Comic Relief

Hi hochiwich - are you by any chance a hedgehog? (or a Romany?)

Thank you, yes, I haven't posted before. I just saw this subject raised on my Facebook page and decided to put in my tuppenceworth.

I saw a bit of it but must have fallen asleep because I can't remember much about it but there was a distressing item about a little boy with tetanus - I was doing some ironing so must have been awake - and that made me think how much we take vaccination for granted. Bill Gates's Dimbleby lecture focused on vaccination and we should be very grateful for the work that he and his wife are leading. I'm not a billionaire but I wish I could have saved that child.

Hi feetlebaum, no I'm not a Romany that I'm aware of. My father claimed to be and there is a possibility that his father was. Maybe that's why I and my brother have studied the Romany way of life and language. As to being a hedgehog, what can I say? I used to have a tendency to curl up in a ball when in danger, and can be quite spiky. Though I have mellowed with age. I chose the name years ago and it's just stuck with me, mainly because it never gets "that name is not available".

No need to suffer watching to donate :-)
I think in the last few years a large percentage of funds are raised in the lead up anyway.

After 25 years perhaps we've just seen it all before and have outgrown it? It's like waking up and suddenly realising that Terry Wogan's radio show has suddenly become strangely comforting. Or catching yourself thinking that One Direction isn't a patch on the Four Tops...

I like the idea of Comic Relief, and if some people still find it funny (what is it about men kissing men as a joke that some people still find shocking and hilarious?),

I'm happy to donate to such a very good causes and I think the world is a better place because of the work that Comic Relief is able to support. I watch a bit, realise it's not as funny as I always hope it will be then switch over to something else. It's a bit like New Year's Eve. Never quite lives up to the expectations.

I do donate but never watch the programme. I don't like it when some "celebrity" is parachuted in to tell us what wonderful work is being done in a particular orphanage/clinic or whatever. I would rather be told about it by the people who are there 24/7 and actually doing the work

I have just watched the earlier bits on catch-up (missed them last night) and I thought the Simon Cowell sketch was very good, and the Midwives were brilliant.

I used to enjoy Comic Relief when the participants were funny (or I thought they were!). Now I just feel mildly embarrassed! Could be the passing of the years, and I am still happy to donate and feel it is "a good thing" if people are reminded of their blessings, and how many people live and die without even the bare necessities of life. I do find the juxtaposition of humour with a searing film about children dying inappropriate, but perhaps the shock factor pushes some people into donating who otherwise wouldn't do so.
I find my grandchildren's participation in Comic Relief day very uplifting, they work very hard and at the same time realise not everyone is as lucky as they are.
So, not a bad thing, but just not mine!

So far the only bit I've seen is David Walliams, which I did enjoy. I particularly liked the pairing of him and Clare Balding - perhaps if he swam and she rode along the towpath they might work something out {smile]
At my grandson's school everybody wore their pyjamas, including the teachers. It looked like being great fun.

Yes, I thought the David Walliams bit was very funny. I hope they told John Prescott what the script was before they roped him in!

What about charities in this country? All monies given abroad end up in corrupt government pockets, which is the reason why they never get better. What they actually need is condoms and reduce the population.

I agree Ian. Looking back over my 73 years countless charities have been holding out their begging bowls for aid to that basket case called Africa. Tax relief can be claimed on donation and I believe the government is to match the amount raised on Friday with more tax payers money. Charities are now big business with senior management raking in big salaries. I think they should be investigated to see where all this foreign aid goes to.

I believe that it is a duty to assist those in dire need, in spite of the fact that not every penny is accounted for.
Aspen I am saddened by your words - "basket case called Africa"

But why are they in dire need? Bearing in mind the 70 years I mentioned I would have thought by now there would be a well at least in every village. Could I suggest shovels are bought and lengths of plastic piping so that the local people can dig trenches and cesspits instead of looking a effluence and rubbish we see adorning their streets. All these countries must have a certain level of GDP but the only place it seems to show up is in the life styles of their bloated leaders. Sorry soop, maybe we are the basket cases for allowing it to go on

I too am once again saddened to hear the comments about where international aid, charity donations and so on go.

I will repeat myself again; regardless of creed, politics or race, people who suffer, starve and are in need deserve our help. If people live under a corrupt regime, and they are dying for lack of clean water, and from preventable diseases, who are we to judge and leave them to die?

As human beings, it is surely our duty to care for one another? And some need our care more than others. If we can turn on a tap and have clean water, that is our good fortune. Others are not so lucky.

We must not be selfish!

What you say is of course true, Ariadne, but the truth remains that a good many people are put off donating because of their suspicion that the money isn't going to the poor and needy, but rather to the rich and unscrupulous.

What about the needy in this country?

Well said, Ariadne. I have only to think how I would feel about the children in my life being without food, clean water, shelter, healthcare or education and cannot ignore the basic needs of these children, who but for accident of birth could belong in my family. We're lucky - they deserve our support.

This country is in dire straits now, if we keep giving our money away, who will look after us. Answer. No-one.

Give it a break ian most of the people that give to the likes of oxfam and comic relief are probably the very people that give to uk charities as well. When people carp about charities - or even the undeserving poor - they appear to me to be making excuses not to give or to feel compassion. (this may be wildly unjust, but that is how it appears)
I never give to small charities as I know that they are not all run very competently. I also try to give in a way in which gift aid will boost my donation e.g. only give to charity shops that add gift aid to the value of the things I donate.

Ian42 Come off it! Compared with most of the developing countries we are a rich country. The problem in Britain is the lack of distribution of wealth. The the richest 10% in Britain are 100times better off that the poorest.

www.guardian.co.uk/society/2010/jan/27/unequal-britain-report

ana your question is truly valid; we have to be very careful to make sure that our money goes direct to those in need, given the corruption of so many governments. Many charities and service organisations have systems in place - e.g. people on the ground - through whom money is channeled. It is well worth examining this!

Ian42 We have NO idea what dire straits really are. The world is bigger than the bit in which we live.

According to my daughter's health visitor we live in an area that has high levels of child neglect and poverty. However I don't see children turning up at school without clothes or shoes, they have access to clean water and don't seem to be dying from easily preventable diseases. I see that the TUC is using holidays as a measure of poverty - my children must have lived in dire poverty then, as they didn't have holidays until they could pay for their own.

Ian42 if British charities are still in need of donations ( & RND gives significant amount to british projects) whe Britain has many more resources than most African countries it is obvious how much more they will need.

Britain's climate supports agriculture which is not the case in many African countries and that is beyond human control so famine, and all its related health issues is a re-occurring situation. Africa is also a huge continent so the ignorant comment about plastic pipes is disingenuous. Projects to install access to clean water, build schools and health centres are taking place all the time..but it is a huge job. I am sure there are 'fat cats' in Africa but they are not unknown in UK either!
The fact that there are some bad people in the world does not mean we should not try to make life better for those in genuine need.