Probably the worst case is the local volunteer fire department coming to our door. My wife felt compelled to give to them last year, so they came again this year. I said no, and he seemed very disappointed, clearly writing something in big letters next to our address on his clipboard. Makes one wonder if they’ll fight a fire at our address?

I feel guilty turning down contributions towards certain causes sometimes too, but when you think about it the way Trent phrased it, saying “no” doesn’t feel so rough. It’s not that they’re bad causes, but it’s like you said, you already have other commitments.

Of course, I rarely use a personal phone as it is. The way I see it, if I want to talk to someone, I’ll call them. My phone usage last month was about 42 minutes. most of which came from weekly calls to my parents, and to/from my wife.

Of course, the charities we do contribute to are relentless in sending their crap in the mail as well. Every few months it seems like they have some sort of reminder about how it is time to donate again.

If I get a call from a charity I never heard of, I ask them to send information to me. I never make a contribution on the phone.

There are many reasons not to, however.

1. Risk of theft of identity or financial/personal information. You don’t know if the organization is who they say they are.

2. Charity budget should be decided on in advance. I figure out which charities I’m supporting every year and save money aside for this purpose. Except for some additional giving to my church and people I know who are in need.

3. You shouldn’t make financial decisions under pressure and without taking time to research. You wouldn’t buy a cell phone plan after listening only to the sales rep, whose sales goals may conflict with what’s best for you and the organization.

4. Telemarketing is annoying, regardless of the cause. Don’t encourage them. The Internet is huge and it’s easy to find organizations and easier than ever to network with people locally to help.

On my mobile I don’t answer private numbers. I don’t usually answer our landline at all. And if I do, and there’s no one there immediately I hang up straight away. If they start talking I say “we give monthly to several charities of our choice.” and hang up. Of course mostly they call selling raffle tickets which annoys me no end. From a purely economical standpoint I can’t deduct those “tickets”. I would also much rather donate in a way that doesn’t need those overheads.

Plus I do my fair share of charity work, raising donations and giving myself.