Karen's "mini" rant on breast cancer...AGAIN
Ok. Last August I got into it with a young girl on the local community college message board over the 3M breast cancer ribbon. If you want some background on this gal and the situation, you can read about it here. Basically, she posted a link about how wonderful 3M was to donate all of this money (uh, like 75K) out of their own pocket for breast cancer. I responded that this wasn't as benevolent as it seemed and 3M was really using breast cancer as a means to sell more Post-It(tm) notes.
Anyways, this same gal posted a link on the boards this week about the pink and white M&M's. She prefaced her link with the following comment:
The last time I posted something like this, I got verbally beat up which, as those who know me, I can handle. Please remember that the web is sort of like TV - if you don't like or agree with what you see, turn the damn thing off!
Because, you know...message boards are not meant for meaningful discussion. There's just another vehicle for you to use to broadcast your crappy, unresearched links that you use to make yourself feel like you're actually contributing to society.
And besides that...no one beat her up. She just didn't like it when people posted things that countered her point of view. Gotta love that.
Anyways, I wrote this quickly today, but I decided not to post it strictly because I will not have the time in the next several days to baby-sit my post and answer responses. There's nothing I hate more than hit-and-run posters on a message board. If I'm feeling good Friday and the string is still active, I'll try and do it then.
In the meantime, here's what I wrote. I think I'm getting tamer in my old age. It's not nearly as scathing as what I'm used to writing.
Hi all,
I am the original dissenter of the 3M breast cancer awareness post from last August (I am referenced in this new thread as someone who “complained”). The purpose of my dissent last autumn on 3M and their Post-Its™ was not a complaint; the express purpose of my posts were to illustrate that in cases like 3M and M&M’s, things aren’t always what they seem and as consumers, it is our responsibility to educate ourselves before handing over our hard-earned money for any product. While it would be tempting for me to simply “turn off” this post, I do think that there is great value in dissecting this issue. If, after you’ve done your research, you still think it’s a worthy way to donate your money, that’s fine. Remember, the point of this discussion-as has always been the case with me-- is not to chastise any behavior but to simply foster some critical thinking before simply reaching into your pocketbook.
I realize that it’s hard to imagine that there would be any problems with M&M’s and their donation to breast cancer research. I mean…research is good, right? How can anyone be against research? And especially for something like breast cancer! I’m sure we all know someone who either has or had the disease. How can anyone complain about this kind of cooperation as forged between a major American corporation (Mars, Inc.) and a major American non-profit breast cancer organization (The Komen Foundation)?
Well, it’s not a matter of complaining. It’s a matter of understanding what is really going on here and taking the time to do some math. Let’s start with M&M first.
M&M/Mars is a 17 BILLION dollar a year company. BILLION. That’s a lot of money. Each year, the company pledges to donate a maximum of $650K to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. That is .00038% of the company’s annual revenues. That’s pretty small, relatively speaking, but at least they’re giving SOMETHING, right?
Well, let’s see about that. M&M’s will donate $650K to research. At 50 cents a bag, M&M/Mars will manufacture 1.3 million bags of candy. An 8 oz bag of pink and white M&M’s costs $2.99 on the M&M online shop. If you go to drugstore.com, the price for a 9.4 oz bag of regular M&M’s is $2.19. That’s a difference of 80 cents. Since only 50 cents goes towards research, M&M pockets the other 30 cents. That’s $390K over the course of approximately 3 months. That, of course, is under the assumption that Mars/M&M only makes 1.3 million bags. In the 2003 campaign, the pink and white M&M’s were launched in the month of September. By early December, the company had reached its $650K ceiling despite the fact that bags of candy still remained on store shelves.
Again, though, that’s $650K that’s still going towards research, right? That’s true. But the point of the math problem above is not to illustrate corporate greed. After all, no one would dispute the fact that companies need to make money. The point is that the money going towards breast cancer research is not coming from the corporate coffers. It is coming directly from YOUR pocketbook. You are paying 80 cents over the price of regular M&M’s. 50 of that is going towards any kind of research. You are basically paying Mars, Inc. $390K for the privilege of being able to donate your money.
