Western Courier

Issue date: 4/4/05 Section: Opinion

Most people get them from people they know. If you don't have one, chances are one of your friends does.

We're not discussing STDs here, though - we're talking about the yellow LiveStrong charitable wristbands that can be seen on students all over campus. After the Lance Armstrong Foundation partnered with Nike last May to sell the wristbands, Nike donated $1 million to the organization's cancer programs and paid manufacturing costs for the first five million bracelets. Over 40 million have now been sold in 60 countries, according to www.mercurynews.com.

The wristbands were initially produced to raise money for cancer programs but have since turned into a fad. While the fact that the bracelets are being purchased for fashion purposes rather than to help cancer research is slightly unfortunate, we don't have a problem with it because the Lance Armstrong Foundation is still receiving the profit.

What we do have a problem with is the popularity of the knock-off wristbands. Stores like Fadz in the Quincy Mall are selling similarly-produced colored wristbands bearing phrases like "Angel" and "Cutie," and that's not OK. These merchants are making a beanie-baby fad out of a product that started with the most whole-hearted intentions.

Products such as the pink breast cancer wristbands are exempt from that group because the profits benefit a good cause. Companies that produce the phony bracelets, however, should feel like they're stealing candy - and money - from babies for taking a positive idea and capitalizing on it for their own financial gain.

Even things like the "Support Our Troops" magnetic auto ribbons are being exploited. Martha Wilcox of Williams Whittle Associates in Alexandria, Va., which created advertising spots for the United Service Organizations, told the San Antonio Express the yellow ribbons are being produced by outside merchants and entrepreneurs and the USO is receiving nothing from the sale of the items.

Some people out there are wearing LiveStrong bracelets for grandparents who have died, mothers who currently have cancer, friends or even themselves. If you simply want to have something colorful to wear on your wrist, at least spend your dollar on something good and help cancer research. You might end up thanking yourself someday.

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