Note of caution: US data suggests that giving falls off 12-18 months after an economic downturn

In the ornate surroundings of London’s Dorchester Hotel, Ted Turner, the media mogul, described the impulse that led him to donate a billion dollars to the poorest in the world. “It is hard to look at what is going on in the third world and not want to help,” he said at a dinner held in March. “It is a huge source of satisfaction that wealthy people are making a difference in so many positive ways.”