Now, let’s look at the other side of this issue: the organization where your money is going. Everyone has heard of the Komen Foundation. They sponsor all sorts of walks every year and attach themselves to numerous consumer items. How can anyone possibly have any kind of issue with an organization that has as its express purpose the goal or eradicating breast cancer?
Well, again, I’m not asking anyone to pass judgment, but according to Komen’s 2002 tax paperwork, the organization brought in roughly (give or take a few dollars) $200 million. Out of that, only $23 million went towards any kind of research grants. Now again, that sounds like a lot…but if you do the math you’ll realize that only 11.5 cents of every dollar donated to the organization actually goes to any kind of research (and FYI…the majority of the research sponsored by organizations such Komen is palliative, not curative, care). The rest of the money is spent on industry lobbyists, CEO and executive board salaries (which are easily $250K each), and joint marketing ventures with organizations as the milk board (despite the fact that the EPA’s publication “Environmental Health Perspectives” has linked insulinlike growth factor in milk to significantly increase levels of estrogen, which is a major factor in developing breast cancer).
So…let’s do our final math problem. 11.5% of $650K equals: $74,650. THAT is how much money from pink and white M&M’s that is actually going towards any research. That is 5.75 cents of the 50 that is donated.
Still…the argument that many people will make is that at least it’s SOMETHING, right? Sure it is. But your donation of 5.75 cents for every bag of M&M’s requires you to pay a 30 cent fee to Mars, Inc. and a 44.25 cent fee towards Komen’s operational expenses.
Is that really how you want to spend your money? If it is, that’s fine. We’re all busy people who don’t have time to buy M&M’s AND do due diligence on how to donate our money. Let’s face it. It’s not easy to track down some of this information. I know I’ve spent the past three years digging through corporate paperwork and reading journal articles in my local medical school library. It’s not like this information presents itself to anyone on a silver platter.
So while I’m not here to pass judgment on Mars, Inc., I think that the next question that needs to be asked is why the link-up with the Komen Foundation? There are a number of smaller charities that give a larger percentage of their raised donations to research. Why was Komen chosen? Could it be that Mars, Inc wanted to use the Komen name to help sell more M&M’s? That they had profit margins to meet and decided to choose a partnering organization that would best help them meet those goals?
Again, there’s no judgment there. But this partnership between Komen and Mars, Inc is not benevolence. It’s simply capitalism. Mars, Inc. IS trying to make more money and is using breast cancer as a catalyst to do so. Some may say that’s noble; others, especially those who have the disease, might say it’s insulting to capitalize off of such a tragedy.
Some might also argue that this is all part of “awareness raising.” I, as a woman with terminal stage breast cancer, couldn’t disagree more. There is nothing “aware” about buying candy. Does the candy tell you that every 2.5 seconds another woman is diagnosed with breast cancer? Does the candy tell you the difference between ER+ and ER--- pathologies and their survival statistics? Does the candy educate you on the success rates of mammograms and mention what other types of diagnostic tests might be available to you for early detection? Simply mentioning “breast cancer” does no more to raise awareness of the facts and realities of this disease any more than me mentioning a company called Joseph Industries tells you about their core business model.
Again, the point of this long and lengthy essay is not to point out any inherent evil-ness in a corporation or that buying M&M’s are bad. But if you had breast cancer…would five cents really be enough? What about buying the regular bag of M&M’s and then donating the difference in price directly to the research charity of your choice? What about learning to be less of a consumer, not buying them at all, and just donating the entire amount you would have spent on them?
But hey. If you’re really hankering for M&M’s and know that you won’t be donating any money anywhere else anytime soon, then five cents IS better than nothing. The point of this essay is that, with a little bit of diligence and education, we can learn to understand that things like this aren’t always what they seem, despite the lure of the pretty pink ribbon.
