Susan G. Komen + Planned Parenthood

[All-American]

A colleague at the Law School pointed out this article to me:

http://jezebel.com/5881277/susan-g-komen-foundation-begins-backpedaling-for-the-cure

The article criticizes the Komen foundation for withdrawing funds it had provided to Planned Parenthood (in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, annually) after being pressured by Pro-Life (or Anti-Choice, if you insist) groups. From the tone of the article, it's clear that I am supposed to be outraged.

They aren't entirely incorrect. I had no idea that the Komen foundation was funding planned parenthood.

What's this about?

[Eddie]

That is curious. Honestly, I don't know much about planned parenthood - but I wouldn't have listed them in my top 10 places to send someone for a breast exam. (In the spirit of full disclosure, I have never had a breast exam and don't plan to ever have one - so knowing places that offer them isn't on my list of things to know.)

I simply never would've connected SG Komen with Planned Parenthood.

I probably wasn't as outraged as they wanted me to get. It isn't like SG Komen is going to stop funding exams. They will just be funding them through other organizations. It's their money to give away - I won't get outraged with who they give it to so long as it is efficiently being used for the purposes for which it was donated. (I wouldn't be outraged if they continued to fund exams through Planned Parenthood either.)

[filsdepac]

A colleague at the Law School pointed out this article to me:

http://jezebel.com/5881277/susan-g-komen-foundation-begins-backpedaling-for-the-cure

The article criticizes the Komen foundation for withdrawing funds it had provided to Planned Parenthood (in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, annually) after being pressured by Pro-Life (or Anti-Choice, if you insist) groups. From the tone of the article, it's clear that I am supposed to be outraged.

They aren't entirely incorrect. I had no idea that the Komen foundation was funding planned parenthood.

What's this about?

Most of the money they gave PP was used for breast exams, which I assume were done for women who couldn't afford a doctor.

[Green Monstah]

That is curious. Honestly, I don't know much about planned parenthood - but I wouldn't have listed them in my top 10 places to send someone for a breast exam. (In the spirit of full disclosure, I have never had a breast exam and don't plan to ever have one - so knowing places that offer them isn't on my list of things to know.)

I simply never would've connected SG Komen with Planned Parenthood.

I probably wasn't as outraged as they wanted me to get. It isn't like SG Komen is going to stop funding exams. They will just be funding them through other organizations. It's their money to give away - I won't get outraged with who they give it to so long as it is efficiently being used for the purposes for which it was donated. (I wouldn't be outraged if they continued to fund exams through Planned Parenthood either.)

As someone who raised a lot of money for SG Komen in law school, I'm a little irked. Had I known that PP was getting the money (for whatever reason), I would have found a different cancer-related charity to support. In the end, though, it was my failure to do my homework, so what can you do?

[All-American]

As someone who raised a lot of money for SG Komen in law school, I'm a little irked. Had I known that PP was getting the money (for whatever reason), I would have found a different cancer-related charity to support. In the end, though, it was my failure to do my homework, so what can you do?

See, that's where I am. I have family on both my side and my wife's side who are long-time supporters of the Komen foundation and have been doing the race for the cure for years now. I'm a lot more comfortable with that association knowing that PP and Komen have split ways.

[UtahDan]

Most of the money they gave PP was used for breast exams, which I assume were done for women who couldn't afford a doctor.

Right. So funding for cancer tests is cut so that people can prove how pro-life they are. What bullshit IMO.

[YOhio]

All this hullabaloo over a few hundred K? Planned Parenthood operates on about $375M/year and they're making a fuss over being ineligible for a relatively miniscule private grant. Nonsense.

[Green Monstah]

Right. So funding for cancer tests is cut so that people can prove how pro-life they are. What bullshit IMO.

Give the cash to another clinic that doesnt kill babies/fetuses.

There are very few orgs that I think are fully and completely evil--PP is one of them, but I dont suppose we're going to convince each other one way or the other.

[Uncle Ted]

This is just another example of a gripe I have with a lot of charities (especially the United Way). When I donate to a charity I don't want them to take out their overhead off the top and then just give money to some other charity. If I wanted to, I can donate to that other charity directly and cut out the middleman and the overhead. When a charity gives my money to some other charity I start thinking I am giving to the wrong, lazyass charity.

