2003 Generosity Index - (Surprise - Conservatives More Generous)

... is not to be taken seriously and is, in fact, a joke.

If that's his idea of a joke, I bet the guys a scream at parties...

I see he did not dispute the Journal's read of the situation, but played it off as some sort of tongue in cheek conclusion.

I'll stick with my original thought, which was conservatives (not Republicans) are more generally more generous.

I'll stick with my original thought, which was conservatives (not Republicans) are more generally more generous.

You're free to stick with any thought you wish. My point was that you should not base that thought on the Generosity Index as it is based on an obviously flawed formula. Do you disagree with that?

I saw an analysis which took this a bit further, and tested assumptions about how much the non-claimers donate. The difference is small (too small to brag about) but can be found here.

Thanks for the info. He did some pretty interesting analysis. I likewise updated the information that I posted at http://home.netcom.com/~rdavis2/genindex.html. I noted there that the state in with the highest "Having Rank" can score a "Ranks Relation" no HIGHER than zero and the state with the lowest "Having Rank" can score a "Ranks Relation no LOWER than zero. Hence, if the former state gave ALL of their money to charity and the latter state gave NONE, they would likely both have "Having Ranks" of zero and have the same Generosity Index.

As a result, the Generosity Index favors "poor" states. This tends to make the richer states looks less generous and possibly shame them into contributing more. This may not be lost on the creators of the Index who are, afterall, trying to increase donations. Anyhow, thanks again for the info.

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