Posts Tagged ‘young women’

Ann’s Diary: Plan Komen

I was asked this morning about my take on the Komen situation: i.e. its reversal of decision to not give Planned Parenthood grants for breast health to its population of women in need.

In the last two days I’ve read a lot of angry commentary from the people who hated the original decision. I saw many lines that ended with “Komen will not get any of my money anymore.” To me, that line of thinking is as upsetting as Komen’s original decision.

Don’t get me wrong: I am glad Komen changed its mind. I am happy it heard the angry outcries. I am glad it decided it made a mistake. But I don’t like any conversation, conflict or combat that ends with “and now I hate you.” I don’t think quick decisions and pulling support for a 30 year organization over one poor decision advances anything positive. And I am all about positive.

Which I think officially makes me a milk toast. And my perspective could be dead wrong; maybe fighting and financial fist-a-cuffs is how any thing good gets done in this world.

But as I battle metastatic breast cancer, I have become more even-tempered. I am hyper-focused on solving problems, not battling them out. And like I just said, I’m not at all sure I’m right. So hooray that Komen changed its mind and kudos to all your reactions that helped it get there.

But I stand by my original reaction, which was this: maybe Komen should go find another way to help out the population that Planned Parenthood addresses. Remember, not all people who go to Planned Parenthood are asking for abortions. I have a friend who goes there because she can’t afford health insurance but wants to stay healthy for herself and her 12 year old son. There’s a broader non-politically-charged population there–and it needs breast care help. And that is the mantra of Susan G. Komen For The Cure: stopping women from dying of breast cancer.

I guess what I’m saying is maybe there’s a place for both reactions: the “screw you I’m taking my money and walking” one and the “okay, if you can’t help one way, figure out another way to help.”

To that end, here’s an idea: maybe Planned Parenthood–and what it does to help a large group of women who find themselves without healthcare insurance but in need of health care–shouldn’t be the only game in town. Maybe the world shouldn’t be considering financially challenged women and ones-who-want abortions as the same focus group. After all, my friend doesn’t go to PP for an abortion. She goes to maintain herself as a healthy parent.

I have no idea what the real reasons were that caused Komen to pull, then reinstated its PP funding–I assume it was political, and twas ever thus. But today, Komen is once again giving money to Planned Parenthood as it aways “planned” to do. Which I am happy about for many women, including my friend. But since “plan” keeps coming up in this conversation, how about Komen plan to figure out how to take its money and give breast health to women in need on its own?

How about Komen side-stepping this entire problem in the future by teflon-coating itself against political pressure forever? How about a new wing of Komen called something like–and I’m making this up here– “Planned Parent”? Or better yet, “Planned Prime-Of-Life”? With the objective of reaching the underprivileged women out there who don’t want an abortion but who want not to die of breast cancer? With the secondary strategy to live to see a child graduate high school, and the third objective to live long enough to be a parent in the first place?

Since we’re talking about plans in the first place, how about that for a plan, Komen?

Posted February 4th, 2012 by
anns-diary-plan-komen
Posted in: Ann's Diary
TAGGED WITH: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
No Comments

Ann’s Diary: Komen In The Kitchen

I was asked today what I think about Susan G. Komen For The Cure pulling its funding for Planned Parenthood.  I had to think about it.

Since my mini-non-profit has no money, this kind of a decision has never happened to me, and therefore I can’t speak from a similar standpoint. I suppose on the one hand, the Komen group can do whatever it wants with its money.  It’s a business.  Business, whether a non-profit, a not-for-profit, or a for-profit has that right, as long as rules are not broken along the way.

It looks to me like that’s at the crux of the outrage–that Komen didn’t do what it wanted, that it did was others wanted–mainly pro-lifers.  The assumption is Komen bent under political pressure from anti-abortion powers who somehow threatened trouble ahead for Komen if it continued to give money to PP. I am assuming all this as I have no clue–like you I’m just reading along and listening as the story unfolds.

I agree that’s a lousy way to dole out your cash–at the behest, badgering or the bullying of another.  But that’s the way this country often does things–by pressure.  Hell, that’s the way a lot of countries do things–who are we kidding.  That’s why so many presidents get up to the podium, win the election, and fall flat on their democratic, republican, socialist, imperial or whatever-the-political-choice happens to be backsides–because there’s too many cooks in the political kitchen.  And way too many others on the sidelines holding fistfuls of voter spices that no chef can make a meal without.  The threats fly amid that kind of a system–”if you don’t do what I say, I take my spices–and my voters–and I’m gone.”

I don’t want to sound blase about this or like I don’t care because I do care.  I care a lot–for the women who due to this decision by Komen will never get diagnosed with breast cancer and will die because of it.

As for the rest of it–the pressure, the money, the funding–it is what it is. You can’t change the system–at least not right away.  I hope some day that changes–but let’s face it, it ain’t gonna change today. But that’s not what Komen for the Cure is supposed to do.  Its mantra is not “hell bent on beating the political system”.  It’s not a group dedicated to rearranging the proverbial spice drawer in the left wing/right wing kitchen. It’s a group dedicated to three things: women, breast cancer and the cure for an insidious disease that hits 1 in 8 women in this country every year, including me.