[Surfah]

All this hullabaloo over a few hundred K? Planned Parenthood operates on about $375M/year and they're making a fuss over being ineligible for a relatively miniscule private grant. Nonsense.

This is just another example of a gripe I have with a lot of charities (especially the United Way). When I donate to a charity I don't want them to take out their overhead off the top and then just give money to some other charity. If I wanted to, I can donate to that other charity directly and cut out the middleman and the overhead. When a charity gives my money to some other charity I start thinking I am giving to the wrong, lazyass charity.

These two posts sum up my feelings on this matter.

[Eddie]

Give the cash to another clinic that doesnt kill babies/fetuses.

There are very few orgs that I think are fully and completely evil--PP is one of them, but I dont suppose we're going to convince each other one way or the other.

Interestingly enough, it actually changed my perception of PP just a little.

Before I thought they were simply involved in birth control.

But now I've learned 1) They can be very whiny. 2) They have also been involved in breast cancer exams.

#1 isn't all that redeeming of a quality. #2 makes me see them in a better light.


I also don't have a problem with the whiny nature of the article. They lost funding for a service they were providing. They whined about it. Now they are getting funding from other sources. I hope they use the funding they get as a result of this article to replace that lost by SGK and continue the breast cancer exams.

[Moliere]

This is just another example of a gripe I have with a lot of charities (especially the United Way). When I donate to a charity I don't want them to take out their overhead off the top and then just give money to some other charity. If I wanted to, I can donate to that other charity directly and cut out the middleman and the overhead. When a charity gives my money to some other charity I start thinking I am giving to the wrong, lazyass charity.

Although I'll say that not all charities are visible enough or have the marketing capabilities to get the funding they need to survive on their own. That being said, I dislike the United Way and only donate because of the huge guilt trip I get at work if I don't.

[Green Monstah]

Interestingly enough, it actually changed my perception of PP just a little.

Before I thought they were simply involved in birth control.

But now I've learned 1) They can be very whiny. 2) They have also been involved in breast cancer exams.

#1 isn't all that redeeming of a quality. #2 makes me see them in a better light.


I also don't have a problem with the whiny nature of the article. They lost funding for a service they were providing. They whined about it. Now they are getting funding from other sources. I hope they use the funding they get as a result of this article to replace that lost by SGK and continue the breast cancer exams.

I've long ditched the idea that PP has any qualities that can really redeem the fact that they perform abortions. By analogy, if you have a neighbor who serves the community, works to provide education to young people, is an excellent friend and neighbor, but who also has a nasty habit of murdering prostitutes on the weekends, does all the good he/she does really compensate for his murderous character flaw? In my mind, no, but reasonable minds differ on this particular issue.

[Eddie]

I've long ditched the idea that PP has any qualities that can really redeem the fact that they perform abortions. By analogy, if you have a neighbor who serves the community, works to provide education to young people, is an excellent friend and neighbor, but who also has a nasty habit of murdering prostitutes on the weekends, does all the good he/she does really compensate for his murderous character flaw? In my mind, no, but reasonable minds differ on this particular issue.

Not to be misunderstood. I would say that my prostitute murdering neighbor is not 100% evil because not everything he does is 100% evil.

Just like I would say that PP is not 100% evil because not everything they do is 100% evil.

Likewise - I'm going to assume that you are a normal human being who makes a mistake here and there. However, knowing you make mistakes won't lead me to assume that your mistake makes you 100% evil. (Yes, that is a little bit of hyperbole. I understand the difference between 90% good and 10% evil versus 10% good and 90% evil.)

As a simple side note - are you neighbors with Craig James?

[Green Monstah]

Not to be misunderstood. I would say that my prostitute murdering neighbor is not 100% evil because not everything he does is 100% evil.

Just like I would say that PP is not 100% evil because not everything they do is 100% evil.

Likewise - I'm going to assume that you are a normal human being who makes a mistake here and there. However, knowing you make mistakes won't lead me to assume that your mistake makes you 100% evil. (Yes, that is a little bit of hyperbole. I understand the difference between 90% good and 10% evil versus 10% good and 90% evil.)

As a simple side note - are you neighbors with Craig James?

CJ? No, he lives a few streets down.