charity

Friday November 17, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday November 17, 2017

Da Vinci painting sells for $450 million, shattering auction records

After 19 minutes of dueling, with four bidders on the telephone and one in the room, Leonardo da Vinci’s “Salvator Mundi” sold Wednesday night for $450.3 million U.S., or $575 million Canadian, with fees, shattering the high for any work of art sold at auction. It far surpassed Picasso’s “Women of Algiers,” which fetched $179.4 million (U.S.) at Christie’s in May 2015.

August 25, 2012

The buyer was not immediately disclosed.

There were gasps throughout the sale, as the bids climbed by 10s up to $225 million, then by 5s up to $260 million, then by 2s. As the bidding slowed, and a buyer pondered the next multimillion-dollar increment, Jussi Pylkkanen, the auctioneer, said, “It’s a historic moment: We’ll wait.”

There were two big jumps toward the end to shake off the competition by Alex Rotter, Christie’s chairman of postwar and contemporary art for the Americas, who represented a buyer on the phone.

The price is all the more remarkable at a time when the old masters market is contracting, because of limited supply and collectors’ penchant for contemporary art.

And to critics, the astronomical sale attests to something else — the degree to which salesmanship has come to drive and dominate the conversation about art and its value. Some art experts pointed to the painting’s damaged condition and its questionable authenticity. (Source: Toronto Star) 

 

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Thursday August 21, 2014

Thursday August 21, 2014
By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday August 21, 2014

When Stunts dictate our charitable giving

The choices we make about where to donate money for health causes aren’t always rational. We are probably more often driven to give by a disease that has touched a loved one than by utilitarian calculations about which illnesses impact the most people or receive the least investment from pharmaceutical companies.

Sometimes our decisions about donating don’t even seem to be driven by values or potential impact — but by celebrities and the entertainment value of the fundraising campaigns they endorse. Look no further than the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. The feel-good campaign works like this: you film yourself throwing a bucket of ice over your head, post it to social media, and then challenge your friends to either do the same or donate $100 to the ALS Association, which works to end Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Now every famous person — from Martha Stewart to Justin Bieber and Bill Gates — seems to be dumping ice on their heads in the name of the motor neuron disease.

The fun concept and celebrity heft are working. The ALS Association has said they’ve raised so much money so quickly, they’re scrambling to know what to do with it. Since July 29, when the challenge kicked off, they reported receiving $22.9 million in donations. That’s more than ten times the amount they raised in the same period last year ($1.9 million). Other charities are reportedly now searching for their ice-bucket equivalent.

The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, and its virality, raise some interesting questions about which charities and health causes we choose to give to. It seems to add further evidence to the fact that celebrities and gimmicks often drive our charitable donating more than, perhaps, they should.

To be clear: ALS is an awful, debilitating disease that is worthy of donor dollars. It essentially triggers a slow paralysis in sufferers by causing the nerve cells to stop working. It’s also a death sentence. From the time of diagnosis, most people live only two to five years. There’s no cure, and, more than 70 years after baseball star Lou Gehrig drew attention to the cause, scientists still don’t know what brings it on. (Continued: Vox)

 

Wednesday July 23, 2014

Wednesday July 23, 2014By Graeme MacKay, Editorial Cartoonist, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday July 23, 2014

Pen Canada hit with audit by Canada Revenue Agency, joining other charity groups critical of Harper government

The Canada Revenue Agency has launched a political-activities audit of Pen Canada, a small charity promoting freedom of expression that has criticized the Harper government in the past.

Two tax auditors showed up Monday morning at the tiny Toronto offices of Pen Canada, asking to see a wide range of internal documents.

Pen Canada’s president, Philip Slayton, says the tax agency gave notice of the audit two or three months ago, and that the group is “fully co-operating.”

Pen Canada represents more than 1,000 writers and supporters, including Canadian literary luminaries Margaret Atwood and Yann Martel, and presses for freedom of expression at home and abroad.

The group has been highly critical of the Harper government in recent years for the muzzling of scientists on the public payroll, and for alleged spying on Canadian citizens in concert with U.S. eavesdropping agencies.

This latest political-activity audit is among more than 50 that the agency has begun since 2012, which some critics have said creates an “advocacy chill” as charities self-censor for fear of losing their ability to raise funds through tax-deductible donations.

Saturday, February 2, 2013The wave of audits was announced by the federal government in the 2012 budget, and some groups have been under threat of losing their charitable status for more than two years. The list of targets includes Amnesty International Canada, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Canada Without Poverty, and the David Suzuki Foundation.

The Canada Revenue Agency says its work is conducted without political direction from government. (Source: National Post)

SOCIAL MEDIA

 

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Wednesday, June 19, 2013Editorial cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Most charities don’t want refund from Justin Trudeau

There appears to be little interest from charities in an offer for refunds for speaking fees by Liberal leader Justin Trudeau.

The Grace Foundation in New Brunswick kicked off the speaking-fee controversy last week, with a letter sent to Conservatives asking for Trudeau to refund the $20,000 he charged for an unsuccessful fundraising event a year ago.

In reply, Trudeau is getting in touch with more than a dozen other organizations this week to see if they have similar complaints, but there doesn’t appear to be a lot of other buyers’ remorse.

Sam Mercanti, chairman of the board for the Charity of Hope, told the Star his organization was pleased with the April 2010 event, for which Trudeau earned $15,000 according to his own disclosure documents.

“We had a contract up front, so we knew the charges before the actual event (and) it was fair,” Mercanti said. “We made money at the event. If he wants to return the money that would be fine, but we are not going after it.”

The Ontario Public Service Employees Union isn’t looking for a refund of the $20,000 it paid in 2010 either.

Greg Hamara, who speaks for the union, said Trudeau was asked to speak to a conference in 2010 that was specifically devoted to the topic of imagining what Ontario would be like in the future. Trudeau was not invited as a politician, but as a “young Canadian” and he was asked to deliver a non-political speech, Hamara said.

“He delivered on that and we were pleased,” Hamara said. (Source: The Toronto Star)

Thursday August 16, 2012

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator, Thursday August 16, 2012

There have been secret talks about local casino

City staff say there’s “interest” brewing about building a casino in Hamilton — but not even council is allowed to know who’s behind it.

Tim McCabe, the city’s director of economic development and planning, said he has had “absolutely confidential” discussions about a new gambling facility in the city.

“I have had some discussions through a third party, and there is some interest in Hamilton,” McCabe said.

McCabe’s comments came about after Councillor Sam Merulla put forward a motion asking for a moratorium on any new gaming facility in the city until the public can vote in a referendum on the issue during the 2014 municipal election.

The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation announced a massive “modernization” earlier this year that includes plans for one casino in the Hamilton/Burlington area. It’s still not clear whether that means Flamboro Downs will remain open — council’s preference — or whether a new facility will be built.

Though Merulla’s argued that locating a new casino in the city would be as contentious as the Pan Am stadium debate, McCabe warned councillors that passing Merulla’s motion could potentially cut the city off from millions of dollars’ worth of investment. Councillors were divided about whether or not to approve the referendum.

Councillor Judi Partridge said the city’s role is “not to roll over or chase an elusive carrot” and criticized the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, arguing the city has “a chance to say no, and to be in the driver’s seat.”

Mayor Bob Bratina argued that the city should be open to all possibilities.(Source: Hamilton Spectator)