Working as a tax preparer I'm surprised by the difference (and often indifference) in giving. Here is some idea of the various levels of giving that I see and some traits that are pretty common within that level of giving. I have a number of clients that earn a middle-income and give $3000 or more each year to charity. From my experience those that give the most generously are active church participants though their donations are not limited to church nor is the majority of the donations to a church. Most of their donations are for a minimum of $100 to each individual charity and often to the same charities each year. The next group of donators is executives earning a higher income. Most often their donations are payroll deductions to United Way and vary from $520 to $1040 per year. As you might guess they work for companies that host United Way employee fundraising meeting. Quite often this is the only donation they make. The next group of donators is your average earner. They often have a weekly payroll deduction ($52-$104/year) to the United Way. Often include church donations of around $500 per year. Notable this group of donators while providing smaller dollar donations of $5-$50 is the biggest supporter of the local police, fire company, kids charities, and veterans charities. They may give to different charities each year. Overall their donations usually fall between $200-$700 per year. But the surprise to me is how many people do not give any charitable donations especially those with higher incomes ($100,000+). I was also surprised by how very few clients made donations in support of Katrina. I've noticed while preparing returns this year the amount of charitable donations was less than last year. The higher cost this past year for gas, increased property taxes, and medical expenses was often mentioned. I expect that next year with the requirement that donations require a receipt (or cancelled check for donations of less than $250) will further decrease the amount of donations that are claimed. On a personal note I will say that this year I too have less charitable deductions on my tax return than in previous years. Some of this is because my income was much lower this year. And some of it is because instead of donating to a charity we chose instead to help some friends and family in need. We gave some money to a friend who's husband was injured and could not work for 3 months. It was not alot of money but very appreciated. And last year a client of mine was very ill and out of work. I sent a note and a check to them as I knew they were facing financial problems with the loss of income and medical expenses. We also have a family member facing a serious medical problem and we helped them out. So our tax-deductible donations have been less but our hearts are in the right place.

I hear you WC, our city council spent $300,000 (unauthorized by voters)to study the "aquatic park" when $300,000 would have majorily improved one of our ageing summer only pools that had to be closed last year. The new proposal is that the ageing pool be rebuilt and covered for year-round use(with many up-grades), and up-dating the other outdoor summer only pool. I personally think that the residents will approve that plan as I do. And, added to our real estate taxes. It also occurs to me that there is a huge cultural and historic difference between those communities in the Eastern states and those here in the West. DH went to Syracuse University in the late 50's and we were so shocked at the school systems back then. We also lived in the greater DC area and North Carolina over the years and found them so 'different' from what we knew as Californians. We never paid for a book and other supplies, so were surprised that families in New York had to. Many things have changed here in the west especially since California's prop 13 (another story) so changed the more scocialist leanings. OUR expectation of having government supplied services is just different...I believe, so maybe that allows us to be more willing to pay the piper. Just thinking.

Just to add to the information about Easter, while its name and certain traditions may derive from pagan Europe, its date and the most important events derive directly from Passover. In fact, I would bet that with the use of computers the actual date of the original Easter has already been determined. There might be a two-three year range, depending on when Jesus was born. But whereas we will probably never know even the season of the first Christmas, there's no doubt about Easter. This is a nice conversation; I don't see anything controversial here. I am Jewish and I love the Christmas season, including nativity scenes anywhere and saying "Merry Christmas". This is a 95% Christian country, for heavens' sake!

What is Trump's admiration for Putin all about? Who knows for sure, but it probably has to do with his business involvements with russian oligarchs. From WaPo: There is strong evidence that Trump’s businesses have received significant funding from Russian investors. Most notably, Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr. made that very claim at a real estate conference in New York in 2008, saying “Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross-section of a lot of our assets.” Donald Trump Jr. added, “we see a lot of money pouring in from Russia.” Trump also made millions when he agreed to bring the Miss Universe pageant to Moscow in 2013, a deal financed in part by the development company of a Russian billionaire Aras Agalarov. Agalarov is a Putin ally who is sometimes called the “Trump of Russia” because of his tendency to put his own name on his buildings. At the time, Trump mingled with the Russian business elite at a swanky after-party. “Almost all of the oligarchs were in the room,” Trump bragged on returning home. As a sign of the importance of Russian investors, partners of one of Trump’s projects then under construction in Panama visited Moscow to sell condos at the building in 2006. Trump also made significant money from one Russian oligarch in 2008, when he sold a mansion in Palm Beach for $95 million to Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev. Trump had bought the home at a bankruptcy auction less than four years earlier for $41.4 million.