Further Ripples from the Buffett-Gates Philanthropic Challenge

We previously blogged about the philanthropic challenge Warren Buffett and Bill Gates issued to America’s billionaires: pledge to give away at least half of your wealth.  The public disclosure of that challenge continues to spark debates both here and elsewhere, especially after the announcement that 38 other billionaires had accepted this challenge.  For example, over the weekend the New York Times Magazine ran an article noting that lower-income Americans consistently give proportionately more of their income to charities than the higher-income Americans, but also reporting research indicating that this pattern can be changed.  Not all reactions to the challenge have been positive, however.  The Wall Street Journal recently reported that some European commentators have been less than laudatory, criticizing the wealthy both for the methods by which they gained their riches and their apparent attempt to do what the state should be doing. 

Further coverage and commentary:  Bloomberg, The Chronicle of Philanthropy (subscription required for full article), New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Wall Street Journal.

LHM