# Poll: Would you pour ice water over your head for charity? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 8, 2014, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080 "2014-08-08T02:11:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/21 "2014-08-12T07:07:15Z")
If you did it on a hot day, I think it would feel kinda good. Also CollegeHumor has something other than videos? Who knew. ---
**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:** [August 12, 2014, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/22 "2014-08-12T12:21:49Z")
See [“slacktivism.”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slacktivism) Malcom Gladwell wrote a piece several years ago in which he discussed the rise of social-media activism - in which people pass around messages to “increase awareness” or “click here to show your support” or some other such nonsense. He contrasted this with civil rights activism in which people did a lot of actual work and took on a great deal of risk to their personal safety in order to advance their cause. As the Wikpedia page on slacktivism suggests, you may feel good after posting a YouTube video in which you dump ice water on your head, but how much _actual_ good did you do? Are you really raising awareness of ALS? How many people aren’t already aware of ALS? How will your video improve the lives of people with ALS, either now or in the future? You spent an hour of your life planning, staging, enacting, editing and posting your video. How much is your personal time worth? Seriously, if some dude across town offered to pay you for working on his yard for an hour, how much would it take to get you to do it? $20? $30? $50? How about instead of posting the 18,395th ice-water-dumped-on-your-head video, you just take that much money and donate it to an ALS-related charity? You’ll do far more good. If you complain that yardwork isn’t as much fun as making a video, well, that kind of reveals the real reason you made your video, doesn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/23 "2014-08-12T12:39:45Z")
Maybe it’s a ruse to get around many women’s reluctance to enter wet tee-shirt competitions? ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/24 "2014-08-12T12:54:53Z")
I’d do it for a charity I believed in, if it would help them raise money - why not? It seems like a harmless few minutes of physical discomfort. ---
**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:** [August 12, 2014, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/25 "2014-08-12T13:08:31Z")
> [@CairoCarol](#): > > I’d do it for a charity I believed in, if it would help them raise money - why not? It seems like a harmless few minutes of physical discomfort. How much money do you think gets donated to ALS charities when you dump ice water on your head? ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/26 "2014-08-12T13:13:23Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > How much money do you think gets donated to ALS charities when you dump ice water on your head? You are assuming a specific situation in which, obviously, the answer is not especially positive. I am talking in general terms - if I could help a charity raise more money, through a few minutes discomfort, than they would raise if I didn’t participate, then I’d do it. Obviously, if “more money” was “10 cents” I wouldn’t bother. But if the answer was “more money than I am willing to personally donate” and the opportunity arose, I would. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/27 "2014-08-12T13:40:10Z")
> [@Ranger\_Jeff](#): > > Maybe it’s a ruse to get around many women’s reluctance to enter wet tee-shirt competitions? The ice water should give them a couple of pointers… ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/28 "2014-08-12T13:54:49Z")
I said No. Only in that dumping the water does nothing, I’d rather just pay. Also, knowing what this challenge is actually about, you are dumping water on your head so you DON’T have to pay? It’s less raising my awareness of ALS and more raising my awareness that you’re too cheap to donate! ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/29 "2014-08-12T13:57:25Z")
[The ALS Association says it’s raised $1.35 million from this viral thing.](http://nesn.com/2014/08/ice-bucket-challenge-leads-to-massive-surge-in-donations-to-als-association/) The question is how they’re going to use that money. If it goes to consultants to “raise awareness,” and seems wasteful. [But they could fund some useful projects and services.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ALS_Association) ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/30 "2014-08-12T16:24:03Z")
I’ve recently raised over $2000 in a similar manner. The stunt/attention-getting activity is the hook. The hook facilitates conversations about the reason for the stunt and fundraising (awareness, donations, participation) and creates a sense of group spirit, even if transient, for the people donating, sharing information with friends, or doing similar fundraising. The donations go to the cause, which does the work (research, funding, etc.). So yes, the stunt leads to positive outcomes for the cause and yes, I’d dump ice water on myself if it were part of a step-by-step awareness/fundraising plan. ---
**Author:** ![James\_Toothpaste](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e56c9b/32.png) [@James\_Toothpaste](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/James_Toothpaste)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/31 "2014-08-12T17:23:18Z")
I find it pointless. No thank you. ---
