Charitable Donations Are Good...

...but they're not all there is to promoting social justice. Equally important is avoiding compliance with an unjust system. You'll remember that I recently posted a link to this article, which makes a case for philanthropic giving, hailing the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as a shining example of such charity. This article exposes the dark side of the Gates' philanthopy, serving to make the point above. Here's an excerpt to entice you to read the rest:

Using the most recent data available, a Times tally showed that hundreds of Gates Foundation investments — totaling at least $8.7 billion, or 41% of its assets, not including U.S. and foreign government securities — have been in companies that countered the foundation's charitable goals or socially concerned philosophy.

This is "the dirty secret" of many large philanthropies, said Paul Hawken, an expert on socially beneficial investing who directs the Natural Capital Institute, an investment research group. "Foundations donate to groups trying to heal the future," Hawken said in an interview, "but with their investments, they steal from the future."