10 Really Depressing Facts (And Ways to Help)

1. We killed the world’s oldest animal. A 506 year old clam named “Ming” that scientists killed in the process of determining it’s age. Oops! I actually hate to start here but on this list… where should I start? Anyway Ming is very dead and probably didn’t even turn into delicious chowder. Do you wanna save endangered species? Go right ahead and donate! https://www.worldwildlife.org/

2. 80% of of the people affected by wars and natural disasters are women and children. Haha, and they say we don’t need feminism! That isn’t funny. The “haha” was a device. We seriously fucking need feminism. We also need relief for families effected by horrible tragedies. Go toss a few dollars at the Red Cross: http://www.redcross.org/

3. At 18 years old you probably have less than 4,000 weekends left in your life. I mean this is, like, best case scenario numbers. Worldwide, most people are happy to get to 18 years old. Do you wanna increase longevity? Help fight cancer:  http://www.cancer.org/

4. Every year, over 7 million children die of starvation. Seriously. When you hear politicians ranted about “welfare queens” remember this statistic. When you hear how much we “waste” on aid to Africa please remember this statistic. When you hear how easy kids have it “these days” please remember this statistic and donate: http://www.actionagainsthunger.org/

5. Katy Perry has more Twitter followers than the entire population of Canada. This is terrifying. In the “first world” we, statistically, cut arts education before any other kind. Art doesn’t teach the next generation how to fingerpaint, it teaches them how to see: http://www.fendermusicfoundation.org/

6. Almost half of American births are the result of accidental pregnancies. Wow. Doesn’t this one seem particularly preventable? Maybe don’t vote against fucking birth control. Also? Donate to: http://www.plannedparenthood.org/

7. According to one study: The tenth most wished-for gift on Christmas is “a dad”. I’m gonna take a wild guess and say that this has more to do with what is lacking in many children’s lives then it does with the actual man whose sperm they were made from. Please give a little annually to: http://www.bgca.org/

8. CPR barely works. Only 2% of people who have it administered outside of a hospital will survive. Don’t believe what Marlboro tells you, heart disease is incredibly preventable! Don’t just eat your Cheerios and go for a run. Donate to: http://www.healthcharities.org/

9. Over a half a million Americans are homeless. A quarter of those are children. Homelessness is a complicated problem that needs more than a shelter and a bus ticket out of town. Help the people leading the charge to chage lives and clean up our economy by donating to: http://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/

10. Studies have found that roughly 80% of time spent online at work is procrastinating. This article might have been part of the problem but, hey, it was for a good deed (or 10). To help those children who struggle with attention issues every single day please send a few dollars to: http://www.add.org.uk/