The Voluntary Sector and American Religion

There are nonprofits whose assets exceed those of several nations, such as the Ford Foundation, Harvard University, and the J. Paul Getty Trust, and there are nonprofits that conduct intense civic campaigns out of someone's kitchen with volunteer labor and never more than $500 in the bank. There are associations dedicated to saving the world from nuclear war and associations dedicated to promoting the values of birdwatching. There are organizations such as the Democratic and Republican parties, which want to get all their candidates elected; and there is Mikes of America, which wants only to get anyone named Mike elected president of the United States. There is Mensa, an association for people with IQs of over 132; and there is Densa, "for all the rest of US." There are 350,000 churches, synagogues, and mosques for the religious; and there is Atheists Anonymous for those of a different persuasion. Michael O'Neill. The Third America