yes, breast cancer is bad, but people don't want your pink crap.

I set out to buy the cheapest running shoes I could get, since I need them but the budget's tight, and I found the "breast cancer" version of the running shoes I'm on were on clearance-- even cheaper than the exactly-the-same (but not pink nor giving $ to a cause) regular version. I bought them, since I could care less what color the shoes that I'm sweating my ass off in are, but I thought it was ironic. A product they created hoping to exploit a cause to turn a profit actually ended up costing the company.

Ha.

In my mind, this is due to two fairly obvious rules:
When we want to support the cause, we write a real charity a check, not buy your crap. Why do I have to throw profit your direction to get you to do the right thing? If your company really cared, wouldn't you donate whether or not I buy? It infuriates me that corporate America is using women dying of cancer as a way to increase profits while giving pennies to the cause. I'm not fooled.
I hate your pink crap. Why is it that companies think we want pink? Ugh. OK, sometimes it's acceptable, but the idea that making something pink is a way to generate money kills me. Why can't your breast cancer edition shoes be grey? They'd sell more and you'd get more $ for the cause... but clearly you don't care about that anyway.

More info: think before you pink!

edit: Credit where it's due. The fact that New Balance has a minimum donation attached to this product makes me much happier:
"New Balance will contribute 15% of wholesale sales from the Lace Up for the Cure® Apparel & Footwear Collection with a guaranteed minimum donation of $500,000 up to a maximum of $1 million to Susan G. Komen for the Cure."
15% of wholesale on these shoes was probably ~$7. That's a pretty good cut.

Another fast run this morning. I'm off work and off from running tomorrow, taking Ben to be sedated and making him pudding instead.