Why did they not donate to Wayback Machine instead? Wikimedia is doing just fine and their fund raising is mostly for advertising and marketing. The site is at zero risk of running out of operating funds. Personally, I'd rather see money go to historic records than revisionist, popular encyclopedia.
Two good times to recommend alternative charities: (i) on threads where people ask, "where should I donate my money", and (ii) on threads about disasters, when you have an opportunity to spur donations to targeted charities.
You almost certainly didn't mean anything by this comment, but you generally want to avoid the appearance of litigating someone's good deed as a missed opportunity to do a better deed. Donations to Wikimedia are a good thing, worthy of congratulations.
Yeah, telling people what they mean is also pointless, but ok.
I was also a little disappointed to see Wikimedia called a 'charity'. Because people ask you for money does not make them a worthy cause. Now, I'm sure Wikimedia is doing what they do out of the goodness of their hearts. But its not the same as feeding the hungry. In fact, its kind of a first-world problem being solved, isn't it?
Certainly, if I was in politics, I'd take your advice. I think it's fair to question where donations go and the decision process, even after the fact. There's always next year.
It's not a fair question. It's a terrible question because every charity has their own merits, and any ensuing discussion is not fruitful and only causes conflict. What's makes it even worse is your self-righteous tone.
Your unfair question basically boils down to "My worthy cause is more worthy than your worthy cause!"
I think you're reading way to much into this. You probably shouldn't be making any technical decisions if you're going to take every bit of advice personally.
Max here from Cards Against Humanity. We talked about donating to the Wayback Machine, but ultimately decided that a contribution Wikipedia would help more people with a more fundamental need.
Source: http://strategy.wikimedia.org/wiki/Strategic_Plan/Movement_P...
Last financial report: http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Financial_Reports/Financ...