Corporate Calves for Cancer

43° 40' North; 79° 22' West
(with apologies to the memory of Charley Varrick)

A number of readers wacked me up the side of the head after my harsh comments about the 'CIBC Run for the Cure' in a previous piece about the Ramones and Terry Fox (how's that for a dynamic duo).

I apologize if I offended anybody that is working to help folks with cancer or other debilitating diseases.

I wasn't picking a fight with you all.

Instead, I was trashing the corporations that shamelessly exploit the people trying to help as well as the unfortunate ones that are actually battling said diseases.

Because if the banks, the cosmetic companies, the car companies, or the media conglomerates gave even half as much as they get back I might be willing to give them a break.

But they almost never do.

Case in point: all those pink ribbon products that are filling the department stores to bursting in the run-up to the fall breast cancer awareness campaigns. There is just so much stuff to choose from and so little time to decide what we want to 'spend' our donations on. Luckily, Domini Clark was good enough to rate said products in the Style section of last weekend's Globe and Mail:

"....Our pick is these tights from luxury hosier company Wolford. A pink seam funs down the back of the black stockings, and optional pink ribbons can be placed at the ankles, or worn elsewhere. Each pair costs $75. Ten percent of the proceeds to to support breast-cancer research."

Ten freaking percent?!!

Let's get this straight. Wolford gets free publicity, builds good will, moves a boatload full of extra product with a mark-up that is likely in the 50% range and all they give back is a lousy $7.50 a pair.

Clearly, that is not a fair trade.

Perhaps the Canadian public needs the same protection as third world coffee growers.

Fair trade contributions only please; no corporate shilling allowed; simple as that.

Don't think it could work? Think again, because the Terry Fox Foundation is still going strong, after twenty four years, in no small part because it has never been forced to carry a corporate Gorilla on its back.

By way of contrast, how long does anybody really think The Bank will stay with breast cancer before it moves on to the next low cost, high return, and even higher profile, charity sweatshop?