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| Blogs > rm_mazandbren > The Complaisant Husband |
Charity and Work
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Charity and Work a) rocking up to work this morning after a late night watching le Tour i found myself wondering about my future; a move to Carnarvon in the New Year with @$80-85k in salary and benefits, excluding bonus which could add up to another $16k; or go back to the independents and become an assistant store manager with the probability of becoming a store manager within 3-4 months but with a maximum salary of $70k and bonus of $10k. i have been increasingly thinking that the only way to be happy is to open my own store; something that would be easier if i had store management experience. for one thing it will give me access to financing through one of the franchises at low rates and plenty of support. but i have been chatting with a lot of people lately and most have not been impressed with the support they are getting, especially for the money they pay. it mainly concerns the expert advice- most of it has been woefully inadequate. i keep saying it is not about the money- but $100k for running a fruit and veg department is bloody good money. and if i later come back to Perth i stay on that money! not that i intend to come back if i take it; the more i work here the less likely it seems to me that i will ever rise up the ladder. though even now- if i left tomorrow- i have to say i have learnt a great deal. admittedly it is what not to do but seeing the way some things work that i had only been exposed to in theory has helped me to finesse some of my own systems. i now have a stock control that can predict the week's sales- not bad for a veggie plonker. i am not the greatest with computers- but with applications i am very good. still not sure what to do; but it seems i have plenty of options again. after blowing off a couple of independent jobs after i got fired i was a little worried i had poisoned my reputation. but those in the know seem to think that it has enhanced my reputation- because i made it clear to these guys that i didn't think only of myself but my suitability for their business. b) i was thinking last Monday and Tuesday about what would happen were i to win the $90mil bonus draw on the Lotto. i have absolutely no luck- if i have to rely even a little on luck for something to happen i know i am fucked. so i don't dream about winning the big prizes in Lotto or whatever. i would like to win $200k to make my life easier- instead of working to cover the mortgage i could go part time and work for spending money. but with everybody talking about what they were going to do if they won of course you soon find yourself thinking about what you would do if your luck wasn't so bad that the only thing you ever won was stolen within an hour. the one thing i would do is give a fair chunk to charity; the problem i have is what is 'fair' and which charity(s) would i give it to. fair is difficult- most people i know give an automatic 10% response to this point. but the average 1st division prize pool is @$20mil(this is the figure i heard but it seems a little high to me); so if you won $90mil (or $53mil) you could actually give most of it away and still end up on more than if you won a normal 1st division. i have a particular problem because one thing i would love to do with a prize so large is to establish a house building company where all we build is houses that are substantially different to what is normal now. the idea i have is that if you build it there will be somebody who will buy it; with a big purse behind you, you can wait for the buyer so you can be bolder with the building. it is not so much that i would want the designs copied completely but that some of the aspects of construction and/ or design find its way into other new homes. i am also loathe to split any moneys; i think it would be better to have a large sum to do more with it. one thing with such a large prize would be to establish research positions in Universtities and Hospitals etc. via trusts. another question is whether it should be spent at home or abroad. if abroad then it is simple what i would do; establish a charity to build roads and ports around Africa. a couple of years ago i read an article in The Diplomat (i think) that said that something in the order of 30%-40% of charity is necessarily wasted. by this they referred to the amount lost in distribution. a unimog off road truck costs the same as a roadtrain- but hauls about 10% of the tonnage. some areas are so isolated by poor ports and roads that air charters are required- at almost ten times the cost of a unimog delivery. ports and highways encourage trade- which can serve as insurance against the failure of local crops. it also makes the delivery of aid, if required, that much easier and quicker. and unlike train lines and airports, seaports and highways require little in the way of<b> skilled </font></b>maintenance with less disruption due to weather extremes. the local alternative is more difficult. does it go to the most efficient charity or the most deserving- and how do you define these. if the RSPCA is going to make better use of the money than anybody else should it go to them even if it is being used on animals? i have philosophical problems with those charities that seek to assist those with severe mental retardation; yet if they can use it more efficiently than anybody else should i set aside my objections? should it go to an awareness charity or a treatment charity? a group working with the homeless or a group working to save lives? of course i am so unlucky that i will never have to worry about it really; but working in a shopping centre exposes you to all manner of charity organisations all keen to get your money. working there i find that i don't get asked much- people seem to realise that if i gave to them all i would need services of at least a few of them. some i find worthy enough to donate anyway (blind society, RSPCA, RFDS). i hate eco-groups; especially the young wankers who work at GreenPeace. they are so aggressive! and they never take no for an answer without giving you a good spray about how you don't care for the planet. "Nah mate- love the planet- HATE GREENPEACE!" Oxfam is another one like that- though they are a lot better now than they were a couple of years ago. i find that my objection to GreenPeace is that they are so intractable that their efforts are really a waste of time. because they demand everything to happen now they just piss people off and nothing changes. a classic case in point has to do with population; they say we should simply stop breeding. but this is never going to happen so sooner or later we're going to have feed them; and their blanket ban on GM crops, if followed, will lead to the deaths of millions. with so many experts supporting them, surely they can try to do away with the more sinister aspects whilst still being able to feed everyone. OXfam people are simply rude. but like i said- i am not the lucky. In truth is there no beauty? I am not in love; but i am open to persuasion. |
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