Why You Should Not Give Money To Red Nose Day

Please don’t give money to Red Nose Day this year, the whole thing is a disgusting spectacle of narcissistic self-promotion for the entertainment industry and big business that raises an absolutely pitiful amount of money while giving the participants the reams publicity and PR spin. To give an idea of the figures involved Tax dodging/Tax Avoidance costs UK around  £70 BILLION per year, Comic Relief/Red Nose Day has not even raised £1bn in TOTAL in over 25 years. Or to put it another way a single failed and bailed-out bank (RBS) last year paid out more than £600m in bonuses to staff just last year. That is almost as much as Comic Relief has raised in it’s quarter of a century long history.

The whole thing is a disgusting farce used by big business’s such as BT and Sainsbury’s to exploit those in need on order to present a false picture of corporate responsibility. The money these companies “give” doesn’t go to good causes but paying for things such as Chief Executive Kevin Cahill’s wages (over £250,000 every 2 years - nice work if you can get it!) and subsidising free adventure holiday outings for TV celebrities, such as this years white water rafting expedition for a bunch of millionaire, once funny, comedians. David Cameron’s involvement this year just makes this big con even more explicit. His government have recently  admitted that their introduction of the so-called *benefits cap* will plunge 100,000 more children from working families into poverty. Irony is not dead.

On the subject of children the coercion of schools into the Comic Relief hype machine is bad enough in that it indoctrinates relatively wealthy children into the belief that the poor and disabled are to be viewed as powerless victims, second class citizens, requiring hand outs - not as human being with rights, who, as such, have every right to demand social and economic justice. But the involvement of schools is even worse for children of poorer parents who may be struggling just to feed themselves, their children, and keep their homes warm. Think how it must to feel to then be hounded by millionaire Pop-Stars, TV personalities and Politicians into giving a slice of what little they have to avoid the shame and stigma that is the inevitable result of the social pressure to *join in* created by this mass media onslaught of hype.

For the vast amount of free air time, publicity, celebrity endorsement, time, energy and goodwill, not only is the pitiful amount raised embarrassing but the whole event propagates the idea that real lasting change is impossible. Real change IS possible but it won’t come through charity but from a re-adjustment of the political landscape. Now imagine if the vast amount of time and energy put into comic relief was put into campaigning for real political change because big, vital and necessary changes are not only possible but easily achievable if the political will is there. For staters we need the introduction of A) a mandatory living wage B) a redistributive tax on the obscene bonuses the bankers who brought this country to edge of bankruptcy are still paying themselves, and C) an immediate end to those tax loop holes that cost us £70 BILLION PER YEAR. Just these three steps would bring about real lasting change by redistributing wealth from the parasitical classes who steal it, to the working people who not only create this wealth but deserve their fair share of it. Also we wouldn’t have to watch Lenny Henry in a bath of baked beans (or whatever) every two years.