I hope I never become that cynical. As Gary pointed out, AmeeJ never asked us for anything. All she ever did was relate the reasons she had to get rid of her car.
Gary was perceptive enough to pick up on the fact that a fellow forum member probably wasn't going to have a very good Christmas thanks to a financial decision she made a few months ago.
I don't know why somebody who's "middle class" should be automatically "exempt" from being eligible for charity when they need it. The question of who's more "deserving", is a decision that each individual who wants to help out must make.
There are allot of good charities out there to choose from, some better than others. But some of them seem to have overly exaggerated "administration fees" so you need to do your home work before you make any donations. Case in point:
Carrol Shelby has had a "Pet" Charity for kids ever since he had a heart transplant a while back. He says it's one of the highest priorities in his life.
Now even though he has collected several million dollars to date, he has only passed out less than a $10K to any needy kids.
If this is a scam, then that would make Gary the "Scam Artist", and since I spent a few hours talking with him in a hotel lobby at Woodward Ave, along with Dave "Sennaspirit", Lorne, and FP, I never got the impression he was a "Flim Flam Man". (I'm not so sure about Dave and FP though).
This is an open forum, and everybody is entitled to his or her opinions. But we are all adults, and we really don't need to be told that we are gullible just because we want to help. That's really not what this season is all about.
By the way, AimeeJ hasn't even PM'd me her address yet.
Personally, I haven't met anybody on this forum that I wouldn't help out if I could. (and I've met quit a few). But then I haven't met "Fogocruzado".