[SilverStreak]

Originally Posted by AJ986S

Next thing you know we'll be dredging up the T-shirt crap again.......

Both the Gap and Emporio Armani carry (RED) shirts.

Buy one, save a life.

[roundel]

Originally Posted by SilverStreak

Maybe we should let fly with the holocaust jokes?

Why do German shower heads have eleven holes?

[}{arlequin]

Originally Posted by SilverStreak

Would it be funny to you if I was? What the hell is the matter with you?

If you think babies dying of AIDS is funny than laugh all you want Dave.

Maybe we should let fly with the holocaust jokes?

if you were, it would be a lot less funny than your predisposed, prepackaged, and most importantly, predictable response.

the situation concerning this virus will not change whether i make a joke or not, however tasteless you may find it. besides, babies dying wasn't a part of my joke but your obvious-from-a-mile-away heightened sensitivity to any 'unkind' comment, was.

yes, the wronger the joke, the funnier it is, holocaust included, but i would recommend avoiding their museum for now...just in case. i'm sorry i didn't have a socially acceptable "a-priest-a-rabbi-and-a-politically-correct-person walk into a bar" joke for you.

you're doing all you can for this cause. as are many others, even if they don't have the sticker to prove. so... why so sandy?

[}{arlequin]

Originally Posted by roundel

Why do German shower heads have eleven holes?

i'm up for a laugh... gimmie the answer

[roundel]

Originally Posted by }{arlequin

i'm up for a laugh... gimmie the answer

Prisoners have ten fingers.

[Vicegrip]

Originally Posted by SilverStreak

Both the Gap and Emporio Armani carry (RED) shirts.

Buy one, save a life.

On soap box.

How about skip the "look at me, I care" shirt and give all the $ to the NGO to save 2 lives? Some of the walks and rides for (fill in the blank cause) are so over the top heavy in overhead. They give face time for the cause but suck up $$$ that could be spent on the cause. Just give the money and or work for the cause and skip the ego hand job.

I have been donating for years and am seeing a trend. I give some $ and they use my donation filling my mail box with high $ printings asking for more $. This ticks me off to the point that I have had to stop some that were 20+ years long. One hit me at least once a month with legal sized mailings.

Off soap box.

[Lupin..the..3rd]

Not trying to bash the fight against Aids in any way, but is this (RED) thing more than just a product marketing campaign? I read the web site, and it looks like thinly disguised commercial advertising. If I want to contribute to this or any other humanitarian cause, why do I need to go shopping for name-brand products? Seems like a way for retailers to drum up business in a down economy more than anything else.

This sounds just like the whole "Green" marketing campaign that manufacturers are pitching these days. Buying "Green" products rarely equates to "environmentally friendly", and I'm getting that same vibe from (RED). I'd rather just donate money directly to the scientific and humanitarian organizations working on the problem and cut out the profit-taking middle man.

[SilverStreak]

Originally Posted by Vicegrip

On soap box.

How about skip the "look at me, I care" shirt and give all the $ to the NGO to save 2 lives? Some of the walks and rides for (fill in the blank cause) are so over the top heavy in overhead. They give face time for the cause but suck up $$$ that could be spent on the cause. Just give the money and or work for the cause and skip the ego hand job.

I have been donating for years and am seeing a trend. I give some $ and they use my donation filling my mail box with high $ printings asking for more $. This ticks me off to the point that I have had to stop some that were 20+ years long. One hit me at least once a month with legal sized mailings.

Off soap box.

Originally Posted by Lupin..the..3rd

Not trying to bash the fight against Aids in any way, but is this (RED) thing more than just a product marketing campaign? I read the web site, and it looks like thinly disguised commercial advertising. If I want to contribute to this or any other humanitarian cause, why do I need to go shopping for name-brand products? Seems like a way for retailers to drum up business in a down economy more than anything else.

