I've had enough of this ridiculous Ice Bucket Challenge. I can't even bear the phrase "Ice bucket challenge" and it's now at the point where it's midnight, and instead of sleeping, I'm seeing red and need to let off some steam*. I'm well aware that many of my friends who will read this have done the "Ice Bucket Challenge". The last thing I want to do is offend or alienate anyone who is my friend so I am just hoping that you understand that if you are my friend and have done the "Ice Bucket Challenge" that this is not aimed at you personally, because I think you are lovely and wonderful and you are one of many, many people who I think very highly of and .... oh bloody hell why can't I just have a rant without apologising for it. Ok....
It's not a challenge though, is it?
Having someone throw a bucket of cold water over you while someone else films it so you can post it on Facebook isn't a challenge. End of.
Do you even know why you're doing it?
I think the people who do are in a minority. How many of you think it has something to do with cancer and chemotherapy? Some of you do! But it doesn't. Although for some reason, Macmillan have jumped on the bandwagon, have a webpage about it, and have actually tweeted that having a bucket of cold water poured on your head replicates the side effects of chemotherapy. WHAT THE ???? Fuck off does it. The "Ice Bucket Challenge" has nothing to do with cancer. How many of you know it originated as awareness raising/fundraising for something called ALS? And of those of you that could answer yes to that question, how many of you know what ALS actually stands for? Or, how many of you know about Motor Neurone Disease, beyond "errr isn't that what Stephen Hawking has?" I don't see much actual awareness raising about ALS going on in any of the fucking endless number of "Ice Bucket Challenge" posts and videos I have seen.
How many of the people who have had a bucket of water thrown on them in the UK donated money to charity?
An absolute shitload has been raised in the USA for the ALS association (over $80million if the Huffington Post is right). In the UK apparently the UK Motor Neurone Disease has gained £250k in donations as a result of this. That's actually not that much at all, considering how many people have jumped at the chance of "taking part" in this "challenge". Cancer Research alone got over £8million earlier this year when we all took photos of ourselves without make up on. I thought that was a bit stupid at the time but I joined in because I thought it was incredible how much money was being raised. Although I didn't donate to Cancer Research, I donated to a local charity called Coping with Cancer who are amazing.
Anyway, yeah yeah there will be some individuals who learned all about ALS/Motor Neurone Disease as a result of this, and then donated to the appropriate charities. (In fact, I will give you the benefit of the doubt and state here that I am sure this applies to all of my friends who have done it.) But, in the UK, those people are blatantly in a minority. So if it's not a challenge, and it's not raising much awareness, and it's not raising much money, what is the Ice Bucket Challenge? Pointless attention seeking from what I can tell. Oh yeah, and the kind that appears to have led to the death of an 18 year old.
Rant over. I am now going to go and pull some more hair out of my head and continue telling myself it's the Ice Bucket Challenge that has put me in a bad mood.
*Did just have the ironic thought that a bucket of ice cold water over my head might actually be what I need right now. Anyway.
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