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First, let’s look at the stated goals of this charitable organization:
promoting and disseminating the lectures, speeches, art, music, and public forums of Prem Rawat, also known as Maharaji.
Oh, good, I want to give my hard earned money to facilitate and enable Maharaji to fill up the tanks of his very expensive private jet so that he can fly half way around the globe so that he can give a lecture and an off the cuff speech about the suffering of the people in the wake of the tsunami. I know in my heart of hearts that’s going to help people more than giving to http://www.redcross.org.
Oh, wait! The only thing better would be if Maharaji flew his private jet plane to the disaster areas and painted a painting of the untold suffering so that he could sell prints of that painting to help raise more funds to allow him to raise more funds. Yes, that will help more people than by sending money to: http://www.theirc.org/ The International Rescue Committee with a Program Ratio of 91.7% as measured by www.smartmoney.com.
No! What am I thinking? The best use of the money that I send Maharaji would be if he wrote a song about the tsunami and he sang it. Imagine that Maharaji came up with this song:
Let it hang out baby, let it hang out now, now na-na now
Let it hang out baby, everybody work out
Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Sue
Let it hang out baby, do the Baltimore jig
Let it hang out baby, boomerang with me
Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Sue
Really got it bad child, drink a bottle of turpentine
When you wake up in the morning, feelin' kinda fine
Let it hang out baby, let it hang out now, now na-na now
You better watch your step girl, don't step on that banana peel
If your foot should ever hit it, you'll go up to the ceiling
Hang it in baby, hang it in baby
Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Sue
Let it hang out baby, let it hang out now, now na-na now
Let it hang out baby, everybody work out
Hang it in baby, hang it in baby, hang it in baby
Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Tsunami, Sue
I tell you, if Maharaji wrote and sang that song and performed it on a video with, like, Sting, Bono, and Michael, I’ll quadruple my donation and I’ll buy 28 copies of the CD.
Or I could donate to http://www.unicefusa.org/ The United States Fund for UNICEF.
Now, what does puzzle me, Mister Today, are the numbers.
It seems as if Maharaji or TPRF receives $1,036.876 and it has expenses totaling $578.219 which is more than 50% of the revenues, so doing the math we see that TPRFs efficiency is about 44% which is pretty low, especially when considering the organizations that are well respected and known to actually provide real relief (on the ground) are always above 70% if not even higher. And like I said, Maharaji’s TPRF has no real experience in providing direct humanitarian relief.
But what a wonderful concept to embrace, Mr. Today. I just love your idea about people to people on the ground – Holy Cow! Yeah, I can see Maharaji sending in instructors with boxes of Maharaji videos. Knowledge is what those people need and they need it now so that they can all be saved before they die of the wave of disease that is coming at them as we speak.
Wait, what does "These funds will be used for unrestricted operating expenses and special projects." mean? Does that mean Maharaji can buy a new Mercedes and he doesn't have to answer to anyone? This is one hell of a charity and there's one big fat cat receiving the benefit thereof, don't ya think, Mister Nevermind? Isn't that statement enough of a red flag for ya to steer clear?
So, here’s what I see, Mister Tomorrow, I see if I send TPRF (Maharaji) my money for every dollar I send him he’ll pocket at least 56 cents as an expense and with the other 44 cents he’ll write a check and send it to an organization like the Red Cross. So, why wouldn’t I just donate directly? Oh, I remember why not. Wait, no. That’s it. I’m no longer a premie and I’m thinking with my own thinker now and I’m making my own decisions and it makes a whole lot more sense not to do what Maharaji is telling me to do.
Here's what Charity Navigator says about the Red Cross for Organizational Efficiency.
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