Ice bucket dunking is bad for ALS fund raising - it went for $2.5 million to $70 - how can that be bad?

By Pepper Parr

August 25, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.
My neighbour Rob, who is prone to stunts, pranks and practical jokes ,sent me an Ice Bucket Challenge. Jeez I thought, I’m going to have to do this or he won’t loan me his drill anymore and he does have a snow blower. So I was gearing myself up to walk across the street and submit myself to the dunking.

The President of the United States can duck these things – but I was pretty sure I had to go along with the gag. My one condition was that the event be filmed and the kids be on hand.

Then I came across the missive from School board chair and Ward 6 candidate Jennifer Hlusko who was passing along a piece form Macleans magazine.

Why the Ice Bucket Challenge is bad for you
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge is bad … The marketing gimmick is very clever. It is short, immediately understandable, and like the most popular forms of slacktivism, it is easy to do, entertaining to watch, and narcissistically self-promoting. As a result, the ALS Association has received more than $70 million so far, compared to only $2.5 million during last year’s campaign.
We, as individuals and as a society, have finite resources to donate to medical research and other worthy causes. When we decide where to spend our charitable dollars, we need to consider three factors:
1. Where is the greatest need?
2. Where will my dollars have the greatest influence?
3. What is the most urgent problem?
The ALS challenge fails all three of these test.

Did the School Board Chair get dunked?

How did increasing ALS donations from $2.5 million to $70 million get defined as a failure. The people who went along with the dunking will send their donation and probably not cut back somewhere else.

The beauty of the human hearts is the way it can expand to meet the need.
Hlusko needs to think about an “expanded heart” procedure – and please – lighten up.