More and more frequently, we hear of mega-size donations to charity by the wealthiest people in our society. We’re especially likely to see them around this time of year, as the season of giving really gets underway.
From Bill Gates to Jeff Bezos to Mark Zuckerberg, Forbes magazine’s list of the country’s 400 richest billionaires is full of stories of their nearly unfathomable charitable largesse.
The latest entry into this field, Michael Bloomberg, just announced a $1.8 billion donation to his alma mater, Baltimore’s Johns Hopkins University.
There are many reasons to celebrate these acts of sharing: Bloomberg’s gift will allow many more people to attend that university without massive debt. But the increasing frequency of gifts of enormous size comes with its perils.
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