Charities will be hard hit by Cash flor Clunkers

I just thought of this.

For the last 4 days people have been fixing up their old, junky cars good enough to drive, then taking them down to a local car dealership in hopes of getting a new car. The $4,000 "rebate" the car companies are getting is - they are hoping - to be sent by the Government. $4,000 per person, per car. That's a lot of our tax money being poured out.

But that's not the point. The point is - what of those charities that used to get these cars? Not a day went by that I didn't hear a radio announcement from one charity or another, saying that the denotion of a used car would greatly help them out and be tax deductible. And unlike the cash for clunkers program, the car didn't even need to be drivable, they'd come and get it.

But now, with the goverment extending the program, charities aren't going to be getting these cars (why doesn't the government have the cars be given to charities, instead of shredded? Well, because of those evil emissions, I guess.)

But, of course, charities are going to be hard pressed in future, anyway. Rich people used to give thousands and thousands of dollars to charities because they could take it off on their taxes. Soon, that tax "loophole" will be closed, so they won't give as much. (After all, why should they? They're vilified whether they make charitable contributions or not, so why do it? The government will be delighted to step in and pick up the slack... and increase *our* taxes in order to fund any new programs....