ALS "call out" challege, yea or nay?

I think it's kind of a pointless way to raise awareness/fundraise, and I don't like the "callout" portion either.

That said, if someone wants to film themselves getting a bucket of ice water dumped on their head, have at it.

We had a thread about it a few days ago and all the peas agreed it was stupid.

I don't see anything wrong with it. It kind of goes along with all the other goofy behavior going on nowadays and if it raises funds for a worthwhile cause, I don't see the harm. You can't make anyone feel guilty without their permission, and no one is forcing anyone to give. I just don't go along with 'fear of public embarrassment' as an excuse to not say 'no.'

I think it's really stupid. I don't like the call out portion of it especially. I donate to charities of my choice and I'm not going to dump a bucket of ice water over my head to "get out" of donating to some specific one. It seems bizarre and pointless. After all, how is anyone to know if those that didn't dump the bucket of water actually donated? You can't. And I can guarantee you that at least in my circle of Facebook there is no one that is going to say "Drat! I got called out. I guess I better donate $100 tomorrow since I don't want to dump some ice water all over myself while filming it." It's just weird and stupid and annoying.

I was called out. I ignored it. I dont mind the call out. I would only mind if the friend shamed me somehow for ignoring it. But obviously the campaign has been successful. So I wouldn't call it stupid.

It's easy enough to ignore. I liken it to those posts of if you know someone with cancer, have a brother, sister, etc... My guess is that they "call out" a lot of people. So, not responding probably wouldn't be noticed. I'm sure that's not always the case, but I would ignore.

The posts have been coming up for me that you only donate if you don't dump the water.

The challenge wasn't just to raise money. It was also to raise awareness. Kind of like wearing one of those rubber bracelets for a cause. So if seeing someone dump ice on themselves gets you to read a little about ALS then it served its purpose. If you donate too that's icing on the cake.

I have never heard of a call out challenge before (and my workplace does tons of fundraising). I am glad no one has attempted to call me out for this form of guilt-tripping fundraising because I detest that sort of fundraising whether it's the cashier at the supermarket or someone I know.  I find those things to be a huge turn-off and I'm actually less likely to give money. 

And I fail to see how dumping ice water on your head educates you or anyone else about ALS.

Oh, I know the cashiers hate it. I'm always polite to the cashiers. Well, except for the one who snapped, "Don't you care about the children?"  

Actually something was started for ACS this spring in a small gathering to collect money by jumping in frozen lakes. Kind of like the Polar Plunges that are big fund raisers for Special Olympics. But people/kids were getting seriously hurt/dying and aaa as asked people to stop.

I'm willing to be that the majority if money comes from stars doing it, not $10 from someone who spent any hour setting up, filming and posting a video. I'm also guessing that unless someone has been touched by ALS, they're not going to look up anything.

The pink washing and awareness campaigns for breast cancer have been studied and they show no impact, other than to bully someone into playing a game.

I still think it's the internet equivalent of a chain letter. While it may be raising money now, I wonder about what happens if there's another situation like the one in South Africa where someone dies - what kind of legal liability does the charity have if they endorse and encourage these "challenges" and someone dies? People don't seem to realize that dumping ice water over your head isn't just uncomfortable - it can be dangerous and literally cause someone to stop breathing if it triggers the diving reflex. A couple of people in our area have already ended up at the hospital - one man aspirated the water into his lungs - and the more this fad spreads, the more likely it becomes that someone with undiagnosed heart disease or other health issues will do this and die from it. What kind of backlash will that cause for the charity involved?

I also wonder how much awareness it's actually bringing about ALS, because most of the people I've seen post videos don't even mention ALS in the video, and don't seem to know anything about ALS other than it's a disease. Most of them seem more motivated by the attention they get from posting the video than a genuine desire to help ALS research. And if they truly were motivated by the cause, wouldn't it make more sense to donate the $100? What kind of mixed up message does it send that people are more willing to dump ice water on themselves than donate $100 to charity?

As a parent, fads and trends like this bug me - because I talk and talk to my teens about making their own choices and not doing something just because everyone else is. Then a trend like this comes along, and they see all the adults getting swept up in it, and everything they've learned about peer pressure goes right out the window because none of the adults are setting a great example. It's hard to teach kids not to get caught up in internet fads when they see all the adults around them doing it. No matter how worthy the cause may be, I still think the overall effect does more harm than good.

I love the call out element.  I think it encourages people to find out more about ALS.  They can donate as much or as little as they want.  And I do think it's been successful- I've seen so many different people from my family and neighbors to celebrities all over social media taking the ice bucket challenge and calling out a few others to do it too.  

I wouldn't go as far to say someone who disagree is a "cold hearted bitch" but I personally see the good that is coming out of a fun and new way to spread the word and raise some money for a very good cause.