# I do NOT want to donate to breast cancer! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 7, 2011, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857 "2011-10-07T02:43:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2011, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/61 "2011-10-10T16:25:23Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > This is a funny story from a few days ago when I was shopping with my sister. > > First, let me give you a little background info. I HATE when people ask me if I want to “donate to breast cancer” only because of the fact that they should be saying “donate to breast cancer research” or “donate to fight breast cancer.” Usually I do not make a big deal about it because I know they don’t mean any harm. But I make it a point not to donate when it is phrased this way, on the off chance that they are actually collecting money to help spread breast cancer. I guess this really makes me a grammar Nazi. > So I was at the check out counter, and the little digital pad where I slid my card asked “Donate to breast cancer?” and I made this little sharp comment to my sister and said “NO! I do not want to donate TO breast cancer.” This is sort of a running inside pet peeve/joke between me and my sister, so it got a laugh out of her and I started to chuckle. I seriously didn’t mean anything by it, but the cashier SCOLDED me right then and there. She said, “you don’t have to be so mean about it! You know, men get breast cancer too!” I felt SO, SO bad… I couldn’t even begin to explain why I had said what I said. I apologized sheepishly and told her that I definitely against breast cancer, and that I had donated many times in the past to help fight it. That got me exactly where you might assume that it would: Nowhere. > > Anyway, I am really sorry to that poor cashier… But don’t you “heart” boobies? 😃 At Vons, they want you to donate to multiple sclerosis or something at the register. ---
**Author:** ![caveman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/caveman/32/7242_2.png) [@caveman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caveman)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2011, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/62 "2011-10-10T19:41:40Z")
A few years back, cavelady and I went to a church service with her sorority where they were handing out carnations to promote breast cancer awareness. Wonderful, mostly older, ladies. Being helpful, I stood in the foyer with two of them, holding the supply of flowers which they passed out to everyone who entered the sanctuary. I got to listen as the phrase “Here’s a carnation for Breast Cancer Awareness Sunday” gradually decayed into “Breast Awareness” as more and more people started filing through. I did not die laughing, somehow. ---
**Author:** ![Gedd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gedd/32/4938_2.png) [@Gedd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gedd)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2011, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/63 "2011-10-10T20:01:27Z")
I wanted to contribute by buying a bumper sticker that says “Save the Ta-Tas” for our mini van but my wife vetoed the decision. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2011, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/64 "2011-10-10T21:22:03Z")
> [@vivalostwages](#): > > But don’t you “heart” boobies? 😃 > > At Vons, they want you to donate to multiple sclerosis or something at the register. As a gay man I can say that they are aesthetically interesting and sometimes beautiful, and they serve an important function. Don’t know if I can honestly say I \<3 them though. I certainly don’t want them to get breast cancer, I can say that much. ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2011, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/65 "2011-10-10T22:28:33Z")
Donate to breast cancer? Why can’t I donate to foundations engaged in fighting plantar warts, or nose hairs…or baldness? Why can’t we jst give to one organization…like the “United Fund”? ---
**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 11, 2011, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/66 "2011-10-11T17:47:02Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > Donate to breast cancer? Why can’t I donate to foundations engaged in fighting plantar warts, or nose hairs..or baldness? > Why can’t we jst give to one organization..like the “United Fund”? You can - it’s called “United Way”. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/67 "2011-10-11T18:58:26Z")
> [@whiterabbit](#): > > I hate the pink. Not the cause – the damn color. Why, oh why, did they have to go with pink? Because there are no green titties? ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/68 "2011-10-11T19:31:10Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Because there are no green titties? I dare you to Google it. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/69 "2011-10-11T20:46:29Z")
> [@VunderBob](#): > > I’ll donate to breast cancer research when prostate cancer has as good a marketing organization. Clearly you’re not familiar with an organization called [Pints for Prostates](http://www.pintsforprostates.org/). That’s the group directly responsible for me getting tested and finding out I had prostate cancer (story [here](http://garyrobson.wordpress.com/2011/06/01/pints-for-prostates/)). I ran a fundraiser for them this year, and I’ll definitely be doing it again. That was, by the way, my [second bout](http://garyrobson.wordpress.com/2011/07/03/rodeos-beer-and-cancer/) with cancer (I’ve done two “ask the cancer patient” threads on SDMB: see [here](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=475811) and [here](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=573946)). I have not seen the same kind of marketing for lymphoma. Why the hell do we need separate organizations (often many of them) for each individual kind of cancer anyway? It would be much more efficient just have one central cancer organization that everybody donates to that supports all kinds of research, based on various criteria. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2011, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/70 "2011-10-11T20:57:37Z")
[quote=“Gary “Wombat” Robson, post:69, topic:598857”] Why the hell do we need separate organizations (often many of them) for each individual kind of cancer anyway? It would be much more efficient just have one central cancer organization that everybody donates to that supports all kinds of research, based on various criteria. [/QUOTE] Cancers can be very different from each other and research that helps one won’t help all the others- although I’m not sure if that really answers the question. Certainly more information needs to be shared by researchers and not less. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2011, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/71 "2011-10-17T21:22:27Z")