This sounds just like the whole "Green" marketing campaign that manufacturers are pitching these days. Buying "Green" products rarely equates to "environmentally friendly", and I'm getting that same vibe from (RED). I'd rather just donate money directly to the scientific and humanitarian organizations working on the problem and cut out the profit-taking middle man.

You both miss the paradigm shift that (RED) represents. The whole point is that it is not a handout. (RED) provides a constant revenue stream instead of irregular spurts of money. (RED) is a conglomerate of retailers and manufactures that make and sell fresh products to keep the revenue stream going.

Another aspect of (RED) is that, as is the case with most of the Hallmark products, they are actually made in Africa by Africans. What (RED) does is open a market for these tiny little towns that would otherwise be absolutely closed to them. It sustains industry and jobs that weren't there before. Sustainable industry and jobs. Novel concept.

The purpose of the products is that the profit goes to (RED). The other beauty of (RED): everybody wins. You buy a pair of cool converse shoes, converse gets paid what it cost to make and a pregnant mother in Africa gets medication that prevents her from passing her terminal disease onto her infant child.

There is no ego involved. In fact I'd bet that I could wear any number of garments to a DE and you would never know they are (RED). That's another aspect of the program, it's passive which means many people will buy (RED) products and not even know it. How much advertising do you see for (RED)? I haven't seen any since the launch a few years ago. This started long before the down economy. Why don't you go to joinred.com before you make judgments.

Be as skeptical as you want but this campaign is born of people and corporations that are motivated for the right reasons. It's not Sally Struthers begging you for money. It's not slick mailers asking you for money. It's not the power company asking you to add $! to your bill. It's an entirely different concept that provides a continuous flow of revenue for products that otherwise would just go into the Gap's pockets.

Of course you may contribute to those less fortunate however you wish but to put down the way one person does it is a little self serving no?

I happen to believe in the concept and I chose to heighten awareness by putting it on my car just as other people put breast cancer ribbons or make-a-wish or autism liveries on their cars. Are you going to criticize them? I chose this for my own reasons.

What's the difference?

You should also read the FAQ as it refutes most of your objections

Here is some info from the website:

Global Fund financing has also:

* Reached 62 million people with HIV counseling and testing
* Provided 3.2 million AIDS orphans with basic care and support
* Reached 91 million people with community outreach services for one or several of the three diseases
* Trained 7.6 million health or community workers to deliver services

(RED) is the Global Fund’s largest private sector contributor

The Global Fund, working together with (RED) and the countries in question, has selected established grants with sound performance to receive money raised through (RED). To date, (RED) partners have generated more than $130 million for the Global Fund. No overhead is taken out of these funds – 100% of this money flows to Global Fund financed AIDS grants in Ghana, Lesotho, Rwanda and Swaziland.

In these countries this money is helping to finance comprehensive national HIV AND AIDS programs led by the ministries of health to provide antiretroviral treatment for children and adults, assist in the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV, support essential counseling and testing activities to reduce the overall risk of HIV transmission.

Additional contributions of funds will continue to be made to these programs as they achieve tangible, measurable results in their lifesaving work. Additional amounts of money are sent by the Global Fund to (RED) grants according to the grants’ own requests to the Global Fund – usually every 3 to 6 months. As with all Global Fund grants, additional funds are sent only once results in-country have been reported and verified.


Try the calculator

http://www.joinred.com/Learn/Impact/Calculator.aspx

[roundel]

Involving charity in an enjoyable activity is great IMO. In this case Hunt is just trying to raise awareness which has been done in my case. I have never heard of (RED) but it seems to be the type of program I admire. I would much rather see more of this type of charity driven with some financial savvy in the private sector than the government becoming the philanthropist supreme removing the voluntary nature of charity. I also enjoy watching bored car junkies beating each other over the head virtually. Also, I expected more insensitive jokes in this thread.

[}{arlequin]

Originally Posted by roundel

Also, I expected more insensitive jokes in this thread.

i'm working on something as we speak...