[NYer]

Corporations have taken note as well. Here is Honda's new addition to their automotive line = Gizmodo.

[NYer]

Or ... what about the $10 million tab paid by the father of a 13 year old girl for her Bat Mitzvah.

My big, fat $10 million bat mitzva

This is not to suggest that we can't dispense good money on our children or pets but at what point does it become excssive!

Catholic Ping
Please freepmail me if you want on/off this list

[Porterville]

No hungry kids in my house; but, I have 2 pampered pets.

AND I'M GLAD

[metmom]

All this for a creature who would be happy to eat out of a garbage can, drink out of a toilet, and roll around in animal poop as the latest in designer doggie fragrances. /roll eyes

[CzarNicky]

The report explained that children are disproportionately represented among the poor, since the least developed countries tend to have the youngest populations. Poor children are also more likely to miss out on an education and, as a result, on the opportunity to generate a decent income that would allow them to escape poverty in the future.

Sounds like a problem third worlders can easily solve by themselves by not breeding what they can't feed and then sending it to the west.

[CrazyIvan]

"If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and a man."

"Heaven goes by favor. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in."

Mark Twain

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

I love how the economically retarded thinks there's no benefit at all to this. People make, transport and sell these products, equaling jobs.

[ZULU]

"Many children are not so well looked after. On Wednesday, UNICEF released a report... "

Tommyrot.

People who can't afford children shouldn't have them.

People who want to care for their pets have every right to do so.

This is typical socialist blather. We didn't create the mess in third world nations - they and other nations did it.

And the U.S. is one of the most generous nations in the world when it comes to foreign aid. I have no sense of guilt over this whatsoever.



Hear boy!! Want some more cavier, Fido?

[Fzob]

I've always thought the prevalence of gigantic box stores devoted entirely to pets is a sure sign this country has lost its way.

I've got nothing against commerce, but the fact that these stores have a market, points to consumerism gone bad.

[gcruse]

To paraphrase Jesus, there'll always be a kid somewhere in the world who's hungry. Who are you kidding? But happiness is a warm puppy. Spoil your pets.

[Cacique]

Ping

[Prime Choice]

I believe in caring for my fellow man. I also believe in caring for the animals that my fellow man has mistreated, neglected or abandoned outright.

Animals can be satisfied...but with humanitarian causes, no matter how much I give, it's never enough. Never.

For pity's sake, folks. Two-fifths (40%!!) of my earned wages already goes to support welfare, in-state tuition and free medical aid to illegal aliens, foreign aid to nations that support terrorists who want to destroy me and mine, and a host of domestic social programs that won't even exist when I retire.

And I'm told I am an immoral, self-centered lout who's starving children because I have eight furbabies who I spoil in the way most grandparents spoil their grandchildren.

If the bleeding hearts are trying to poison the well of compassion and charity, then they are doing a bang-up job of making it happen.

[Fawn]

My cats eat better than I do.....

[WriteOn]

people who have pampered pets don't have hungry kids. most don't even have kids. hence pampered pets. part of the dying of the west....

[Ostlandr]

Our pets have food, water, shelter, and basic medical care as needed. That's all the law or morality requires.
That's what we should provide for the "poor."
No more, no less.

I feel bad this year. In good years, a big part of our Christmas is finding a working family with kids who are trying to make ends meet, and are too proud to ask for help.
These are the folks who really deserve help, and really appreciate it.
Unfortunately, this year we're barely breaking even ourselves.
If anybody here at FR has enough extra for a few thoughtful gifts and a gift certificate to the local supermarket, you're welcome to fill in for us this year.

And a note to those folks who are spending megabucks on themselves and their pets:
While I believe that no one should be forced by "redistribution of wealth" to give up their hard-earned money, this does not absolve one of the moral responsibility to do what's right.
Especially this time of year.
Doubly so if you call yourself a Christian.

[Gerish]

The June 9 issue of the Chronicle of Philanthropy reported that Dave Duffield, founder of the software company PeopleSoft, and his wife, Cheryl, have donated $93 million to a foundation they established in 1999 to promote the well-being of pets.

I can't tell this guy how to spend his money, but 93 million could go a long way in promoting the well-being of - dare I say it - PEOPLE BEFORE PETS!! What a shame.

[DejaJude]

But No. 2418 warns it is "unworthy to spend money on them that should as a priority go to the relief of human misery." Moreover, the text explains, while one can love animals, "one should not direct to them the affection due only to persons." Spoil the beast, maybe, but first spare the child.

I wonder how many of the Hollywood crowd have bought designer items for their pets? What does PETA think of the church for daring to put humans above animals?

[sinkspur]

But No. 2418 warns it is "unworthy to spend money on them that should as a priority go to the relief of human misery." Moreover, the text explains, while one can love animals, "one should not direct to them the affection due only to persons." Spoil the beast, maybe, but first spare the child.

This logic would dictate that no one should EVER spend money on pets, since there will always be human misery somewhere.

The fact is, much of the money spent on human relief goes down political rat holes in third world countries, and to overhead of bloated charities.

Find and support those charities that truly do good work (like Food for the Poor and the Salvation Army).

My charitable donations for Katrina went EQUALLY to the Salvation Army and other charities for humans, but also Operation Kindness and Best Friends, for animals.

The Catholic Church has yet to contemporize its understanding of the value of pets in the lives of human beings. One day it will do so, and realize the important value they have to their human companions.

[mplsconservative]

This thread needs a puppy pic. Heeeeere's Sparky!

[Huntress]

Cats are also costly. The Telegraph cited a survey by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, showing that the cost of owning a cat is about 9,500 pounds ($16,800) over its lifetime. This includes all costs, not just health expenses.

I must have cheap cats. I spend about $200 per year, including food and vet bills, on each of them. If they live 20 years, I'm only out $4,000 each. If I factor in the value of their companionship--arbitrarily set by me at $1 per day--I actually come out ahead. ;-)

[satchmodog9]