Apple Donates $2.5 Million to American Red Cross for Hurricane Sandy Relief

[bigjnyc]

It is so good to see Apple helping hurricane Sandy's victims. Although I have seen higher donations from private parties, it was a nice gesture.

BUT the fact that they announce it so publicly, it is all for publicity, sad but true.

I dont think its sad at all. Who cares what its for as long as the 2.5Million is real and it helps a lot of people.... Do you think the people displaced out of their homes right now care whether apple is giving them money for publicity? I highly doubt it.... they just care that someone is helping.

And besides Apple is a publicly traded company so if they issue a check for 2.5Million people are going to find out what its for, so its not like they can hide it.

 

[kd5jos]

To everybody whining about Apple "ONLY" donating 2.5 million dollars...

thiagos,

It's announced publicly here:

http://disasterphilanthropy.org/where/current-disasters/hurricane-sandy/donor-response/

Find Microsoft... oh 2.5 million dollars...
Find Google... oh NOTHING
Find Samsung... 3 million
Find Dell... oh NOTHING
Find AT&T... 1.5 million plus use of communications eqpt.

All of you bitching about the amount, Apples not doing any worse than most of it's competitors (except the ones that didn't donate of course). Maybe save your vitriol for Google and Dell??

 

[WordMasterRice]

I am far from an Apple apologist, but it seems no matter what Apple does in the way of charitable contributions, for some folks it's never enough.

Nightarchaon, have you given a larger percentage of your total worth to the Red Cross? If so, my compliments. If not, then shame on you...put your money where your mouth is.

Sensation, in one man's opinion, a silly and meangingless post.

Since I just got out of college and don't have a ton of money. But if I were to donate the same percentage of my bank account with $10,000 as apple did then I would be donating $2.50. So far on a percentage basis I've donated 4 times as much as Apple has.

Now I'm not saying that they should have donated more or anything, but you are kidding yourself if you think that 0.025% of their bank account is affecting them at all.

 

[petsounds]

It's great to see Tim is willing to use Apple's coffers for charitable causes, and of course it's a tax write-off for them.

Steve just wasn't a charitable person in private or public, and I think basically it was a personality flaw illustrated in his bio -- he wasn't often able to empathize with others, even close friends. I wrote to Steve once, practically begging him to make a donation to help Snow Leopards, which are an Endangered species (there's less than 4000 in the wild). Never got a response. I always found it distasteful that Apple was parading this animal around on the cover of their OS box, but wouldn't do anything to help it continue to exist. But the Snow Leopard is doing a lot better than the beautiful Amur Leopard, which is Critically Endangered and down to a population of about 40 left in the wild, plus a couple hundred in zoos.

 

[sransari]

.0005%

This is pathetic...it would have been better if they donating nothing than donating a completely insignificant amount. This is literally the same as me donating 75 cents.

 

[Dammit Cubs]

Some money is better than no money.

It's not billions. But 2.5 million WILL MAKE a difference to a lot of families that truly need it.

We need more companies stepping up.

 

[sweetbrat]

This is pathetic...it would have been better if they donating nothing than donating a completely insignificant amount.

Really? Nothing is better than something? I think if you were to ask the people that were actually effected by Hurricane Sandy, they might have a different viewpoint. Just because you're not happy with the amount doesn't make it insignificant. $2.5 million can provide a lot of help to people who need it.

 

[hobo.hopkins]

Now I'm not saying that they should have donated more or anything, but you are kidding yourself if you think that 0.025% of their bank account is affecting them at all.

It isn't about whether or not Apple is affected. It's about whether or not the people receiving the money are affected; and they certainly will be by the sizeable sum of $2,500,000.00.

 

[panda bear]

I just... I can't.. what????

2.5m is an insignificant amount of money?!

You've got to be kidding me.

It doesn't matter how much it is relative to what they have in liquid assets. It doesn't matter if other companies gave more (which, from what I know, Apple is right around the same amount as most other big companies). It doesn't matter if they made the donation public so it gives off the vibe that it was done for publicity rather than philanthropy.

What matters is that there is 2.5m dollars more to help the people who were affected by Sandy.

Apple doesn't HAVE to give anything. Neither do any of these other businesses. Sometimes when I read posts on here, I am amazed at how disconnected from reality some people seem to be.

 

[Battlefield Fan]

This makes Tim an effective CEO in my eyes. Yes, he may not be Steve but he makes up for what Steve lacked.

 

[notjustjay]

Besides which, what would happen if they really did give all that money? Let's think about this.

Thought experiment: imagine Apple donates $2.5 BILLION dollars instead.

OK, so who gets the money?

What are they going to do with it?

Are they going to rebuild New York City with gold-plated streets?

