This Time of the Year I Really Hate Pink

Two years ago today I buried my dad after he lost his battle with Pulmonary Fibrosis. It's a terrible disease that slowly destroys the lungs and robs them of their ability to process oxygen. His doctor described it as slow-motion drowning. I wouldn't wish it on anybody.

A couple of weeks after the funeral I wrote this:

What Color Should the Cars Be for Pulmonary Fibrosis?

Last night I was watching the NASCAR race from the Lowes Motor Speedway in Charlotte, NC. It's October which has been declared "Breast Cancer Awareness Month" and a number of the cars were carrying pink paint schemes as part of the fundraising effort, such as the #19 car of Elliot Sadler (photo from Jayski.com):

As I watched the pink cars go round and round I was reminded that if you're going to get a potentially deadly disease, it's good to get one that's has such popular support (even if the cars look silly).

I was also reminded that just as many people die every year from Pulmonary Fibrosis, the disease which took my dad's life on September 22, as die from Breast Cancer. There weren't any cars running last night with special colors for PF. And let's face it, boobs are a lot more popular than lungs, but that doesn't change the facts about the disease.

And one other important fact - there are no survivors of Pulmonary Fibrosis. You either have it and will die from it, or you're already dead. There are no survivors to wear ribbons or tell their stories.

Today the yogurt I had for lunch had a pink top on it. Soon a pink ribbon will be raised at the White House. Everywhere I look I see things colored pink to raise money for what has certainly become the most politically correct disease since AIDS. Even this abomination:

Please understand, if you suffered from breast cancer or have a loved one who did, I'm not mad at you or think you shouldn't get whatever help you can. It's just that when one disease gets most of the attention, other diseases that need attention and funding get forgotten...except by those who have been its victims.

You have to hand it to the folks at Susan G. Komen for making breast cancer so highly marketable.  I just wish there was a little more balance in how we look at such things.