# How bad is the pink for October in your area? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 6, 2017, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093 "2017-10-06T09:31:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2017, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/1 "2017-10-06T09:31:07Z")
There hasn’t been a lot good about 2017, but I have been happy to see that the pink for ‘Breast Cancer Awareness’ seems to have been scaled way back. I work in the Chicago Loop and I spend a decent amount of time walking around the entire area. There are some buildings that have pink lighting or other pink displays, but it is far more reserved than it has been in years past. I’ve noticed on Facebook and Twitter that very few companies have changed their profile picture to include pink, unlike in years past. I don’t go to too many retail stores, but the few that I’ve been to don’t have the overwhelming pinkwashing and 'for the cure…" merchandise all over the place. There are all good signs. October is a great month and, at least for now, it seems like it won’t be ruined with everything being coated in pink as if someone overdosed on Pepto Bismol and vomited it everywhere. ---
**Author:** ![TRC4941](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trc4941/32/6792_2.png) [@TRC4941](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TRC4941)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2017, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/2 "2017-10-06T14:07:23Z")
I’m in NE Minnesota - I’ve never noticed any extra breast cancer pink in October any year. There may be some fundraisers advertised but I’m not even sure about that. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2017, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/3 "2017-10-06T14:12:56Z")
I hadn’t thought about it until now but I feel like I see a lot less here. Somewhat off topic; yesterday I saw a vehicle with a pink ribbon sticker, a Jesus fish and a sticker that said “Don’t ask me for shit”. A bit of a mixed message, that. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2017, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/4 "2017-10-06T15:32:42Z")
I find it an odd thing to celebrate all told. I’d rather see fewer Christmas decorations before Halloween myself. ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2017, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/5 "2017-10-06T18:25:00Z")
Frankly, I love all the pink merchandise. At the end of the month, you can pick it up real cheap on clearance. ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2017, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/6 "2017-10-06T20:45:35Z")
> [@Alley\_Dweller](#): > > Frankly, I love all the pink merchandise. At the end of the month, you can pick it up real cheap on clearance. Yes, pink is my favorite color, and seeing it everywhere makes me happy (breast cancer not so much). It’s fun to be able to pick up things that wouldn’t normally be available in pink. The one thing I dislike is the way businesses that have no connection to breast cancer and are not donating any money still have pink merchandise, and imply that it’s related when it’s not. Still doesn’t stop me from buying pink stuff, though. Wearing a pink striped shirt and pink hoodie today. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2017, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/7 "2017-10-06T21:39:31Z")
It’s not as bad as in past years here in NYC. [Nothing like a little good 'ole American whoring to ruin a perfectly good charity…](http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/komen.asp). THESE nitwits shoulda stuck to doing the right thing. I’ve lost relatives to breast cancer as well as other cancers. At this point, I don’t even know who I’d donate to in the belief that over .90 cents on the dollar went to actual RESEARCH. Not funneling donations to all-expenses paid trips to Gstaadt where you attend a seminar or two, hang out in the hot tubs and fuck research assistants and then go home with a clear conscience because you did something for cancer. No. Actual goddamned research. ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2017, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/8 "2017-10-06T23:36:06Z")
Another personal benefit for me: the Bears have sucked for so long, I’ve completely lost interest in the NFL the last couple of years. This means I don’t watch any October games were everyone wears those hideous pink accents on their uniforms. I don’t even know if teams are still doing that anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2017, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/9 "2017-10-06T23:41:32Z")
Thankful not to be seeing so much of it this year. We have only a small selection at work this year. I haven’t seen it all over town like in the past. I don’t like pink for the most part. I hate that it’s foisted upon us every May for Mother’s Day and then again in October. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2017, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/10 "2017-10-06T23:55:07Z")
I especially don’t wish to walk into the gas station, like I did earlier today, and be reminded once again of the diagnosis I got on Tuesday morning. Best-selling author, and breast cancer survivor, Barbara Ehrenreich addressed this many years ago. She’s said many times that for her, the “Breast Cancer Bear” was the most demeaning thing she’d ever seen. :smack: > **[Welcome to Cancerland, by Barbara Ehrenreich](https://harpers.org/archive/2001/11/welcome-to-cancerland/)** > > A mammogram leads to a cult of pink kitsch Or better yet, one everybody can actually read. > **[Ehrenreich-2001-WelcomeToCancerland-Harpers.pdf](https://pinkribbonblues.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Ehrenreich-2001-WelcomeToCancerland-Harpers.pdf)** > > 933.71 KB ---
