I can see I'm not the only one wondering:

[Ozz]

http://www.telegram.com/article/20100103/NEWS/1030382

“We cannot live for ourselves alone. Our lives are connected by a thousand invisible threads, and along these sympathetic fibers, our actions run as causes and return to us as results.”
Herman Melville

[LonnieB]

When I see people I know, people that are having a hard go of it themselves, giving to the bell ringers, I admire their compassion for their fellow human beings.

When I read stories like this and the other one you posted, I get irritated. Yes Ozz, it does make one wonder.

[ARJ]

So my answer to this kind of thing is to investigate the charities you want to support before donating.

We have changed our giving to local food banks and our local Catholic Outreach which feeds and houses many folks.

[Ozz]

ARJ, you are a wise person. Giving should always be encouraged, I am not saying not to give to the Salvation Army at all, it just troubles me when I see waste. No matter how you spin or slice it, this is waste.
When I go about my service calls for the management company I do work for, I give to the needy I come across. 100% of my money goes for the needy family or person. I had a key made for a lady that only locked the outer storm door,(I could have pushed real hard and opened it.) not her secure wood inner door, she lost it. I had a key from the office, so I made her one so she would be safe. I buy groceries for the single moms I come across that work hard and long hours for minimum wages to feed their kids. You don't need to give to an organization in many cases, give to those who you see in your daily lives. I know many of you do so, we have a giving group.