Charity bag packers in Tescos

starbelgrade

Now, I am not a fan of charity in the slightest - in fact, I believe it cuases more harm than it does good, for the simple fact that it allows those responsible for looking after those who can't look after themselves, to pick & choose what we give & when we give it, when really what we should give is all that is needed. By "those responsible", I mean us, as a society & by the simple fact that there is a need for charities, means that we have failed in our responsibilities.

So, that's the reason I don't donate to charities. The difficulty is though, is those kids who pack your bags in supermarkets. They were in Tescos today & I find it impossible NOT to donate. I mean, I'm hardly gonna stand there arguing my philosophy regarding charities to a teenager, while a queue of people behind me get irate because I'm holding them up.

And if that wasn't bad enough, they never ever have a clue how to even pack the feckin' bags because they've never had to do their own grocery shopping. And then you feel obliged to pay them for the botch job.

I feel like I'm turning into Jack Dee. Rant over.

darealtulip

I totaly agree.

I on the other hand have no problems to tell them I pack my own bags and don't feel bad at all when I don't give them a penny. I don't like the way they try to pressurise with kids and putting you on the spot. Tesco's could just leave 1 or 2 tills without the packers, so you have a choice.

Never gave to charity and never will. You are never sure where your money goes.

TequilaMockingBird

Sports Clubs, Scouts, Animal Welfare, that type of thing - I think fair play, they haven't a notion how to pack a shopping bag, but their trying.

A charity helping towards our own health care that our government (i.e. Us) should pay for then, no.

Big_Mac

This reminds me of the thread that was here before about chuggers and churgulars

TequilaMockingBird

Big_Mac wrote: »

This reminds me of the thread that was here before about chuggers and churgulars

Shhhh.

bobcar61

starbelgrade wrote: »

Now, I am not a fan of charity in the slightest - in fact, I believe it cuases more harm than it does good, for the simple fact that it allows those responsible for looking after those who can't look after themselves, to pick & choose what we give & when we give it, when really what we should give is all that is needed. By "those responsible", I mean us, as a society & by the simple fact that there is a need for charities, means that we have failed in our responsibilities.

So, that's the reason I don't donate to charities. The difficulty is though, is those kids who pack your bags in supermarkets. They were in Tescos today & I find it impossible NOT to donate. I mean, I'm hardly gonna stand there arguing my philosophy regarding charities to a teenager, while a queue of people behind me get irate because I'm holding them up.

And if that wasn't bad enough, they never ever have a clue how to even pack the feckin' bags because they've never had to do their own grocery shopping. And then you feel obliged to pay them for the botch job.

I feel like I'm turning into Jack Dee. Rant over.

I agree with everything you said.

You know there is a place for ranting and raving these days.
Its over here

Madge

I was in there today, they were collecting for Nial Mellon's housing fund..
I think they should be collecting for Irish charities at the mo, with the state the country is in... charity begins at home

bobcar61

Madge wrote: »

they were collecting for Nial Mellon's housing fund..

Ehh who?

Madge

He's the guy who set up the township fund; builds houses for the poor in places like Africa. He brings a contingent of Irish builders, plumbers with him etc. My uncle went out one year

bobcar61

Ah that's right. I knew I knew the name but I just didn't know where from.

starbelgrade

bobcar61 wrote: »

I agree with everything you said.

You know there is a place for ranting and raving these days.
Its over here

I've ranted & raved in the "Ranting & Raving" section quite a few times. It's an age thing! However, what got me ranting & raving this time was something that happened today in town, so it's well within the remit of the Sligo forum charter.;)

Alfasud

There are so many homeless people in Ireland . Theres no need to travel so far away but I suppose there would be no noteriety in that. Big ego.....

starbelgrade

TequilaMockingBird wrote: »

Sports Clubs, Scouts, Animal Welfare, .

Strictly speaking, these aren't charities, though having seen some local football teams playing, I might have to stretch the definition of "charity case".

I am quite surprised though, that there seems to be a general agreement on the charity issue - I had a similar discussion a while back on a forum & got a completely different reaction. There was general horror towards my point of view.

