getting classroom time. They inherit a whole baseline that previous taxpayers built: safer streets, clean water, courts that mostly function, vaccines, roads, libraries, stable money, and the accumulated tech and culture that makes modern jobs even possible. That bundle is huge, and it starts paying out long before anyone is old enough to “owe” anything.

Also, adults are not literally trapped. People can move, downshift, opt out of a lot, or choose different communities. Most don’t, even when they complain loudly, and to me that’s a pretty strong signal the deal is at least somewhat reasonable. Not perfect. Not fair for everyone. But not a cartoon pyramid scheme either.

If there’s a real fight worth having, it’s making the burdens and benefits less lopsided across generations, not pretending the whole social investment in kids is fake.

Re: Children with cancer scammed out of millions fundraised for their treatment

#219

Post by lionkor »

xeonmc wrote: post #171
eleveriven wrote: post #161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The fact that families have to crowdfund lifesaving care creates the vulnerability but it doesn't force anyone to build an industrialized scam on top of it

Local man embezzles $20,000 meant to keep 200 orphans from being crushed in the orphan-crushing machine.

Orphan crushing machine operator: "If I don't do it, someone else will"

Re: Children with cancer scammed out of millions fundraised for their treatment

#220

Post by mlrtime »

UrineSqueegee wrote: post #36
peanutz454 wrote: post #6

This is part of the reason that people do not donate.

all the big charities are scams, my partner works for an adjacent industry

Maybe not scams, but I agree they are bad.

I always tell people to donate as local as possible. Ideally local Shelters, Churches (that take in everyone) etc...

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