So I say Go, Komen, Go–find another way to help. You’re big, you’re powerful, and though you may have had to bend to pressure–and twas ever thus, you’re not the first giant to get smacked in the big eye by this kind of sling shot–go find another way to reach the women you might have helped via Planned Parenthood.  You’ve got many smart people working for you, they can figure this out.  Forget the spice holders in this political kitchen.  They may have all the power today but like I bet the real Susan G. Komen–God rest her soul–would have told you, were she alive to do so–

there’s always tomorrow.

Posted February 1st, 2012
Posted in: Ann's Diary
TAGGED WITH: , , , , , , , , , ,
7 Comments

Ann’s Diary: Where’s Pink Tips?

In the great tradition of Carmen Sandiego, Waldo and Matt Lauer, ‘pink tips‘ is traveling the world and being placed–and I hope read–in every nook and cranny from San Francisco to Salzburg, Botswana to Bangladesh–and you make that happen. I am asking my readers to get their copy of ‘pink tips’ and bring it with you somewhere around the world, take a photo of it and send that photo to me so I can post it here. And if you can, leave your copy wherever you were so that someone else can pick it up and get some inspiration.

I just got this photo today: do you know where this is? Hint: that lion is NOT in a zoo…

Thank you for sending this in! Today’s entry is from a family who recently traveled to a country where breast cancer is the second largest cancer detected in women and in too many cases it is detected far too late.

Posted February 1st, 2012
Posted in: Ann's Diary, Where's Pink Tips?
TAGGED WITH: , , , , , , , , , , ,
No Comments

Ann’s Diary: You Think Boobs Mean Beauty? Think Again.

So don’t stop believing, sisters–

Ann Murray Paige – FIT House Member of the Month! from Ara Arbabzadeh on Vimeo.

Posted January 26th, 2012 by
anns-diary-you-think-boobs-mean-beauty-think-again
Posted in: Ann's Diary
TAGGED WITH: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
2 Comments

Ann’s Diary: On The Take

Someone passed my blog about how Fiji Water is mysteriously curing me of my these-veins-won’t-work problem whenever I need to have a blood draw to the folks at Fiji Water. That’s the blog where I tell how I drank some Fiji Water before a blood draw a few weeks ago and magically, what usually takes three or four pokes to get into my rolly-polly-ollie veins took ONE time. Since it sounds so pretty to me I’ll repeat and italicize that: one time.

I thought it was a fluke but I still had some Fiji Water left so I took it the next day for my infusion to fight off my breast cancer and SURE ENOUGH the nurse, ready to poke me half a dozen times, almost fell off her stool when she got into my arm on the first try. Another fluke? Possibly…

Then yesterday, having a PETSCAN–because cancer is so much fun!-the tech poked my arm, got into my vein, looked at me and said, “Bullseye!”

I wanna tell you I almost hugged him–because having someone poke you like a pin cushion and dig around for your freaking vein is so very unpleasant I can barely write it. As I sat in the radio-active-tracer-lounge waiting for the stuff he injected to pump through my body, I got right on Twitter and tweeted a photo of my arm and my almost-empty bottle of Fiji Water and I told the people at Fiji how much I love them. Of course, they likely think I’m crackers, since they responded, “we’ve heard a lot of health stories about our water but this is a new one on us.”

So anyway, back to last week, when someone forwarded my blog Fiji Magic to someone at Fiji, she did it without me knowing. Not that I wouldn’t have said “go ahead” if she asked me first, but she did it on her own, because the first line of the blog says “don’t tell the people at Fiji I’m writing this or people will think I’m on the take…..” And sure enough, someone at Fiji emailed me that evening to ask if the company could send me some free water.

And you know what I said? H-E-L-L Y-A.

I, not one to get paid much for what I do, nor have I ever been approached by any business who wants to support my effort of getting my book into cancer centers across the country–(and believe me I’ve tried. Like at that blogging forum in SF a few weeks back, I threw my book into the hands of someone from the Gates Foundation–awkward–and ZERO response from them)–and I, who hate to appear needy, have to tell myself, “Whatever. Someone else will figure out that my cause is important.” Because I ain’t a beggar. My book sold exactly 10 copies this month. I’ve made a whole 32 dollars. Fortune 500 here I come.

But this stuff, this Fiji Water, and I have no idea why, has now saved my arm exactly 9 track marks in 2 weeks. If you have my same problem you know that’s A LOT A PAIN I avoided. And I have more ahead as I battle the breast cancer beast. So while I may not be able to be bought, I can absolutely be showered. And if Fiji wants to dowse me with its magic water and help me deal with this ridiculously awful symptom of this outrageously terminal disease I’m fighting, I say HAVE AT IT, I’M ALL YOURS.

Though I’m not being paid by Fiji to say any of this, I now call their product LIQUID GOLD. Because all of us facing any illness that involves getting poked and prodded deserve a freaking BREAK. And if ponying up 6 dollars for a bottle of H2O gets us out of the phlebotomist’s rooms any quicker I’ll pay that bill all day long.

I now have 48 days of good blood draws stacked between the salsa and the oatmeal in my pantry: I think that means I’m “on the take.” And if that’s the case…

I’ll be on the take for as long as Fiji Water will take me.
2012Fiji

Posted January 26th, 2012 by
anns-diary-on-the-take
Posted in: Ann's Diary
TAGGED WITH: , , , , , , , , , ,
2 Comments
< older posts