And Dareatulip - yer a hardass... I can never do that!

bobcar61

starbelgrade wrote: »

I've ranted & raved in the "Ranting & Raving" section quite a few times. It's an age thing! However, what got me ranting & raving this time was something that happened today in town, so it's well within the remit of the Sligo forum charter.;)

I never said it wasn't ok to post it in the Sligo forum and I have no problem with it been here...why would I after all.
I only mentioned the Ranting and Raving thread incase you hadn't known about it and wanted to post there aswell.

starbelgrade

bobcar61 wrote: »

I never said it wasn't ok to post it in the Sligo forum and I have no problem with it been here...why would I after all.
I only mentioned the Ranting and Raving thread incase you hadn't known about it and wanted to post there aswell.

Sorry - I picked you up wrong there.

starbelgrade

Alfasud wrote: »

There are so many homeless people in Ireland . Theres no need to travel so far away but I suppose there would be no noteriety in that. Big ego.....

I think it's more of a lack of social / political awareness than egotism. Most teenagers don't know their elbow from their other elbow. Sadly, that often carries on into adulthood, which is why we end up with the fools we have running the country.

MoonDancer

I really hate having the bag packers there. I have to pack my own bags, everything has to be in the bags a certain way, but I feel so bad telling them I want to pack my own bag!
I agree with having a few tills without the bag packers there.
Will complaining to tescos do any good?? I doubt they'd listen to us!

dardevle

.



tbh...chucking a bit of loose change in a bucket, in the possibility that it may benefit someone else never really bothered me.



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starbelgrade

dardevle wrote: »

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tbh...chucking a bit of loose change in a bucket, in the possibility that it may benefit someone else never really bothered me.



.

I'm glad to hear that the crumbs off your table feeds the starving masses, houses them, educates them & provides them with health care. You must be very happy about that.

starbelgrade

MoonDancer wrote: »

I really hate having the bag packers there. I have to pack my own bags, everything has to be in the bags a certain way, but I feel so bad telling them I want to pack my own bag!

At the risk of sounding nuerotic, I have to say that I agree with you.

wmpdd3

I work in a super market and you often get complaints about the bag packers for one thing or another. I have often sent the whole lot home.

If you complain about a particular packer, they will take action but complaining about the whole practice might be a bit harder.

The back lash can be mighty though.

If you don't give an organization a date they will advise all the parents not to shop in your store. I know, I heard my brother's GAA coach say it.

When it works well, it's great but I always pack my own bags, even in Super Quinn with packes who know what their doing!

KStaford

dardevle wrote: »

.

tbh...chucking a bit of loose change in a bucket, in the possibility that it may benefit someone else never really bothered me.

.

+1 absolutely agree ffs

I have no problem letting the kids pack my bags in my local Dunnes. They are normally great kids, very polite and there they are getting out of their comfort zones and doing something for whatever charity.
I give to certain charities and avoid others like the plague as I know how the money gets spent.
Whether society as a device has failed or not is not really the issue for me. I personally think society is a bit fuucked anyways. But that does not take away from the fact that there are people and animals out there in absolute dire straits. They need help and rely on charity and altruistic efforts.
Which leads me to my final point. How many of us actually get out and help by getting our hands dirty? Its far to easy to chuck some coins at someone and feel good about ourselves, but that aint no good to our elderly neighbor who desperately needs someone to call just for a chat, or for that animal who is being beaten and starved in our neighborhood.

dardevle

starbelgrade wrote: »

I'm glad to hear that the crumbs off your table quote]



maybe you best read the post again...it was the loose change from my pocket that does'nt really bother me, again thats just my opinion, which clearly differs from yours,but nonetheless......;)



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starbelgrade

dardevle wrote: »

starbelgrade wrote: »

I'm glad to hear that the crumbs off your table quote]



maybe you best read the post again...it was the loose change from my pocket that does'nt really bother me, again thats just my opinion, which clearly differs from yours,but nonetheless......;)



.

I read your post. I understood it. Your loose change IS the crumbs from the table. You may differ, but the facts remain the same.

starbelgrade

starbelgrade wrote: »

dardevle wrote: »

I read your post. I understood it. Your loose change IS the crumbs from the table. You may differ, but the facts remain the same.

And "having the option" is part of the source of the problem.

dardevle

.


perhaps my view differs from yours because i have had occasion in the past to need help from some of these organisations and have been greatful for any help that we recieved....and as such this does'nt allow me a lofty perch from where i can generalise about every one of these organisations and the volunteers who work on behalf of them....
i would much rather give the crumbs that i can/cannot afford and thank them(not necessarily for the way they pack the bags).