Come on.

 

[kd5jos]

Since I just got out of college and don't have a ton of money. But if I were to donate the same percentage of my bank account with $10,000 as apple did then I would be donating $2.50. So far on a percentage basis I've donated 4 times as much as Apple has.

Now I'm not saying that they should have donated more or anything, but you are kidding yourself if you think that 0.025% of their bank account is affecting them at all.

Because it's about Apple being effected? Kay, do you realize that if you donated $2.50, and everyone in America did the same you'd have 7.5 billion dollars.

Now, how far is $2.50 going to go toward recovery. Might buy half a meal. How far is 2.5 million going to go? Could probably make sure that heavy earth moving equipment is available.

So your comparison... lacking. I'd say more, but I'd have a moderator get mad at me for being as insulting to you, as you're being to peoples intelligence.

 

[WeegieMac]

I find it disappointing that people are choosing to focus on the amount given rather than the fact they actually donated.

People need to remember that Apple had NO obligation to donate a single penny.

They could have easily just allowed donations to be given via them, through iTunes donations by customers, but rather have decided to give a lump sum.

It's $2.5m more in the aid kitty than there was yesterday, take a step back from your self important, judgemental mirrors and think about just what an EXTRA $2.5 million will do for homeless families due to Sandy.

There's always people who bitch about it being not enough, and more often than not its from those who have not donated a single penny themselves.

 

[ani4ani]

+1

Why not $1 billion? (And on and on...)

Folks should stop complaining, whilst this is only half an hour of their profits, it is like them donating a whole month of the tax they pay on their profits in the UK!

I wouldn't be surprised if Apple customer donations dwarf this number

 

[MrMoonX]

The important issue here should be why anyone feels the need to donate money for disaster relief in the richest country in the world. Surely the government should be providing enough to fix everything.

everyone saying yay good on Apple should be criticising their government on why extra money is even needed in the first place.

 

[Menopause]

This is disgusting. 2.5 million for a company that has 100 plus BILLION in CASH! All you people saying its nice of apple have no logic for money and how much apple is really worth. You are talking about one of the biggest disasters in US History and apple throws a little 2.5 million dollar check on the table and says "ok we did our part"

Like someone mention earlier this is pennies. It's almost sad in the sense that most of the people who were effected own apple products and the best apple can do is 2.5 million? Yet they spent 3 BILLION to bail out Sharp a non US company?

Sorry guys you won't find a bigger fan of their products as me but their business motto and how they are starting to operate is really getting annoying.

How much did YOU donate? How much has your family donated? Isn't 2.5 million dollars + how much ever customers donated SOMETHING better than nothing? For useless judgmental people like you the amount in numbers is everything, the gesture doesn't count. For a change you could consider to stop leaning back onto your chair, logging onto online blogs and being a filthy hypocrite.

 

[LostSoul80]

And Apple employees and customers the world over have raised millions of dollars toward the relief effort so far.

Don't they double check what they write?

 

[twoodcc]

good to hear.

 

[notjustjay]

Don't they double check what they write?

I saw nothing wrong with the grammar of the statement you quoted.

 

[tech4all]

Too little too late. For a company with this market cap apple still pales to others.

Shame the money didnt go to a much more deserving causes.

Apple is damned if they, damned if they don't.

 

[maflynn]

[MOD NOTE]
Please keep the PRSI material out of the thread, if you want to discuss politics, apple and charity, then please do so in the PRSI forum.

 

[teknikal90]

3 million from Samsung.

http://www.samsung.com/us/news/20309

thanks both Apple + Samsung.

One Uped!!

 

[unplugme71]

2.5 million seems like a lot, but its pennies to the amount needed for the relief. Sadly no one but us in the area knows the true damage. The media hasn't even shown the really bad. I'm donating my weekends to support the people in need. Can't put a price tag on that.

Can't force anyone to donate, but a company like Apple with so many stores affected by this and its employees should have potentialy given more.

----------

The important issue here should be why anyone feels the need to donate money for disaster relief in the richest country in the world. Surely the government should be providing enough to fix everything.

everyone saying yay good on Apple should be criticising their government on why extra money is even needed in the first place.

I wasn't aware that having 16 trillion in DEBT made us the richest country in the world?

 

[OnlyGerman]

At least it's something

 

[balamw]

MOD NOTE: [...]
If you want to discuss some of the larger political/social issues around this donation, please take it to PRSI. Any posts we feel do not relate specifically to the thread topic will be moderated as off-topic.

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[MOD NOTE]
Please keep the PRSI material out of the thread, if you want to discuss politics, apple and charity, then please do so in the PRSI forum.

MOD NOTE: Yes we really mean it.

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