Take a hike, Facebook

[Pixelated]

So NOW Facebook (which just recently crashed for umpty-numpty hours) has taken it upon itself to let members know their birthday is coming up ...

... and they should guilt-trip all their FB friends into donating to a charity of their choice.

How about "FUCK NO!!"

[csquared]

I have been doing that for 20 years without Facebook. Oh, and my favorite charity is not in their list.

PS. Happy Birthday! Whenever that is...

[Ironclad Alibi]

I spent 35 years with the US Federal Government resisting the Combined Federal Campaign pressures to donate. These online folks, including Facebook, are pikers compared to CFC. They don't get my money either. I decide who gets my donations.

[BookstoreEscapee]

My birthday was last week and I was getting those notifications for weeks beforehand. I do most of my donating at Christmas (because I only do gifts with my immediate family (3 people) and a few friends so I don't spend much on it, and my family is at the point where we're just like, do a small gift for each person and take the rest of the money you'd have spent and donate it) and I don't try to rope my friends into it.

A few of my friends have done the donations thing and I just ignore them. I might support the organization but I'm not donating through a facebook link.

[Ironclad Alibi]

I didn't get anything like that from Facebook around my birthday. But then I have all notifications disabled.

[Kittish]

There's a huge kicker to this that most people probably aren't aware of. ALL of the donations that any business (at least in the U.S.) collects that are given to a valid charity are tax deductible for the business that makes the donation. So what you're really doing is giving Facebook (or whatever other company is running the donation collection program) an even bigger tax break, since every dollar donated is directly deductible. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside?

[Ironclad Alibi]

I didn't get anything like that from Facebook around my birthday. But then I have all notifications disabled.

Since posting the above I have gotten two notifications from Facebook that my account was logged into from distant locations. I am in Virginia. The first was in Florida. I changed my password. Then the next was in Georgia. I changed my password again.

Weird.

[Pixelated]

I have been doing that for 20 years without Facebook. Oh, and my favorite charity is not in their list.

PS. Happy Birthday! Whenever that is...

Thank you. I think I will take myself out to a really good Middle Eastern restaurant that I haven't been to in a while.

I spent 35 years with the US Federal Government resisting the Combined Federal Campaign pressures to donate. These online folks, including Facebook, are pikers compared to CFC. They don't get my money either. I decide who gets my donations.

Emphasis mine. That's one of the many reasons I'm not interested in taking part in this.

I didn't get anything like that from Facebook around my birthday. But then I have all notifications disabled.

Hmmm ... my birthday is set on 'Private' (or 'Only me' or whatever it is) so it's not announced publicly on FB. But it IS in my bio. Will have to see if I can fix that.

There's a huge kicker to this that most people probably aren't aware of. ALL of the donations that any business (at least in the U.S.) collects that are given to a valid charity are tax deductible for the business that makes the donation. So what you're really doing is giving Facebook (or whatever other company is running the donation collection program) an even bigger tax break, since every dollar donated is directly deductible. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside?

I did not know that! I'll be happy to post that on FB in one of those "Hey, FB, is this TRUUUUUE?" posts.

[Argus]

There's a huge kicker to this that most people probably aren't aware of. ALL of the donations that any business (at least in the U.S.) collects that are given to a valid charity are tax deductible for the business that makes the donation.

Wouldn't the collection process count as taxable income, balancing that out?

[EricKei]

I've often heard the same as Kittish. My best guess: I strongly suspect that it might not count as "taxable income" per se, as it is immediately countered by an expense in the form of a charitable donation. Thus, no net profit. I'll drop Karl a line, he's our expert.

[csquared]

As far as I know it is a pass through. They don't record it as income and they can't claim the donation. It is the same thing I do for my Toys for Tots.