Charitable giving topped $600 billion last year. The stock market went up. Wealthy people sold stocks at a profit and donated some of it. They got tax deductions. This is being reported as news.
The summary mentions megadonors and bequests. Bequests are when rich people die and their estates give away money they can no longer spend. We're supposed to be grateful. The dead guy wasn't using it anymore but sure, let's throw a parade.
The stock market rally turbocharged giving from wealthy donors specifically. Not from you. You're still trying to figure out if that $47 donation to the animal shelter counts as itemized or if you just take the standard deduction like the IRS knows you will. The wealthy donor sold his NVIDIA position at the top, donated $10 million, wrote it off, and got a building named after him. You got a tote bag with a picture of a dog on it.
This happens every time markets go up. Rich people have gains. Rich people donate gains. Rich people get deductions and naming rights and galas. Then financial journalists write articles acting surprised that charitable giving correlates with asset prices. It's the same story every cycle. The only thing that changes is the number.
$600 billion sounds impressive until you remember it came from megadonors, which means like nine people and their foundations. The rest of us rounded up at the grocery store checkout. That'll be $47.32, would you like to donate a dollar to fight childhood hunger? Sure. Thanks for your contribution to the $600 billion. Really moved the needle there.
Bequests did the heavy lifting. Dead billionaires gave away fortunes they couldn't take with them. We're calling this generosity. The alternative was letting the government take it. They chose the tax-deductible posthumous PR campaign. What saints.
Photo by Martin Sanchez on Unsplash
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