Sadly, everything in this post is true. Christopher Hitchens documented this and much more in his 1995 book, THE MISSIONARY POSITION: MOTHER TERESA IN THEORY AND PRACTICE.

However, the majority of the world's masses don't know and don't care. The 'historical Mother Teresa' has been replaced by the saintly 'nun of faith.' Who she really was doesn't matter: she's a cultural icon now. Her name and image serve to stir in the masses a vague, warm fuzzy feeling of goodness. Don't rob them of this delusion or they'll hate you with unbridled passion.

I've got no problem with fictional Buddhist characters. Quite likely much Buddhist literature is “fictionalized” to a certain extent.

The problem comes when people get so involved with his little sob story that they start offering all kinds of support.

He wrote in Twitter on Aug. 1:

I get many offers in my direct messages. Thank you, it is very nice. But as monk I really do not need any stuff. I want your friendship!

Now with monks and Buddhist communities struggling for funds how likely are people to trust who they're supporting if they feel they've been duped. I'm not only talking about money but emotional support as well.

There's a legal case in Canada right now of a young woman who pretended to have cancer and went on the Internet and raised tens of thousands of dollars. The various cancer charities are quite dismayed about this because when this happens (and it has more than once) they've actually seen a drop in their donations, volunteer participation and support. So these frivolous fictions can have real world effects.

My Love -The Dream & Mariah Carey
<3

RT

Replica of real-world architectural landmark Empire State Building Booklet included with details on design and history Measures 7.4″ (188 mm) tall and 3.1″ (80 mm) wide Perfect for any New Yorker, world tourist or architecture fan Product Description“Build the Empire State Building! The Empire State Building joins the LEGO Architecture Landmark series of real-world construction [...]

Mariah Carey see through -

I think it all depends which charity you give to and how you stipulate the donation is to be spent.

If say, you drop a few pounds in a charity tin then the charity are free to spend it as they like. This is known as an unrestricted donation. On the other hand if you write to the charity and state exactly how you wish the cash to be spent, the charity must do this. This is a restricted donation.

Any breaches of these rules will be picked up by the charities auditor, although not all charities actually require an audit.

I think you need to look at who you are giving it to, stipulate how you want the money spent and always request in writing a follow up as to how the money was used and who benefited from it.

You can go on the charity's website and get a set of their accounts to find how much they actually spend on specific projects.

Oh man! We didn't make it to the Empire State Bldg Looks like a beautiful view! That pizza doesn't look so great. Have u heard of Grimaldi's in Brooklyn? We passed it a couple times and there was abound both times at least 150 peeps deep! In 30 degrees!!! Must be freakin awesome. Also, I'm still dying to know what u got from Tiffany's…. The DB bag is just beautiful. I have always loved that plaidish design.