buckworks - 11:55 pm on Dec 22, 2009 (gmt 0)

I for one had mixed feelings about some of the doodads received in past years, and I don't begrudge their absense.

Google's announcement about making a donation was not the first such note I've received this season. It seems to be a growing trend for companies to make charitable donations in lieu of handing out promotional gifts, and on many levels that's probably a good thing.

In reference to the percentage reportedly given to charity, let's not get judgemental because there's no way we can know the whole story here. FWIW, some companies believe in making zero charitable donations at the corporate level, believing that it's preferable to maximize the paychecks of employees, shareholders, partners, etc so they can make their own individual decisions about what to support.

As with so many things, there's more than one way to look at it ...