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darealtulip

so you find it normal that kids are used to raise funds? This is done on purpose because it's easier to say no to an adult. extortsion spring to mind. For me it's a extra reason not to give.

And as mentioned above I really want everything packed in a certain way. Mrs.T calls it OCD!!

magnumlady

I don't really mind....yes they do pack the bags badly, but it's not just kids that do that.
I had a woman pack my bag once and put all the non freezer stuff in the freezer bag....
anyway what shocked me was there was a group in Duunes packing bags once, a nice little lad was helping my mum and I said he was great for giving up his Saturday to raise money for his club, he said he didn't mind they each got 50 euro for helping:eek:

GG66

A lot of Charities are recognised Civic partners by the Government and receive Government funding to fulfill a need in society.

A lot of Charities use your donation to campaign for policy change to end the injustices and current failures by this State or other states around the world

Encouraging young people or older people for that matter to have a sense of social awareness and get together to help others is positive.

If you don't want to give money to Charity, there are lots of ways to contribute to your local community with your time..

Yes, they do pack bags very poorly, but there are worse things to give out about

MoonDancer

magnumlady wrote: »

they each got 50 euro for helping:eek:

:eek: OMG I hope it was a bribe from his parents to get him to do it!

TequilaMockingBird

My daughters school does it. I don't think a primary school should have to get the kids to pack bags for money. If we keep paying, the government don't have to.

With all due respect to the school, which is brilliant, they need to lobby more, pack less.

starbelgrade

TequilaMockingBird wrote: »

My daughters school does it. I don't think a primary school should have to get the kids to pack bags for money. If we keep paying, the government don't have to.

With all due respect to the school, which is brilliant, they need to lobby more, pack less.

Good point.

rio-rose

i to agree that bagpackers are a nighmare..
they throw everything into any bag avaible frozen with the bread etc..
and jam them to the top..

where i work we need to do fundraising (playschool) for a new floor surface which is working out expensive 4,000 euro

and at the last meeting it was said wat about bag packing everyone had the same moans and groans as on this, they too have had bad experienses so litterly its everyone

and a bit of info, was told dunnes is booked up untill after xmas for people wanting to do it as a fundraiser

starbelgrade

I thought play schools were commercial businesses? Ie., they make profits. I could be wrong here - I don't have any kids - so don't shoot me down if I'm wrong!

TequilaMockingBird

starbelgrade wrote: »

I thought play schools were commercial businesses? Ie., they make profits. I could be wrong here - I don't have any kids - so don't shoot me down if I'm wrong!

Some are private, not all.

rio-rose

starbelgrade wrote: »

I thought play schools were commercial businesses? Ie., they make profits. I could be wrong here - I don't have any kids - so don't shoot me down if I'm wrong!

not in our case starbelgrade,

the only money we make is wat we take in everywk (@10euro a day per child)

so you take out ESB, supplies, etc etc
we do have dam all left
and in our case the playschool hasnt changed in the last 25 + yrs
so we love to get a fresh up

artyeva

i neither agree nor disagree with the kids actually being there, i just choose not to let them pack my bags for 2 reasons:

1 - i bring my own canvas reusable bags
2 - i can't afford to give any money to ANY charity.

that's just the way it is - i lost my job through redundancy last year and some months i'm not breaking even. every last cent i have goes to keeping a roof over my head - not supporting some local sports club. what does gall me though is the cheeky feckers of kids who make rude or snide comments when i don't throw something in their bucket. :mad:

starbelgrade

rio-rose wrote: »

not in our case starbelgrade,

the only money we make is wat we take in everywk (@10euro a day per child)

so you take out ESB, supplies, etc etc
we do have dam all left
and in our case the playschool hasnt changed in the last 25 + yrs
so we love to get a fresh up

I see.

nicolaonfire

I had to bag pack for 2 weeks when I was 14. It was awful.
You knew that people didn't want you packing their bags and looking at what they are buying but I was made do it.

I don't mind bag packers now though because I know what it's like to be standing there, I just let them pack away, saves me packing anyway!

starbelgrade

nicolaonfire wrote: »

I had to bag pack for 2 weeks when I was 14. It was awful.
You knew that people didn't want you packing their bags and looking at what they are buying but I was made do it.

I don't mind bag packers now though because I know what it's like to be standing there, I just let them pack away, saves me packing anyway!