Thanks for listening. If you would like links and a works cited information page for any of the data listed in this essay, please let me know and I'll be happy to provide you a list of primary sources.
Anyways, this same gal posted a link on the boards this week about the pink and white M&M's. She prefaced her link with the following comment:
The last time I posted something like this, I got verbally beat up which, as those who know me, I can handle. Please remember that the web is sort of like TV - if you don't like or agree with what you see, turn the damn thing off!
Because, you know...message boards are not meant for meaningful discussion. There's just another vehicle for you to use to broadcast your crappy, unresearched links that you use to make yourself feel like you're actually contributing to society.
And besides that...no one beat her up. She just didn't like it when people posted things that countered her point of view. Gotta love that.
Anyways, I wrote this quickly today, but I decided not to post it strictly because I will not have the time in the next several days to baby-sit my post and answer responses. There's nothing I hate more than hit-and-run posters on a message board. If I'm feeling good Friday and the string is still active, I'll try and do it then.
In the meantime, here's what I wrote. I think I'm getting tamer in my old age. It's not nearly as scathing as what I'm used to writing.
Hi all,
I am the original dissenter of the 3M breast cancer awareness post from last August (I am referenced in this new thread as someone who “complained”). The purpose of my dissent last autumn on 3M and their Post-Its™ was not a complaint; the express purpose of my posts were to illustrate that in cases like 3M and M&M’s, things aren’t always what they seem and as consumers, it is our responsibility to educate ourselves before handing over our hard-earned money for any product. While it would be tempting for me to simply “turn off” this post, I do think that there is great value in dissecting this issue. If, after you’ve done your research, you still think it’s a worthy way to donate your money, that’s fine. Remember, the point of this discussion-as has always been the case with me-- is not to chastise any behavior but to simply foster some critical thinking before simply reaching into your pocketbook.
I realize that it’s hard to imagine that there would be any problems with M&M’s and their donation to breast cancer research. I mean…research is good, right? How can anyone be against research? And especially for something like breast cancer! I’m sure we all know someone who either has or had the disease. How can anyone complain about this kind of cooperation as forged between a major American corporation (Mars, Inc.) and a major American non-profit breast cancer organization (The Komen Foundation)?
Well, it’s not a matter of complaining. It’s a matter of understanding what is really going on here and taking the time to do some math. Let’s start with M&M first.
M&M/Mars is a 17 BILLION dollar a year company. BILLION. That’s a lot of money. Each year, the company pledges to donate a maximum of $650K to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. That is .00038% of the company’s annual revenues. That’s pretty small, relatively speaking, but at least they’re giving SOMETHING, right?
Well, let’s see about that. M&M’s will donate $650K to research. At 50 cents a bag, M&M/Mars will manufacture 1.3 million bags of candy. An 8 oz bag of pink and white M&M’s costs $2.99 on the M&M online shop. If you go to drugstore.com, the price for a 9.4 oz bag of regular M&M’s is $2.19. That’s a difference of 80 cents. Since only 50 cents goes towards research, M&M pockets the other 30 cents. That’s $390K over the course of approximately 3 months. That, of course, is under the assumption that Mars/M&M only makes 1.3 million bags. In the 2003 campaign, the pink and white M&M’s were launched in the month of September. By early December, the company had reached its $650K ceiling despite the fact that bags of candy still remained on store shelves.
Again, though, that’s $650K that’s still going towards research, right? That’s true. But the point of the math problem above is not to illustrate corporate greed. After all, no one would dispute the fact that companies need to make money. The point is that the money going towards breast cancer research is not coming from the corporate coffers. It is coming directly from YOUR pocketbook. You are paying 80 cents over the price of regular M&M’s. 50 of that is going towards any kind of research. You are basically paying Mars, Inc. $390K for the privilege of being able to donate your money.
