Komen and KFC: A Match Made in Hell

I am not a fan of the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Aside from their support of animal research, I have enountered them in my line of work and find them corporate, condescending, and self-righteous. However, I can hardly believe that they would actually partner with KFC (KFC!!!) for cancer research.

It's not just a question of animal rights. Chickens that are used for KFC products are horribly treated. But, really, even if I ate meat, I wouldn't touch KFC. That stuff is horrible! It's fast food and it is unhealthy. Why would you partner with an organization with such a bad reputation? The more fattening food you eat, the more money goes to cancer research. Bad diet in return for some money. And KFC gets to benefit from your good work? They get to make more money by showing themselves to be "caring?"

Here's a good op-ed in the Huffington Post from John Robbins. It's called Greed, Cancer and Pink KFC Buckets.

Spanish Woman Leave $3M Euros to Save Lynx

Specifically, the near-extinct Iberian Lynx. I know people will whine about why she didn't leave the money to human causes, but I'm proud that she did it. I'm especially proud that she is Spanish.

I get so tired of people calling for money to human charities. Humans control the frigging WORLD. They run the governments, they run businesses, they run everything. And they still don't have enough money! That's a problem with humans as a species, not with specific people like this woman. They are a tiny minority. Stop blaming general human selfishness on people like her.

Grrrrrr!!!!

ASPCA Gets Four Stars from Charity Navigator

That is a good rating; however, if you click on the comments tab, you'll see a spirited debate about the executive compensations.

Oh, well. I'm still a member.

Charity Navigator Gives People for Puget Sound "Three Stars"

I recently signed up with Charity Navigator, an online service that provides financial information about and ratings for specific charities. I'm starting a new mini-feature in which I'm posting about the results of my research into some of the groups I support.

Yesterday, I contributed to People for Puget Sound, a local organization that works on protection of Puget Sound and the Northwest Straits. We live in Seattle and I think it's very important to remember our oceans and the life that reside there.

Anyway, they received three out of four stars. Here is a snapshot of their 2007 budget breakdown. The key is how big their program expenses are. Effective charities should spend the majority of their revenue on programs, not overhead.