I don't have any problem with the bag packers themselves - I don't really care that they make a balls of packing them, but I disagree with the principle of it.

Jabby

starbelgrade wrote: »

Now, I am not a fan of charity in the slightest - in fact, I believe it cuases more harm than it does good, for the simple fact that it allows those responsible for looking after those who can't look after themselves, to pick & choose what we give & when we give it, when really what we should give is all that is needed. By "those responsible", I mean us, as a society & by the simple fact that there is a need for charities, means that we have failed in our responsibilities.

Lookin' down through a tide of no return
Is a field where the crops no longer grow
Parched is the land, strangled an' be damned
There for the Grace Of God Go I

starbelgrade

Jabby wrote: »

Lookin' down through a tide of no return
Is a field where the crops no longer grow
Parched is the land, strangled an' be damned
There for the Grace Of God Go I

Very poetic, but I haven't a clue what your intended meaning is. Plus, I hate when people sing stuff at you in reply - usually it's some random Bob Marley quote. That p*sses me off.

artyeva

starbelgrade wrote: »

I hate when people sing stuff at you in reply - usually it's some random Bob Marley quote.

in fairness it's a quote from a song by someone called ''flogging molly''. but i agree - what the heck does it have to do with the topic of bag packers in supermarkets???!!!

tuppence

Lets face it, we all know that this country hasn't got proper provision for its people that need assistance. Its a disgrace that staff should be fundraising for xray machines for temple street and schools subsidised by this type of fundraising. Its rubbish. But we need to change it from the top down. :mad:

In the meantime I'd just give the bag packers whatever I can afford.

Jabby

starbelgrade wrote: »

Very poetic, but I haven't a clue what your intended meaning is. Plus, I hate when people sing stuff at you in reply - usually it's some random Bob Marley quote. That p*sses me off.

Hit a nerve there I'd say. Let me put it a little more simply so.

Let's say that anyone these days could find themselves very suddenly in a position where they may have to accept charity of some kind or other. These organizations have to collect their money whatever way they can. They depend on our generosity.

By the way, is there any charity that are NOT on the black list? How about the Sligo Vincent de Paul. Wouldn't a spare euro from those of us who are still fortunate to have it come in handy for some unfortunate who may have dipped below the poverty line through no fault of their own? I'm sure he or she would appreciate it and wouldn't care where the money came from.

Even if it IS a kids football team, what would be so bad about contributing (that is if you can afford it of course) to a set of jerseys or to the upkeep of a club etc. Where the hell else do they get their money from? Instead of pontificating about 'our responsibilities' etc, come up with some positive solutions for God sake.

If someone doesn't want to give away any money to these people, then they should keep it.

Stop snivelling about it.

rgds,

Jabby

darealtulip

tuppence wrote: »

Lets face it, we all know that this country hasn't got proper provision for its people that need assistance. Its a disgrace that staff should be fundraising for xray machines for temple street and schools subsidised by this type of fundraising. Its rubbish. But we need to change it from the top down. :mad:

In the meantime I'd just give the bag packers whatever I can afford.

And that exactly makes sure the goverment doesn't have to fund them because you do. That is the whole point.

darealtulip

Jabby wrote: »

Hit a nerve there I'd say. Let me put it a little more simply so.
Even if it IS a kids football team, what would be so bad about contributing (that is if you can afford it of course) to a set of jerseys or to the upkeep of a club etc. Where the hell else do they get their money from? Instead of pontificating about 'our responsibilities' etc, come up with some positive solutions for God sake.

Beside contribution and sponsor ship? I think that would pay for all that.

It desensitizes me because they are there every week.

Jabby

darealtulip wrote: »

Beside contribution and sponsor ship? I think that would pay for all that.

It desensitizes me because they are there every week.

I see your point I suppose but there's very little sponsorship these days eh?

magnumlady

It's such a boring way to raise money I think.

Why not hold a car boot/jumble sale, sponsored dance/slience/walk, disco, whatever much more interesting for all concerned and less likely to cause anyone grief.

Madge

I suppose it seemed like a good idea at the time... and I'll bet it does help elderly and frailer people get their shopping packed

darealtulip

Jabby wrote: »

I see your point I suppose but there's very little sponsorship these days eh?

Fair point, I think they need to rethink the fund raising a bit. I think it is a bit habit as well. This is what they always did so lets do it again. Raffles are always a good way to raise funds.