Now, let’s look at the other side of this issue: the organization where your money is going. Everyone has heard of the Komen Foundation. They sponsor all sorts of walks every year and attach themselves to numerous consumer items. How can anyone possibly have any kind of issue with an organization that has as its express purpose the goal or eradicating breast cancer?
Well, again, I’m not asking anyone to pass judgment, but according to Komen’s 2002 tax paperwork, the organization brought in roughly (give or take a few dollars) $200 million. Out of that, only $23 million went towards any kind of research grants. Now again, that sounds like a lot…but if you do the math you’ll realize that only 11.5 cents of every dollar donated to the organization actually goes to any kind of research (and FYI…the majority of the research sponsored by organizations such Komen is palliative, not curative, care). The rest of the money is spent on industry lobbyists, CEO and executive board salaries (which are easily $250K each), and joint marketing ventures with organizations as the milk board (despite the fact that the EPA’s publication “Environmental Health Perspectives” has linked insulinlike growth factor in milk to significantly increase levels of estrogen, which is a major factor in developing breast cancer).
So…let’s do our final math problem. 11.5% of $650K equals: $74,650. THAT is how much money from pink and white M&M’s that is actually going towards any research. That is 5.75 cents of the 50 that is donated.
Still…the argument that many people will make is that at least it’s SOMETHING, right? Sure it is. But your donation of 5.75 cents for every bag of M&M’s requires you to pay a 30 cent fee to Mars, Inc. and a 44.25 cent fee towards Komen’s operational expenses.
Is that really how you want to spend your money? If it is, that’s fine. We’re all busy people who don’t have time to buy M&M’s AND do due diligence on how to donate our money. Let’s face it. It’s not easy to track down some of this information. I know I’ve spent the past three years digging through corporate paperwork and reading journal articles in my local medical school library. It’s not like this information presents itself to anyone on a silver platter.
So while I’m not here to pass judgment on Mars, Inc., I think that the next question that needs to be asked is why the link-up with the Komen Foundation? There are a number of smaller charities that give a larger percentage of their raised donations to research. Why was Komen chosen? Could it be that Mars, Inc wanted to use the Komen name to help sell more M&M’s? That they had profit margins to meet and decided to choose a partnering organization that would best help them meet those goals?
Again, there’s no judgment there. But this partnership between Komen and Mars, Inc is not benevolence. It’s simply capitalism. Mars, Inc. IS trying to make more money and is using breast cancer as a catalyst to do so. Some may say that’s noble; others, especially those who have the disease, might say it’s insulting to capitalize off of such a tragedy.
Some might also argue that this is all part of “awareness raising.” I, as a woman with terminal stage breast cancer, couldn’t disagree more. There is nothing “aware” about buying candy. Does the candy tell you that every 2.5 seconds another woman is diagnosed with breast cancer? Does the candy tell you the difference between ER+ and ER--- pathologies and their survival statistics? Does the candy educate you on the success rates of mammograms and mention what other types of diagnostic tests might be available to you for early detection? Simply mentioning “breast cancer” does no more to raise awareness of the facts and realities of this disease any more than me mentioning a company called Joseph Industries tells you about their core business model.
Again, the point of this long and lengthy essay is not to point out any inherent evil-ness in a corporation or that buying M&M’s are bad. But if you had breast cancer…would five cents really be enough? What about buying the regular bag of M&M’s and then donating the difference in price directly to the research charity of your choice? What about learning to be less of a consumer, not buying them at all, and just donating the entire amount you would have spent on them?
But hey. If you’re really hankering for M&M’s and know that you won’t be donating any money anywhere else anytime soon, then five cents IS better than nothing. The point of this essay is that, with a little bit of diligence and education, we can learn to understand that things like this aren’t always what they seem, despite the lure of the pretty pink ribbon.
Thanks for listening. If you would like links and a works cited information page for any of the data listed in this essay, please let me know and I'll be happy to provide you a list of primary sources.