FGS!!!!!!!!! Of course i didn't mean to cause trouble. I was simply voicing an opinion. i read and digested everything you posted and then gave my view on it.

incidentally I do have an 'idea about Africa' formed mainly by TV like many on here. Based on that opinion of Africa I will donate (as i do on a monthly basis through Oxfam)........................I will probably donate through Comic relief too ................i'm not a martyr - I just do what I want to do and support the charities I want to support  

I simply posted my view ...........same as you did. The difference is I didn't make it personal. 

i'm out of here now ..............can't see why you really cannot accept that someone may just have a different opinion to you.

I watched it and agree with you, Soozy. 

Heartbreaking stuff and if a fiver helps one person, it helps one person!  

I put more trust in charities such as Comic Relief than other ones.

Oh, and I watched with husband and two youngest.

None of us have lived, or likely will ever live in Africa.

We need to watch things like this to have any understanding of life there. 

I watched the program I always give to comic relief our donations do help to change lives/communities basic things we take for granted like running water medicine, I am sure the money goes to the charities and not the government as far as I am aware, like Blizzie has said if my money helps one person thats one person ...

I do give,Oxfam is  myt preffered charity.

Anyone would think Comic Relief was all about Africa which is is not....so why this got bogged down in the 'I'm an expert cos I lived in Africa a 100 years ago' I don't know!

They have projects worldwide, including in this country, and as far as I know, their big thing is that the money goes directly into these projects so that every penny DOES count unlike with other charities.

Always worth supporting with a few quid if you can.

I always donate to Comic relief and I've already bought my red nose - the pirate one.
I think Cologne made some valid points about corrupt governments in Africa syphoning off money given to charities.
However, I believe (as Soozy does) that the money from CR goes directly to the projects in thses countries. I'm happy to give what I can, in the hope that it makes life a little bit easier for someone, somewhere.

I didn't watch the programme but have just read through this thread. Hmmm. It's always baffled me how every year on CR they say 'a mosquito net costs just £5, to build a new school will cost just £10k...etc', they then raise around 16 million quid and a year later they're still begging for mosquito nets

They show 'where the money has gone' (a clip of a new school or a new tap with fresh water) - doesn't validate the previous amount of money raised, though. If CR (or other charities) could provide a full breakdown of allocated spends then I'd be more convinced.I don't want to put anyone off donating either, but as we are all facing economic hardship, particularly in this next financial year (thanks Mister twunt Cameron), I can imagine some people will want to see exactly where their money is going.

On the flip side, some of the celebs who endorse CR I'm sure wouldn't be doing so unless they knew the money was going where it should be. But from a personal perspective, there's still a question mark over it for me.

I do a daily 'click' thingy where by clicking on a tab it provides x amount of supplies to a charity. Does it work? Who knows? But it costs me nowt. You can click on the logos along the top to donate (Hunger, Breast Cancer, Animal rescue..etc)

http://www.theanimalrescuesite.../home.faces?siteId=3&ThirdPartyClicks=ERA_030411_ARS_Html

Slinki put a link on page 1.

Thank you.

Just read through the link, looks viable enough to me....

I think Comic Relief does great work and they seem to carry their projects through. As for the mosquito nets, i imagine they need millions, and dont suppose they last long. I will be donating something and i am sure even a couple of pounds helps. Plus i will be buying the merchandise, is it still Sainsbury,s?

Why celebs?

I didn't say it wasn't worth supporting, I support it every year, but I don't hold my breath as to were it goes. As for living there 100 years ago, it was 15 years ago and absolutely nothing has changed. I've been back twice and I get regular correspondence from Nigerians and expats. Nothing has changed. If the african part is not important, why make such a song and dance about zelebrities over there every year, causing nothing but upheaval and doing no good, if they did, there would be no more talk of mosquito nets or basic meds for AIDS.

I do actually quite enjoy watching Comic Relief but am inclined to agree a bit more with Cologne.  I think that some money does get to the people that need it, but regrettably most of it doesn't..  We have been giving for many decades now and very little has changed. 

