How to Donate and Not Donate

I received the following warning about donating to FEMA to help flood victims: an attorney in Columbus states that the FEMA website directs a portion of the contributions solicited therein to an organization chaired by... PAT ROBERTSON!

And a Hoosier friend relays a great idea for those who want to donate, but are short on funds:

If you are short on funds to contribute to the Katrina aid effort, you might consider finding a couple things around the house that you no longer need/want and offer them on ebay. If you haven't used ebay, it is VERY easy, and there is a service they use called Missionfish (all explained on the ebay site) that allows you to designate any portion (minimum of $10) of the sale price to any of about 15 charities, including the American Red Cross.

Ebay walks you through the listing steps and Missionfish will do the rest, including sending you a statement of amount contributed, for tax purposes. All items listed with Missionfish can be searched separately, but all also have a large font promotion in the ad text, letting all ebay shoppers know their purchase will be supporting the effort.