Why Charities Should Die

From the Clouds of Common Grace...

Nancy Lublin of Fast Company magazine dares to propose that some not-for-profits should just shut down. Not that an external force should come and force them to close their doors but to so clearly envision their mission from the beginning that they know when it has been accomplished. Kind of like knowing when to pull out the troops. That is a noble business model.

Here are a couple notable quotables from her brief article:

"A not-for-profit exists to cure something, address an issue, or elevate the status of a group of people; if and when that's achieved, we should be done."

"The broader principle here is that companies and organizations don't exist simply to exist. A not-for-profit should ideally be not-for-perpetuity. We should not be donor-funded jobs programs. People give not b/c they believe in us as employable human beings but b/c they believe in what we do."

Hey nightclubs, got an idea...

Just about every Sunday driving home on Ontario St. from church, I cast a glance at one of downtown Chicago's "premier" night club's marquis. I purposefully won't link to it, but only regular visitors of downtown Chicago or Chicago residents will know which one I'm referring to (not that it's a unique idea to them). Now that I've got you curious...

(by the way, [to my Christian friends and interlocutors] a place like this cannot be redeemed. Plainly, the clearest path to redemption would be if the owners and managers repented and bowed the knee to the King, sold the place and turned it into a place of virtuous profit or sold it to a church or agency for a great price)

Aside from some of the vulgarity implied on some of their ads is an ad promoting the fact that among all the kinds of parties they host, they invite you to have your "divorce party" with them. How about that? Let's celebrate infidelity, irresponsibility and freedom of choice.

As a guy who's in business and particularly marketing, I know how we are constantly on the prowl for a great idea or campaign.

Well, here's one:
At the end of the world, when all "hell" seems to be breaking loose on earth in an unprecedented way and your establishment is still left standing, I can think of no better idea than the following. However, I must preface the idea with some background from that antiquated piece of sage literature, the Bible.
From the book of Revelation, chapter 11, there are going to be 2 powerful dudes called witnesses running around for over 3 years preaching and supposedly incinerating any opponents. Well, their mighty preaching circuit will end with their assasination. Let John the Apostle fill in some details here:

"and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified. For 3.5 days some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, because the these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth."

So, the idea, nightclub managers, is to have a "YAY, the 2 prophets are dead!" party (buy the URLs now!). That kind of party may reach a niche no one else is thinking of (even though it is predicted here in the Biblical text). Retailers could even run a last minute Black Friday gig to aid in the festivities. However, it would be fair for planning purposes to clue you in to read verse 11.

Showdown in the 'Hood

As great as it is to live in the Logan Square neighborhood, like any other community, it has it share of problems. For the first time since we have lived here, we heard gunshots not too far from our home. Apparently, the cops and a high-ranking gang banger got into it.
Every night, we pray with our kids for the safety our home and our neighborhood. I know that the Chicago Police don't have the shiniest history, but I am grateful for them that God has comissioned them to protect us. Though both a detective and the criminal were both hit, neither of them suffered loss of life (to my knowledge).