[ALawPoker]

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Well, you could probably make a good argument that "big fancy churches" and "Fathers having marble baths (personal anecdote)" aren't exactly 'good causes.'

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Sure, I agree with this. But I still think in the eye of the giver, it is a good cause. He's giving to "church" and not really concerned with how effectively his money is actually used (the same can be said for most any choice of charity).

I agree that some causes seem like less reasonable choices than others. But I think you can still look at religious donations as a nice (if maybe misguided) decision.

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A ot of religious giving benefits the giver. I don't think this disqualifies it, of course.

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You could also argue that all giving benefits the giver in some way if he chooses to give and that semantically there is no such thing as an act of kindness. I don't really see what's different about religion than anything else.