Cancel Comic Relief

[Ryoko]

CR cash goes to homeless and stuff in the UK and things in the third world, people only have a set amount of disposable income, right now if they are going to give it to anyone they would give it to Japan, so CR will make very little this year.

I don't think kids stop being in poverty in the UK because of an earthquake in Japan. Neither do children in Africa just stop dying because of a tsunami.

Its highly unlikely they spend more than they get.

What is happened in Japan is unprecedented, it may be a rich country but it is just as deserving of aid and support as any other.

I thought Lenny Henry was one of the founders of CR? How can you not like him?

OP - YABU, the scenes in Japan are very sad and people should donate but you must remember that Japan has funds set aside for these things

OP - how fucking ignorant, just because Japan's had the most recent disaster doesn't mean CR needs to divert massive funds over there. Are you going to take money away from established charities here and overseas just because the headlines say 'Japan' at the moment? Have you heard how many families are being made homeless in the UK bc they can't afford rents?

YABVVU for so many reasons. What a bloody stupid topic.

Here's a radical thought. Why not forego something today/this week and give two donations instead of one? Assuming that you give even one ...

YABVU and hideously lacking in compassion.

YABU
I don't understand the negativity over comic relief. Petty minded and mean IMO. (Not saying OP is mean, but the anti-CR attitude is) I read on here about a parent refusing to donate a silver coin (20 fucking pee!) to CR for her DC dressing up on friday and donating to cancer research instead. What a fucking twat.

Japan needs support and will receive cash in aid money and practical support but also has an infrastructure that is prepared for natural disasters and an economy that can recover.

Re: comic relief, I kind of grit my teeth and wince through it (or rather, avoid the TV) and give anyway. I can't abide being patronised by z-list "slebs" who have barely left school, telling me tearfully that they "couldn't believe how much real poverty is out there" and how I should think about giving. Well, here's some news, some of us spend a bit less time falling over in nightclubs and read the newspapers and have therefore been aware of 3rd world conditions for longer than they've been on the planet.

Pah!

DDs school did a huge fundraising thing for Haiti last year and DD suggested they support CR this year. The request was turned down because we are not in the UK.
One of her teachers has a Japanese connection so the school is fundraising for Japan. DD is very cross about it and refusing to take part.
OP,YABVU, we will be donating to both and Lenny is officially lovely.

You can't dictate who people should give money to - there are loads of really good charities doing amazing work - it is up to everyone who they choose to support.

Also - major fundraising events such as CR or Children in Need support loads of small charities that would completely struggle to survive without their grants, especially with goverment funding being withdrawn.

So - this weekend I had a dinner to raise money for a local childrens hospice, last night went to a meeting of a group I belong to to talk about what our major fundraisers would be this year, my DH came home suggesting we run a whiskey tasting later in the year(probably for NSPCC - not yet decided) and on Friday I will be cooking a curry rather than getting a take away and donating to CR.

I am lucky that I have the time to do these things, but if everyone did just a bit, then maybe lives would get better all over the world.

I cried whan I saw the news footage last night of Japan - but that does not mean that everyone else should be put on hold. Instead of suggesting cancelling things - why not get more involved and raise money for 2 charities?

Gosh yes, because other people have stopped suffering just because Japan had an earthquake/tsunami.

Charity begins at home. I'm fortunate to be in position to be able to donate a little to both this year, but I have to confess to a preference to donating to anything which might help people in this country, where we still have an enormous amount of child poverty.

YABVU for the reasons already stated. Both causes are equally worthy of donations and people can decide for themselves whether to donate to one or the other, both, or neither. Cancelling one if favour of another is like saying that one is more importan than the other - and how would something like that be decided!?

Also, for all Japan is a "rich" country with a good economy they have been affected by economic slowdown and recession just like the majority of other major nations. Their national debt is actually higher than that of America and puts that of Britain in the shade. Thankfuly there's a lot of civic pride and lots of people are volunteering with the search and rescue and clean-up efforts however there's doubt over whether they will be able to rebuild everything that has been destroyed, including the homes and workplaces of the many people who have lost everything.

yabu.if you cant afford a pound or two from both then support only one but you decide.

neither is any more or less deserving than the other.

fwiw i heart the cr they show on tv-we make a night of it and camp out in the front room with the dc.

Comic Relief is aimed at eradicating poverty all over the world, including the UK

See here

YABU.

And sorry, but I find it really annoying when people complain about not liking Comic Relief because of the tv stuff - do you realise how petty you sound?! Watch a DVD with a or something for a night!

We will donate to both, as others have said just because a horrific natural disaster has befallen Japan, it doesn't stop the fact that poverty and suffering exis throughout the rest of the world.

It shouldn't have to be an either or situation.

here you can search for the projects they have funded

I don't like the way giving to CR and Children in Need is seen as compulsory