Thanks for writing this! I especially enjoyed the part where you described how donating has given you a sense of purpose and self-worth when things have been difficult for you—I can relate.
I think I have to disagree with your last point, though, because it seems to me that whenever we make a decision to spend resources, we are making a trade off. A donation to an effective global health charity could in fact have gone to a different cause.
I don’t think that diminishes how worthwhile any donation is, but I think that the spirit of effective altruism is to keep asking ourselves whether there’s something else we could do that would be even better. What do you think?
Thanks for writing this! I especially enjoyed the part where you described how donating has given you a sense of purpose and self-worth when things have been difficult for you—I can relate.
I think I have to disagree with your last point, though, because it seems to me that whenever we make a decision to spend resources, we are making a trade off. A donation to an effective global health charity could in fact have gone to a different cause.
I don’t think that diminishes how worthwhile any donation is, but I think that the spirit of effective altruism is to keep asking ourselves whether there’s something else we could do that would be even better. What do you think?