I'd like to see the break down at the hard end.

I always give to things like Comic Relief and my kids school always does some silly thing to raise money. One of my girls got put on a sponsored silence last year......almost killed her not being able to talk for the whole day in school but she did it 

I do need to be educated on the issues though and quite freely admit that. I know it's not all about Africa but the main area of poverty seems to be there. Every year I watch it and see women holding their dying babies while they tell us how she has 5 or so other children facing the same fate. I'm not meaning to sound nasty but surely if you can't feed one child you shouldn't even contemplate having anymore. How are any of us supposed to help if the problem is multiplied year after year?

Cagney, an awful lot of African's are Catholic and off course the Pope has been telling them for decades that they can't use contraception. So they continue to have babies, the men go to prostitutes, come back to their wifes, give them AIDES, the children have it etc, etc. The Church has a lot to answer for. I'm quite thankful for A LITTLE CRUMB FROM THE CURRANT pOPE, WHO HAS ADMITTED THAT MAYBE THEY NEED TO BE ABLE TO HAVE CONDOMES if they want them.
Sorry about caps, can't be bothered to type it again. I'm on my daughter's laptop, don't like it.

Corrupt nations?

Edit:  

I realise these zelebs are raising awareness and that's to be commended but you can't help feeling that a lot of them just do these things to raise their own profiles - maybe I'm just cynical.



I didn't watch this programme because I would find it too upsetting but I also wonder where exactly all the money that has been raised since 1985 has really gone.

On page 1 of this thread slnkiwitch posed a link - it explains where a lot of the money has gone. Whilst I agree a very small percentage of celebs do it to raise their own profile - in the most part I see it as people using their 'popularity' to raise money for a good cause. I may be accused of being naive (along with a lot of other stuff) that's fine by me. TBH - I'd rather be naive than hard and cynical.

Thanks for that.

If you chose to take that as a dig at you - you were wrong. I was simply stating how I see things.

Clearly I did Soozy because I mentioned I was cynical - you then replied to me saying you would rather be naive than hard and cynical.


Not difficult.

it really wasn't - but if you took it to be aimed at you - you are wrong.

Sorry for slightly off topic, but same could be said for the NSPCC...with bloody HUGE knobs on....they've slightly redeemed themselves since they took on Childline, (good marketing move, got to give them credit for that.)

Really..is there any need???

Really, is there any need to bring last night's issues up again? We've moved on, as if you didn't notice.

Great post Carelian..An whar i wanna know is how come Lenny an' Dawn, who I both bliddy, (naively?) lurved split up 5 mins after I read 'Dear Fatty' when they were apparently 'togeva4eva'?

Pot/kettle?

Get off my back, what is your problem. I thought we shook hands and made up. I refer you to my post up there.
Just realised, you've probably had a drink. Well, get a grip.

I wasn't here last night so have no idea what you're talking about

You've been going through the thread and picked up on my posts. Don't be so disingenuous, or if you want to be, don't be so thick.

I'm not on your back Col... and yes we did.... Oh well, apart from last w/e when you were clearly arseholed and pulling the poor me, everyone's ignoring me card and had a pop at me in the process.....Soozy is expressing an opinion, you got personal..not for the first time..no need imho

ahhh, thanks for that: I's fick as shit I is....switches on Radio5 so's I can be clevva

I didn't have a pop at you as I explained when you were whining about i, I apologised the next day and beyond that, I think I'm entitled to have the odd whinging because, other than your leg, which is getting better, I'm just going to to get worse. I haven't brought it up for months, went through a bad period and thought I might be able to talk to 'friends' on here, but there you are, you resent everything that isn't to do with you.

You really are quite drunk now. Off to bed is my advise.

PMSL

Oh dear!....Col' no doubt you've got really big shit going on, but you've absolutely no idea what shit is going on for other people...some people choose not to share, or only share the 'little stuff' ...anyways, whatever, no need to repeatedly attack imcaho