From the website version, here’s the quote from Merkle that gwern alluded to:
Some Alcor members have wondered why rich Alcor members have not donated more money to Alcor. The major reason is
that rich Alcor members are rich because they know how to manage money, and they know that Alcor traditionally has
managed money poorly. Why give any significant amount of money to an organization that has no fiscal discipline? It will
just spend it, and put itself right back into the same financial hole it’s already in.
As a case in point, consider Alcor’s efforts over the year to create an “endowment fund” to stabilize its operating budget.
These efforts have always ended with Alcor spending the money on various useful activities. These range from research
projects to subsidizing our existing members — raising dues and minimums is a painful thing to do, and the Board is
always reluctant to do this even when the financial data is clear. While each such project is individually worthy and has
merit, collectively the result has been to thwart the effort to create a lasting endowment and leave Alcor in a financially
weak position.
From the website version, here’s the quote from Merkle that gwern alluded to: