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One aspect of the intellectual approach that I struggle with is decision paralysis. That is, second-guessing any expenditure of resources I'm considering as possibly better spent on something else. And there are innumerable options. Empathy or (perhaps more usefully?) a sense of duty to specific people or organizations helps break that indecision, at least for me.

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It’s not really intellectual, it’s a sort of bike shed accounting process where we argue about what is more virtuous.

Most of us have a sense of family, community, humanity or other identity. Your personal feeling on these matters ultimately drive charity. Personally, my family does alot of charity and volunteering, and we generally do so for local organizations in our city that help those less fortunate. In my mind, it’s important to build up the community that we live in.

A “human charity accountant” will point out that our labor and treasure would better benefit a child in Bolivia or a sick person in the Congo. Those are fine causes and we all find our path to what matters most to us.

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