As someone who curates crowdfunding projects weekly for GOOD.is, I’m wary of the legitimacy of every project I consider. Not all projects aim to do good or are meant to, so it’s important to research them and read between the lines to make funding decisions you can believe in.
Some projects don’t even deliver the rewards they claim to promise, or don’t end up achieving their goals. According to a CNNMoney investigation last year, “84 percent of Kickstarter projects don’t ship on time. In other cases, products have failed to materialize after creators promised more than they could deliver.”
Ken Hoinsky’s book project on Kickstarter, Above the Game: A Guide to Getting Awesome with Women, was a little different. It was marketed as a “Dating Guide,” but when blogger Casey Malone dug further on Seddit, he discovered Hoinsky’s “advice” was misogynistic. “Don’t ask for permission, GRAB HER HAND, and put it right on your dick” and “Force her to rebuff your advances” are just two outrageous directives from the author.
After the project raised more than $15,000, DoSomething.org got 50,000-plus signatures to take the project down, and now Kickstarter has responded by donating $25,000 to anti-sexual violence program, RAINN (Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network). And, according to the site, to avoid future similar issues, they’re banning “seduction guides.”
But does Kickstarter’s response even solve the bigger problem and did they have to do anything beyond removing the project?
It’s not our place to say what should be on someone’s site, but Kickstarter’s Terms of Use state:
The problem is, Hoinsky’s actual Kickstarter page had nothing offensive on it and Kickstarter doesn’t vet projects outside of what’s posted on their site.
It’s wonderful we have crowdsourced platforms. It makes the world that much more democratic. Communities are formed over causes and creative innovation. But, does this mean that crowdfunding platforms need to do further digging, just like Malone did, or is it up to the potential funders?
I say, funders should know what they’re funding, just like they should know more about the companies they bank with and the stocks in which they invest.
Here are four things you can do before donating to a crowdfunding campaign:
1) Don’t assume every project is legit or meant to do good. There are scammers out there that don’t even have goals to create anything. So, read about the project owners. Find outside sources from their funding page that discuss what they aim to do.
2) Use your judgement. Whatever your moral compass may be, let it be your guide.
3) If you see a project that could be offensive, report it to the crowdfunding platform. Unless you speak out, they may never be aware there’s a problem.
Reddit user Girlfriendhatesmefor’s three-year-old pitbull, Otis, had recently become overprotective of his wife. So he asked the online community if they knew what might be wrong with the dog.
“A week or two ago, my wife got some sort of stomach bug,” the Reddit user wrote under the subreddit /r/dogs. “She was really nauseous and ill for about a week. Otis is very in tune with her emotions (we once got in a fight and she was upset, I swear he was staring daggers at me lol) and during this time didn’t even want to leave her to go on walks. We thought it was adorable!”
His wife soon felt better, butthe dog’s behavior didn’t change.
Girlfriendhatesmefor began to fear that Otis’ behavior may be an early sign of an aggression issue or an indication that the dog was hurt or sick.
So he threw a question out to fellow Reddit users: “Has anyone else’s dog suddenly developed attachment/aggression issues? Any and all advice appreciated, even if it’s that we’re being paranoid!”
The most popular response to his thread was by ZZBC.
Any chance your wife is pregnant?
ZZBC | Reddit
The potential news hit Girlfriendhatesmefor like a ton of bricks. A few days later, Girlfriendhatesmefor posted an update and ZZBC was right!
“The wifey is pregnant!” the father-to-be wrote. “Otis is still being overprotective but it all makes sense now! Thanks for all the advice and kind words! Sorry for the delayed reply, I didn’t check back until just now!”
Redditors responded with similar experiences.
Anecdotal I know but I swear my dog knew I was pregnant before I was. He was super clingy (more than normal) and was always resting his head on my belly.
realityisworse | Reddit
So why do dogs get overprotective when someone is pregnant?
Jeff Werber, PhD, president and chief veterinarian of the Century Veterinary Group in Los Angeles, told Health.com that “dogs can also smell the hormonal changes going on in a woman’s body at that time.” He added the dog may “not understand that this new scent of your skin and breath is caused by a developing baby, but they will know that something is different with you—which might cause them to be more curious or attentive.”
The big lesson here is to listen to your pets and to ask questions when their behavior abruptly changes. They may be trying to tell you something, and the news may be life-changing.
Throughout history, women have stood up and fought to break down barriers imposed on them from stereotypes and societal expectations. The trailblazers in these photos made history and redefined what a woman could be. In doing so, they paved the way for future generations to stand up and continue to fight for equality.
While conspiracy theories are not limited to any topic, there is one type of event that seems particularly likely to spark them: mass shootings, typically defined as attacks in which a shooter kills at least four other people.
When one person kills many others in a single incident, particularly when it seems random, people naturally seek out answers for why the tragedy happened. After all, if a mass shooting is random, anyone can be a target.