**Author:** ![TRC4941](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trc4941/32/6792_2.png) [@TRC4941](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TRC4941)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2017, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/11 "2017-10-09T16:26:16Z")
My son died at the age of 30 from a rare sarcoma. Cancer sucks in any form. We spent many days at Mayo and other clinics for close to 3 years. I HATED all of the cutesy cancer sayings on everything - mugs, t-shirts, socks, teddy bears, etc. that the hospital gift shops sold. You can’t make cancer fun or funny. F\*\*K cancer. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2017, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/12 "2017-10-10T04:13:46Z")
I’m all for breast cancer awareness and research - my mother is a survivor - but I purely hate the pink accents that disfigure NFL teams in October. Especially if it clashes with their regular colors - I’m thinking of the Browns, the Steelers, the Redskins. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2017, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/13 "2017-10-10T04:24:31Z")
My mother, sister, & all my aunt’s died from breast cancer. The pink ribbon makes me wanna puke. No one ever helped any of my family, from Susan Komen foundation. Non-existent. Do they do anything, really? ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2017, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/14 "2017-10-10T05:23:43Z")
I’ve got two in the pink. ---
**Author:** ![Fir\_na\_tine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Fir\_na\_tine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fir_na_tine)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2017, 9:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/15 "2017-10-11T09:41:21Z")
Here in Maine, almost every pickup truck sports a snowplow blade in winter. Local dealership has a pink V-blade hooked onto a brand new pickup on display. Had to bleach my eyes after seeing that. ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2017, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/16 "2017-10-11T10:08:07Z")
Texas here. I had no idea what the OP was talking about until opening the thread. Maybe there are pink decorations somewhere, but I haven’t seen 'em. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Quatro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bc8723/32.png) [@Mr\_Quatro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Quatro)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2017, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-bad-is-the-pink-for-october-in-your-area/798093/17 "2017-10-11T13:46:27Z")
The display of pink for breast cancer is nice, but prayer is better: [Redirecting...](https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10209708106754882&set=p.10209708106754882&type=3&theater) Tracie Marie > [@](#): > > While the majority of people believe that Breast Cancer is a pink ribbon, a pink Pom Pom, a pen with a pink ribbon, a tote with a pink ribbon, an encap at your local Walmart engaging you to be a “part of the cure. > First, a hard reality, you are not being part of the cure, you’re just throwing your money away to propaganda, uniforms for NFL cheerleaders, and kiosk after kiosk with items from handbags to ziplock bags. It’s all a hoax. They are not trying to fight the cure. Most of their funding goes to advertisement, 6 figure CEO salaries. And when I asked for help, I wasn’t given any, DENIED. Denied by the very people who claimed they would help me in their “advertising”. A pink ribbon isn’t the men and women fighting for their lives with metastatic breast cancer. I cannot comprehend how people can not grasp the simple concept that if you cure stage 4 you cure them all. It’s that simple. You will not have to worry about dying because, there’s a cure if you get to that point. > Breast cancer is often very sexualized. Showing models with fake scars, beautiful bodies and breasts with the strap so perfectly dangling from her shoulder. That’s not what Breast cancer is. It’s CTs, surgeries, amputations, biopsies, MRIs, X-rays, radiation, chemo, IVs, blood tests, fear, worry, hate, anger, confusion, sadness, loneliness, medications, check ups, anxiety, depression, insomnia, pain. It’s so much more than a pink snickers bar because it “supports us! > We do not receive free boob jobs. We have reconstruction. Expanders placed to stretch your skin to fit the implants, complications, tram flap surgeries, sometimes our bodies reject the implants, some choose to go flat, some reconstructions are amazing and look fabulous, some look completely deformed. However, in no way did any of us receive a free boob job. We amputated them and had foreign objects placed in our skin to resembles the breasts we once had. We tattoo our nipples on, we get prosthetic ones, or we go with out. But none of it was free. > Save the Tatas, save 2nd base, no bra day with a bunch of nipples poking out in no way supports those with Breast Cancer. > This is what a lot of cancer really looks like! > > Pink isn’t pretty, it’s not a ribbon and it definitely doesn’t help us!