Internet Panhandling

So, big shot "singer" Kanye West claims to be 53 million dollars in debt and he wants Mark Zuckerberg to bail him out. Seriously.  Seriously?  That's his response to his own irresponsibility, getting others to save his sorry butt?  What's this world coming to?

The first time I heard about internet panhandling was when I read Karyn Bosnak's book, Save Karyn : One Shopoholic's Journey to Debt and Back. Her website SaveKaryn.com was started in 2002 and was the predecessor to today's Gofundme.com. She was a working girl in New York City, totally enthralled with shopping and owning name brands.  When she found herself in debt, she did what hadn't been done before.  She listed a website and asked kindhearted people to each send $1. This novelty appealed to many, and soon she was out of debt and rolling in the dough thanks to, as Blanche DuBois said, "...the kindness of strangers." It didn't take long for others to realize what a goldmine this internet panhandling could be, thus the proliferation of sites such as the aforementioned GoFundMe.

Recently, in a quiet, neighboring town, two officers of the law were tragically murdered in the line of duty. A few hours later on the same day, a GoFundMe account appeared asking for money for the families.  I was taken aback, seriously. Seriously?  Why was an account established?  Don't these men have insurance? Don't the police have special funds to take care of their own?  And just who was behind this account? Surely, not those who were grieving. Later, another account was established, this one being the official fundraising account. Huh? Is this how America now responds to tragedy? Whatever happened to obituaries asking in lieu of flowers contributions be made towards funeral expenses or college accounts for survivors' children or a charity the deceased supported? Whatever happened to making these suggestions to friends instead of the general public?

Don't get me wrong.  I have contributed to the GoFundMe accounts for many people I personally know.  I make no judgement about them asking for help, that's what friends are for.  But has it gotten out of hand? When my brother was diagnosed with cancer, quite a few people asked for his account information so they could donate.  Bless their hearts for wanting to help, but we had never even considered doing an internet fundraiser. His medical expenses were our family's responsibility, not the world's.

If you Google, there are a lot of these sites available allowing you to beg for money. It is unbelievable what people ask/beg for. Lots of people expect the general public to graciously fund their weddings, honeymoons, Caribbean vacations, boob implants, boob reductions, facelifts, mission trips, braces, gambling losses, bad decisions and so on. And lots of people get really angry when their financial demands aren't met.  Almost as entertaining as the down-on-their-luck stories people tell, are the angry rants they post when the money isn't coming in. Cyberbeg.com is full of sad, sad stories.  I happen to believe the majority of those are scams, but what do I know? Anyhow, there is no denying what started as one silly young woman strapped by debt has bloomed into big business.

But Kanye?  Are you really so narcissistic that you feel entitled to Mark Zuckerberg's money? (That's a rhetorical question, by the way.) America, do you really expect others to pay your bills? It's scary to me, but too many are probably thinking, why not?  Why not me?

Maybe I should give this internet panhandling a try.  If you like this blog, feel free to send donations my way.  I'm retired and on a fixed income.  And, I'd really, really like to take a cruise around the world. A nice long cruise, in a suite, with a balcony.   I promise to blog my adventures in paradise as a special thank you to my supporters.  Seriously.