
Michael Dell Pledges $36M in Harvey Relief - gregorymichael
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/01/business/michael-dell-foundation-harvey.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Ftechnology&action=click&contentCollection=technology&region=rank&module=package&version=highlights&contentPlacement=1&pgtype=sectionfront
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danans
Sincere props to Michael Dell and other very wealthy individuals who are
donating generously, but it raises the question of why this sort of gesture is
even necessary in our society.

Making people financially whole and getting them back on their feet in the
aftermath of a disaster of these proportions should be handled by insurance,
and when that falls short, the government.

The problem is not that the money is private, but that it's donation relies on
the compassion of individuals, not on laws.

If that's not the case and these donations are a tiny portion of the funds for
the relief effort, then why do we make such a big deal about them, when there
are probably a lot of other people who have donated a similar percentage of
their (much smaller) net worth?

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baddox
I'm not sure what to think of that attitude. I understand the motivation, but
I find this statement particularly odd:

> donation relies on the compassion of individuals, not on laws.

It would be odd to expect laws to be more compassionate on average than all
the individuals under the laws, particularly in an ostensibly democratic
society. Yet I can think of several plausible reasons to expect laws to be
_less_ compassionate on average than individuals.

~~~
aylmao
It's not about compassion, it's about having systems in place for situations
like these. Laws encode behavior that should always happen. Compassion is
private, and having thousands rely on it is not a reliable practice.

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solotronics
Dell is an outstanding Texan this is great to hear.. I donated as well but
mine was a little shy of $36M

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rabidrat
Michael Dell is worth $22.9 billion; $36m is 0.157% of his wealth. For you to
donate an equivalent amount, you only have to donate $157 per $100k of your
net worth.

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icelancer
Not only does money not scale linearly like that, Michael Dell's net worth is
very volatile and illiquid, making a straight comparison not all that helpful.

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Gustomaximus
I get the feeling this was a glib example interest/amusement not to be take as
an economic truism. And I suggest if you going to jump on any statement an
claim its wrong, include information to back up your assertion. I like to
think HN comments add value and we don't encourage taking easy pot shots at
comments. For that reason I gave you a downvote, and also took the time to
explain why I feel that was needed.

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criddell
My daughter was hospitalized a few years ago and spent a couple of days in
Dell Children's Hospital in Austin. Everybody we dealt with there was
fantastic and the facility was wonderful. The Dells have done a lot of great
things for Texas.

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hsnewman
On a religious note, the probable reason the amount is $36M is that 18 is a
special value in Judaism. In Hebrew the word chai (which means "to life")is
represented as the number 18, and it is considered a good deed to give
donations in that amount. He and his wife apparently combined their $18M
amounts. For more: [http://www.shiva.com/learning-
center/commemorate/chai/](http://www.shiva.com/learning-
center/commemorate/chai/)

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gesman
Gents, Don't be too judgemental about it.

Let's hope that these money will actually reach victims.

Which is not given.

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RickJWag
Thanks, Michael!

Paging Mark Cuban.....

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sremani
According to this link,
[http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/local/article/Forbes-
Te...](http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/local/article/Forbes-Texas-
billionaires-total-50-San-Antonio-4-11015381.php)

There are 50 billionaires in Texas, thus far the Houston Texans owner promised
$10 million and Dell $36 million.

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bicx
36x what Trump has donated

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NetStrikeForce
Incorrect.

36x of what Trump has donated would be 0.

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dokument
That sounds more impressive than ฿7.4k

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corporateslave3
You mean hes reallocating 36M of his taxes usually paid, as write offs to the
Houston Relief

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JumpCrisscross
> _You mean hes reallocating 36M of his taxes usually paid_

It sounds like you've never made a charitable donation under the American tax
code. A dollar donated isn't a dollar saved. A dollar donated is (1-marginal
tax rate) dollars saved.

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sgc
1 * marginal tax rate... so for most people who can afford larger donations,
25-35 cents.

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QAPereo
This is great news, but a nitpick, it isn't Michael Dell pledging, but his
foundation.

 _Michael Dell, the billionaire Texan who founded Dell Technologies, has
pledged $36 million of his foundation’s money to help disaster relief efforts
in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.

The gift from the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation is the largest donation to
date aimed at recovery efforts._

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phd514
That's kind of a distinction without a difference since the foundation is just
the mechanism through which Dell makes philanthropic contributions.

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Retric
He may have already donated this money to the org. So, this may be funding
allocation not a donation.

Or this could be new money I am not sure.

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brandon272
Again, distinction without a difference. Is it a "funding allocation" if I was
going to spend $100 on a night out but choose to donate it instead? It's both.
And still just as much a donation.

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Retric
Err, if this is not clear to you. You can setup a charity and get a tax
deduction in the year you set it up without actually allocating the money.

Now that it's in the charity _it 's not your money_ in that you can't legally
use it on a night out.

So, there is a very big difference in donation = tax deduction, allocation =
no additional tax deduction.