**Author:** ![J-P\_L](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/j-p_l/32/3156_2.png) [@J-P\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/J-P_L)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/32 "2014-08-12T19:09:54Z")
So that’s what it was about. Just saw on the local CTV noon hour newscast one of the reporter doing that and I was wondering “What the hell for”. Now I know! ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/33 "2014-08-13T14:10:24Z")
I was emailed the challenge by a neighbor this morning, for a Sat event. If I can get a better time than ‘after practice’ I might go. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Lowry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Sam\_Lowry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Lowry)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/34 "2014-08-13T14:41:19Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > It’s usually perceived as sharing the woe with chemo patients. I know two cases, personally, and more in the media, of people who have shaved their heads so as to be closer to their friends or family members who lost hair from chemo. Right, it’s usually to show support for someone who’s going through chemo. [Here’s a story](http://gawker.com/george-h-w-bush-shaves-head-to-show-support-for-young-901133509)where George H.W. Bush did it for a son of a secret service agent. I think just like the ice water challenge, it can be done thoughtfully or it can be an attention-seeking stunt. I’ve read some chemo patients have felt uncomfortable when friends or family shaved their heads in solidarity. Like they are putting themselves out unnecessarily. If you want to show support, it can be better to give rides, help cook or clean when the chemo patient is unable to, spend time with them, other things like that. > [@Trinopus](#): > > (I once participated in a university “wheel-chair experience” where I was in a wheelchair for a couple hours, getting used to opening doors, etc. It was intended as consciousness-raising, and no one took it as making fun.) Could you explain more about this? I don’t understand how it would be consciousness raising. Not everyone knows about ALS, but I think pretty much everyone realizes that being in a wheelchair would be challenging. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/35 "2014-08-13T14:51:41Z")
> [@Sam\_Lowry](#): > > I’ve read some chemo patients have felt uncomfortable when friends or family shaved their heads in solidarity. Like they are putting themselves out unnecessarily. If you want to show support, it can be better to give rides, help cook or clean when the chemo patient is unable to, spend time with them, other things like that. And you should just ask someone if they want that kind of support before you go ahead and do something extreme. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/36 "2014-08-13T15:22:33Z")
At the invitation of a student, I took a wheelchair tour of campus. It certainly raised my consciousness, although I had a general awareness that there were more inclines than I thought. On the ride, however, I learned that there are accessibility door openers placed where a person in a chair can’t open them, that a number of elevators are only accessible through doors that open out (toward you) at the bottom of an inclined ramp, and that there was at least one ramp built at an unacceptable pitch with an unturnable angle. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/37 "2014-08-13T15:23:52Z")
Yep – at this point I’m the “one”. Although it wasn’t ALS. Never knew about the ALS thing but I did a dunk tank half filled with ice chips and half water as a fundraiser for a VFD (volunteer fire company). Out of the 6 or 7 of us who did it, I generated the most money — and I could never decide if that was a compliment or an insult. One of my buddies hit the water once and bailed out. It, in a sense, hurt and the paramedics were standing by ---- but in terms of dollars it increased what the tank usually got by like 14 or 15 times. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/38 "2014-08-13T17:09:16Z")
It’s August, and I’m in South Florida, so sure. I’d do it if it took money away from ALS charities. ---
**Author:** ![Furious\_Marmot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dfb087/32.png) [@Furious\_Marmot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Furious_Marmot)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/39 "2014-08-13T19:15:03Z")
What happened to just asking people for money? Anyone who “challenges” me to donate to a cause would be told to piss off. Similarly, anyone who claims that they will donate to a cause if I perform like a dancing bear for their amusement will also be told to piss off. Sometimes it seems like everything (including funding research to cure awful diseases) is being turned into juvenile, attention-whoring game. Now get off my lawn. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2014, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080/40 "2014-08-13T19:16:23Z")
> [@Furious\_Marmot](#): > > What happened to just asking people for money? Lots of people do it. The point of _not_ just asking for money is that it’s supposed to help you stand out. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-would-you-pour-ice-water-over-your-head-for-charity/695080.md?page=3)