Fair enough 😉

There are some interesting points being made though, kerley’s post is a good one.

What an ugly thread. Gotta feel sorry for the lad, whatever his background.

Worth remembering that we are very vulnerable to injury, whilst we’re on our obscenely expensive push-bikes.

Should the young lad be a higher priority for our charitable donations?

I think that’s everyone’s personal choice. I know who I would give my money to though.

There are two arguments going on here though.

Molgrips you seem to be making the very reasonable argument that the way we chose what is or isn’t worthy of our charity is, at best, political and at worst, and more frequently, entirely arbitrary.

Legend, you seem to be making a different argument which is one that tries to explain that discrepancy, and very reasonbly I might add.

You probably both agree 100% on everything – that it is unfair but that it is the result of politics and coverage.

Worth remembering that we are very vulnerable to injury, whilst we’re on our obscenely expensive push-bikes.

Everyone is vulnerable to injury. Only a handful of those injured will get £380,000 in donations though while many will suffer in poverty for the rest of their lifes.

You probably both agree 100% on everything – that it is unfair but that it is the result of politics and coverage.

That just made me throw-up a little

Matt Hampson.

Sorry for being pedantic, but if people want to look him up, I thought I’d give the correct name.
Amazing what he’s done since his injury.

My mistake. I agree, a remarkable bloke.

Re the charity bit.

I gave money to Martyn Ashton to enable him to get more kit. Why because my son enjoyed watching is vids and found him inspirational.

The good point raised above is should I have given the money to Martyn or to a charity that helps more people in his situation/does research?

I’m sure the Martyn Ashton situation was more favourably viewed on here than someone in motorsport

That’s an entirely personal decision and criticising that choice is a bit like criticising how someone chooses to vote….

I asked the question, in none of my posts have I criticised either choice.

Funkydunc, I too donated to Ashton personally for similar reasons – he was someone who I ‘knew’ and who’s exploits had entertained and inspired me. There are obviously (as some have posted) also a ‘grace of god’ impact where people can identify with the victim through being involved in the same activity. Objectively? my money may have been better directed to a suitable charity rather than an individual, but maybe Ashton inspires others in similar positions to him and raises the profile of such charities, and maybe this case could do the same for young amputees and those badly injured in road accidents.

Legend – would you be so uppity if it were a smackhead who’s lost his legs through shooting up?

maybe Ashton inspires others in similar positions to him and raises the profile of such charities,

@CTM

I think that’s a good point and if he inspires others or allows technology to develop that helps others then it’s been a good outcome to the donation. Worst case is you’ve helped make one person’s life better when you could have quite legitimately done nothing at all.

I also think that where charitable giving is concerned the causes we choose are personal and influenced heavily by our own interests, social groups and sensitivities.

Leaving aside these individual collections like the unfortunate lad this thread began with (or the one in a million chance cancer treatment in the USA for a loving mum) what’s more worthy? MacMillan or Oxfam, Shelter or Sight Savers, The Children’s Hospice or the new MRI unit at the local hospital.

The point of charity is that it’s a voluntary contribution to making something that’s not good better for someone or something (eg animals). This gives us the right to choose for our own reasons.

I also think that where charitable giving is concerned the causes we choose are personal and influenced heavily by our own interests, social groups and sensitivities.

And how much media attention a particular cause gets.

Many years ago visited a limb fitting centre in Liverpool , where they made and fitted artifical arms and legs, speaking to a DR there he said losing a limb hapenened quite often, sometimes through trauma or sometimes through a medical condition, he said the greatest risk was from motorcycle /motorist collision as where legs or arms are either torn off or seriously damaged resulting in amputation.

He also said a leg is easier to replace than a hand /arm as legs are used for just support,and there was huge experience in making replacement legs, over the years, where as hands do a lot more and we havent developed the technology yet to make a true artifical arm hand.

Best wishes to the lad on his recovery, theres a lot of engineeing out there to help you.

And how much media attention a particular cause gets.

Yes there’s that and a bunch of other stuff I’m sure i didn’t think of too.

yunki – Member
Legend – would you be so uppity if it were a smackhead who’s lost his legs through shooting up?

Like the Glasgow guy Molgrips was banging on about? (As we’re allowed the assume everything we want)

Anyway, yes. If someone posted a thread about something terrible that had happened to a junky then it would still be just as shit if people started judging whether or not he deserved money or how bad his injuries were in the grand scheme of things.

Horrific crash – turned over to watch the BTCC coverage at the weekend, thought it sounded pretty bad if he was in the car for that long. But just saw the onboard after reading this slightly distasteful farce – no idea what that car was doing sitting there but makes you wonder about yellow flags and stopping races and things, not to be judgemental. Bad place to have a stationary car. 🙁

I race cars and what I can see made things so much worse was that the car stationary on the track must of been in gear or the guy was on th brakes, if not, energy would have been dissipated into the second car causing it to move and therefore less damage to the moving car.

Donington is a terrible track if it’s raining, the water actually runs on to the track and the surface is very slippery which is why stationary car had spun and was stalled.