An appeal to rational people

By DocMike

I don't know if it's the approaching holiday season, the global economic crisis, or just the fact that I'm getting a little older, but I've been feeling the pain of the world lately and I really want to do something about it.

I'm a very fortunate person. I have financial security, a close family, lots of great friends, and basically everything I need and most of what I want in life. If I believed in a deity, I would certainly be thanking it for my good fortune. But since I'm a rational human being, I attribute it to hard work and lots of good luck!

Anyway, I've been reading a lot lately about hunger and I really want to do something to help those in need. However, I don't like the idea of sending money to a religion-based organization. Now, I know many of them do a lot of good in this area. I won't try to take that away from them. But frankly, I don't trust them. I always wonder how much of my money is being spent to feed hungry people and how much is spent spreading their toxic dogma. And I wonder how much religious bullshit these people have to listen to just to get a hot meal.

Now I've always given a few bucks here and there to local charities that I believe in; the food bank, homeless shelter, abused women's shelter, etc. But I really want to do more this year!

I started searching the web for charities without a religious connection, but it's sometimes difficult to tell. I've been reading the mission statements, looking for clues. Most are pretty obvious, but some are more subtle. Here are a few that I've found that don't appear to have a religious connection, although they may.

Feeding America
World Food Programme (WFP)
UNICEF
Meds & Food for Kids (MFK)

I would appreciate any info on these and any other organizations you might be aware of or, better yet, involved with.

Not that being non-religious necessarily means they're trustworthy (That still sounds funny to me, must be my xian upbringing.) I'll evaluate each one with a skeptical eye, as usual. I would just like to find a worthy charity that is really capable of helping people without trying to convert them.

And finally, I would like to appeal to other rational people who are financially capable; Atheists, Agnostics, Freethinkers, Humanists, Skeptics, whatever you call yourself. We should all support non-religious charitable organizations that can really make a difference. There are a lot of needy people in this world and I would hate to think their only choice for help is praying to a mythical savior or listening to a pompous sermon.

People should not have to trade rationality for rations!