Hey all,
Many of you will remember that, thanks to the traffic you’ve brought to this site, we’ve been able to fund a number of microloans through Kiva.org. Today I got an e-mail from Kiva, with an exciting announcement:
A lending team you’re a member of, “Atheists, Agnostics, Skeptics, Freethinkers, Secular Humanists and the Non-Religious” is super close to hitting a big milestone: 25,000 members. You’re less than 500 people away from hitting that goal, and we’d love to help you get there.
Kiva has $10,000 for matching loans of your team’s choice–but only if you can reach the goal of 25,000 team members by midnight on March 31st, 2013
The atheist group is the #1 largest loaner on the site, and is about to push over 25,000 members. $10,000 in loans is a LOT of opportunity to help people in the same way we’ve been able to through this site. If you’ve ever thought of participating in this program, there really is no better time than now to join up.
As a bonus, if you sign up through this link, I will receive a $25 gift loan, meaning that even more loans can be given. It’s a great opportunity, and costs you nothing more than you’re willing to loan. Please consider signing up and helping to move this project along.
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Crommunist 
If I were not currently availing myself (for the first time in my 35 years of Canadian living) of Her Majesty’s Government’s good graces (thank you EI), I’d be all over this like a badly-tailored suit of easily-rumpled cloth.
So if you are good enough to repeat this message from time to time, I expect I’ll be in a spot to do that.
Best blog at FTB. 🙂
Thank you for the kind words!
It’s worth noting that EI isn’t funded by Her Majesty’s Government – it’s funded by you and other wage-earning Canadians. I’m overjoyed that you are in a position to take advantage of the program, and hope you’re back to where you’d like to be soon.
Done.
CaitieCat, the link gives first time Kiva lenders a trial $25 to lend (which gets repaid to Kiva, rather than you) thanks to an anonymous donor (if I read the blurble right.) So it is the a great time to join up with Kiva, especially if you’re not in a position to lend right now.
But no pressure, and I’m going to borrow Crommunist’s well-wish: I hope you’re back to where you’d like to be soon.
And thanks for the kick in the pants to join, Crommunist.
Thank YOU for joining!
Okay, now I am lending my own bucks. Whee!
Already a Kiva member, but I’ve had a bunch of repaid loan money sitting around for a while now. So this was the kick the pants I needed to loan it back out, plus it’ll count towards the $10,000 campaign!
Also, IMHO, one of the coolest parts about Kiva is that your money can go a long way: since your loans will be ~95% repaid, you can then reloan your money nearly ad infinitum.
Oh whoops, that should be ~99% repaid. Was taking into account outstanding (non-delinquent) loans.
Ah, true that, a bit of sophistry of a Friday afternoon, waxing philosophical or superloquacious or something, maybe it’s because I was reading about Morrissey earlier and I always think of HM when I think about Morrissey.
But yes, it’s been useful, although i’m not actually getting a lot from it: I’ve put a lot more effort into my own business, and that’s meant I’ve had most of it clawed back. Still – rather be in a position to have it clawed back than not, and there have been a few weeks when it’s really helped. Good program.
I just have to hope I’ve hit the critical-mass portion of my business’ growth – that there are enough mouths out there saying good words to help me make enough to live on. Bit of luck, I might make enough to have to look forward to paying taxes on my self-employment next year. That’d be cool.
CaitieCat, have you considered “I don’t mind if you forget me” as a salve for the Moz-blues?
Actual LOLs, nice one.
I just find it hard to still love him as I did when I was a teen, because he seems to have got this rather nasty habit of letting racist things come out of his mouth in public, and I keep wanting to pretend he didn’t. He was so good at expressing the melancholy of otherness, and it’s so mind-blowingly Lovecraftianly* horrific that he is so easygoing about othering people himself.
But he did and does, and so I just look longingly at music by him when it is offered for sale and keep my money in my pocket, and I spurn chances to get tickets to see his shows, because yeah. Racist-crap-spewing habit. One of the toughest to forgive, for good reason.
* Dual irony there, given Lovecraft was a completely unrepentant racist himself.
This seems like a great program, I can’t see any reason to not get involved! I think I’ll be signing up and picking people to lend to over the weekend. That part has a weird feel to it, I guess, but it’s nice too.
Done. Glad to finally do this; I’ve considered it in the past, but have always been away from my computer when I saw one of your Kiva update, so when I get back to my computer, I’ve usually forgotten.
Done. Received $25 in matching grants from your link and I kicked in another $25 of my own.
Done; thanks for the poke.
Holy hell, folks! As of writing, I’ve received $925 in gift loans! Y’all are amazing! Keep it up!
One more that took the poke to finally get around to getting involved.
Done. Thanks for kicking this lurker into gear, another of the I’ve-been-meaning-to-do-this-for-a-long-time category.
Done! Thanks for letting us know!
Thanks so much for making me aware of this. Free loan plus an additional loan plus my day made.
Joined. Always meant to, now with no excuse not to.
Thanks, Crommunist.
If I’m already a member, can I just affiliate with the team and add to the membership goal, or do I actually have to make a loan assigned to the team? My reloan balance is a little short right now ($1.90).
As far as I know, all you need to do is affiliate with the team.
Done. I note that the team is less than 200 from 25,000 at this point.
Joined up, plus an additional loan. I’d been meaning to for a while, thanks for the opportunistic push. 😉
Joined. Thanks for the push. Unfortunately, my first loan turns out to be through a religious group. Now that I’ve installed the FireFox add-on to mark the religious organizations at Kiva, I’ll do better on my next loan. And I certainly don’t regret my choice of recipient (a very small loan to a Kenyan woman on the ‘Volunteer Favorites’ list), just the organization the loan is going through.
I signed up with the free trial (a great way to start!), and I’m adding a small loan of my own. The only hard part is picking a recipient. 🙂
Joined too.
Margaret – what’s that add-on called? It sounds very useful.
katybe, the “Atheists, Agnostics, Skeptics, Freethinkers, Secular Humanists and the Non-Religious” team page on Kiva says to check out atheist-monkey.blogspot.com. That tells how to install the add-on for Firefox, as well as one for chrome. It also gives other info on the “Atheists, Agnostics, Skeptics, Freethinkers, Secular Humanists and the Non-Religious” team.
Cheers.
Often reader me, rare if ever commentator, but THANK YOU for promoting this. Joined your team, liked and shared on FB and the Twitter, wonderful but not so amazing that this group is the largest contributor on the site. Good on you for starting this, good on us for joining.
Ok, so, just made one of those free $25 loans anonymously.
If I ever have actual money to put up, I’ll totally do that.
I had joined a while back … can’t help you with the membership drive, but I snarfed up a free loan and sent it to a borrower who has a couple of small businesses in El Salvador.
Done. Been meaning to do this for awhile; thanks for the kick in the rear.
FYI, I just checked the stats; Team Atheists, etc is now at 25,040 members.