Chapter 30 Pay 2 SURVIVE or CELEBRATE LIFE

Chapter 30

Do we have 2  Pay 2 SURVIVE

“National Breast Cancer Awareness Month”     

                  

Does its origin & criticisms make a difference ?

Or should we celebrate "Living in the Moment"

One of my photos that conveys what words cannot, 
The celebration of “Living in the Moment”

Floyd recently posed three questions, to me;

1. Why do people need to declare; one day, on a given month, to celebrate life, which competes with other reasons to celebrate life?
2. How can people find charities to decide which one maximize their donations, whether of time or money, to benefit their giving goal?
3. How can people avoid from being caught up in marketing schemes that does little to find a cure that should be available to “ALL” regardless of one’s ability 2 pay 2 SURVIVE.

My reply to Floyd was that others

Are more qualified than, I, to respond to those questions than I  . . .

In an attempt to answer her questions, I shared information

 [And, read its content to her]

From websites that are available to “all” on the internet.

The first internet site that I referenced was;  

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

History

NBCAM was founded in 1985 as a partnership between the American Cancer Society and the pharmaceutical division of Imperial Chemical Industries (now part of AstraZeneca, maker of several anti-breast cancer drugs). The aim of the NBCAM from the start has been to promote mammography as the most effective weapon in the fight against breast cancer.^[1]

In 1993 Evelyn Lauder, Senior Corporate Vice President of the Estée Lauder Companies founded The Breast Cancer Research Foundation and established the pink ribbon as its symbol, though this was not the first time the ribbon was used to symbolize breast cancer.^[2] In the fall of 1991, the Susan G. Komen Foundation had handed out pink ribbons to participants in its New York City race for breast cancer survivors.^[3]

Criticisms

Corporate Sponsorship

It has been alleged that "the BCAM idea 'was conceived and paid for by a British chemical company that both profits from this epidemic and may be contributing to its cause...'".^[13]

Sometimes referred to as National Breast Cancer Industry Month, critics of NBCAM point to a conflict of interest between corporations sponsoring breast cancer awareness while profiting from diagnosis and treatment. The breast cancer advocacy organization, Breast Cancer Action, has said repeatedly in newsletters and other information sources that October has become a public relations campaign that avoids discussion of the causes and prevention of breast cancer and instead focuses on “awareness” as a way to encourage women to get their mammograms. The term pinkwashing has been used by Breast Cancer Action to describe the actions of companies which manufacture and use chemicals which show a link with breast cancer and at the same time publicly support charities focused on curing the disease.^[14] Other criticisms center on the marketing of "pink products" and tie ins, citing that more money is spent marketing these campaigns than is donated to the cause.^[15]

 

Cure as "Treatment" vs. "Prevention"

The Cancer Prevention Coalition has criticized the basic message of NBCAM as a form of victim blaming because it focuses on "early detection and treatment" while ignoring environmental factors.^[16] According Aaron Blair, Ph.D., chief of the Occupational Epidemiology Branch in National Cancer Institute's Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics,For breast cancer, hormone use is one of the major factors affecting risk.^[17] According to Rose Marie Williams, a columnist for the Townsend Letter, drug, chemical, and biotechnology companies have a vested interest in treating the disease rather than finding ways to minimize its rate of incidence.^[18] Recent studies show that breast cancer is linked to several environmental and genetic factors which can be controlled or mitigated.^[1

I also provided information from a Website that evaluated charities . . .  

^{Charity Navigator}

So, does the origin & criticisms of

 “National Breast Cancer Awareness Month”  

 Really, make a difference?

Floyd & I believe that history and criticisms, does not address our

“Celebration of Life”. 

Floyd always knew the answer to her questions, and only asked 

because people, everywhere need reminders . . .

That is, that we are

 Here Now

Floyd & I believe that our collective and individual purpose is Spiritual.  

While we are discovering a cure for Breast Cancer . . .

A good thing to do, is to not only to make that cure 

available

 To “ALL”, Regardless, of one’s ability 2 Pay . . .

Let’s make it a charitable goal to have everyone have

equal access

To Celebrate Life . . .

 In dignity,

While Here Now

From all infirmities within our reach.

"Celebrate Living in the Moment”

 “We are all responsible for our wake and any influence it causes!”

&

"Leave a wake behind you, that you would want others to leave for you."

Til’ we chat again, 


Floyd & Joe