Is charity the same as kindness? It certainly can be.

It can also be a way of keeping people dependent. Or making oneself look good at the expense of someone else’s suffering.

Is charity truly kindness, or does that depend entirely on circumstances?

Certainly, there are hundreds of charities that exist solely to be someone’s write-off, a billionaire’s scam, a business where the CEO still pays themselves like a Fortune 500 CEO (see Way, United).

An act of kindness does not have to be charity.

It does not even have to be nice. Sometimes, the greatest kindness is telling someone a hard truth. It may not seem kind, but lying to them, or allowing them to continue to live a lie is far more cruel.

Sometimes, the kindness is in saying nothing at all.

Sometimes, it’s not helping at all. Letting someone find her own way.

Sometimes, charity is another word for condescension. Another word for oppression.

Another word for kindness.

Context and perspective are everything.

Target: 1600 words
Written: 570 words, novel: Father Lightning

Read: Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea, Jules Verne (here we go again with the cannibals)
Comics: Noble Causes 32-33, Dynamo 5 12-13
Music: Undefeated, Frank Turner