So, the McDonald's corporation has donated $500,000 to the earthquake victims of Haiti, in order to match a donation from the company, which operates nearly 1,700 McDonald's restaurants in Latin America. This donation is projected to amount to approximately $1,000,000. They are also donating 50 cents off every sale of Big Mac's and Big Mac Extra Value Meals.
McDonald's have always been one to help out people in need. In Denmark they have their Ronald McDonald Houses, which are located by some hospitals, to help families with children in the hospital. While the child is lying in the hospital, the family can stay at the Ronald McDonald House, so they are always near their child or sibling, if something happens.
However, set in perspective this donation of approximately $1,000,000, is only $31.25 per McDonald’s restaurant in the world. Considering the fact that many of the restaurant franchises have a yearly revenue of millions of Dollars, some might say that McDonald’s should donate more, while others would focus on the fact that $1,000,000 is a lot of money in itself, and that McDonald’s is only a fast food business, and therefore shouldn’t need to donate more than some small countries.
Personally I feel, regarding the whole charity scene, that we should all help out, if we can, when a natural disaster occurs, like the earthquake in Haiti, or the Tsunami in the Indian Ocean in 2004. We need to come together and help these wounded nations get back to their previous state. We can’t have nations going back to the Stone Age, just because they were unlucky enough to have one of the biggest earthquakes in recent years. We need to donate money, if we can, to get the injured cured, and rebuild the countries, to make them functional again.
However, donating endless amounts of money to countries in Africa is pointless in my opinion. For decades the western world has donated money to help Africa become an industrial continent, like the European and American continent, or even the Asian continent. The only continent, which has failed in every attempt to become industrialized, is Africa. Every time they get close to a solution a civil war breaks out and several tribes starve to death. I just can’t understand why we keep throwing money into this financial black hole.
In my opinion, we need to realize that Africa is a lost cause, and just let them sort out their own problems, by themselves. If you keep throwing money at a person who can’t take care of himself, then he will, at some point, stop trying to take care of his own life and just rely 100% on other people’s help. Let me refer to an old saying: “Give a man a fish, and he’ll eat for 1 day. Teach the man to fish, and he’ll eat for the rest of his life.” This is what I think should be done to Africa. Instead of always sending doctors down there and just cure the sick, and sending food down there to feed the starving tribes, just teach them to do these things themselves. I know the doctors are trying to teach the locals to practice medicine, but people are still relying on Red Cross and other charities to feed them. I think we should teach them to make food for themselves so they won’t have to rely on our help.
So, to conclude.. I think that the fact that companies like McDonald’s donate to help out wounded nations like Haiti, is a good thing, and that more companies should do the same. But donating to help industrializing Africa is pointless…