> [@Gedd](#): > > I wanted to contribute by buying a bumper sticker that says “Save the Ta-Tas” for our mini van but my wife vetoed the decision. One of my best friends has that bumper sticker on her car. ---
**Author:** ![Khendrask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3e96dc/32.png) [@Khendrask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khendrask)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2011, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/72 "2011-10-20T14:23:30Z")
> [@a35362](#): > > I also hate the “Buy X and we will donate Y amount to Z cause.” Just donate directly to the cause! Much hate for that scam tactic. I just noticed that Yoplait yogurt is doing this, but of course, with a catch… They will donate 10 cents for every yogurt top you MAIL BACK, UP TO a total of 2 million dollars to breast cancer research. I’ll never buy another of their products again, I despise it when a company markets to a ribbon, and then can’t even have the decency to just go ahead and make the donation. Oh, for the record, yes, you can also enter the passcodes for the tops on their website somewhere, after of course registering with them for their other promotional spam. No thanks. ---
**Author:** ![mischievous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mischievous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mischievous)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2011, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/73 "2011-10-20T15:03:36Z")
Not unique to me, of course, but it does shut them up… Chirpy twit: “Would you like to donate to breast cancer?” Me: “I’m a biologist at the National **Cancer** Institute. I think I’m doing my part.” ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2011, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/74 "2011-10-20T15:12:58Z")
> [@Khendrask](#): > > I just noticed that Yoplait yogurt is doing this, but of course, with a catch… They will donate 10 cents for every yogurt top you MAIL BACK, UP TO a total of 2 million dollars to breast cancer research. I saw this on a list of worst “pinked” promotions yesterday. On top of buying the yogurt, you’re spending 44 cents to mail them the top so they can donate 10 cents. That’s just plain wasteful. Screw the whole thing and give directly. I don’t know why the charities think this is worthwhile. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Il\_Palazzo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Lord\_Il\_Palazzo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Il_Palazzo)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2011, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/75 "2011-10-20T15:36:17Z")
> [@Gedd](#): > > I wanted to contribute by buying a bumper sticker that says “Save the Ta-Tas” for our mini van but my wife vetoed the decision. I utterly loath those bumper stickers (along with the t-shirts and anything else with that logo). I know I’m probably reading way too much into it and taking it entirely out of the spirit in which it was intended, but I always read it as saying “Women’s lives are worth protecting just because they have breasts. We shouldn’t care about breast cancer because of the way it hurts and kills people; we should care because of the way it affects ‘ta-tas’.” ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2011, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/76 "2011-10-20T16:05:25Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > I wouldn’t be surprised if prostate cancer has the best awareness and fundraising after breast cancer - maybe lung cancer is ahead because of its connection to smoking. Not really. On one hand, peple know lung cancer exists, and on the other they think it’s exclusively linked to smoking. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Il\_Palazzo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Lord\_Il\_Palazzo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Il_Palazzo)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2011, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/77 "2011-10-20T16:19:48Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > I saw this on a list of worst “pinked” promotions yesterday. On top of buying the yogurt, you’re spending 44 cents to mail them the top so they can donate 10 cents. That’s just plain wasteful. Screw the whole thing and give directly. I don’t know why the charities think this is worthwhile. It isn’t that bad. I think it’s safe to assume that most people who buy yogurt buy more than one cup at a time and can fit multiple lids in an envelope. It’s still pretty inefficient (even sending 20 lids is only $2 total for your ¢44 “investment”) but it’s better than sending one at a time. As for why charities do it, would you ever object to receiving money if you were a charity? Sure, direct donations are better, but $2 million from a yogurt company is still money you wouldn’t have had without their promotion (not counting money donated by people like you who see the inefficiency of the yogurt promotion and opt to give directly.) ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2011, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/78 "2011-10-20T16:54:39Z")
> [@Laggard](#): > > Yeah, almost as many men die of prostate cancer yearly but there are no prostate awareness ribons, walks or runs. Prostate cancer doesn’t even get its own color! > > What’s up with that? Most people regard a prostate exam as less pleasant than a breast exam. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2011, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/79 "2011-10-20T17:32:24Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > Most people regard a prostate exam as less pleasant than a breast exam. Most people never get both, so there is not much of a standard of comparison. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2011, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857/80 "2011-10-20T17:36:01Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Most people never get both, so there is not much of a standard of comparison. :::snicker::: true dat… but women CAN have rectal exams for other purposes. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-do-not-want-to-donate-to-breast-cancer/598857.md?page=5)