The Hypocrisy of Do-Gooding

I am a huge supporter of volunteering. I currently volunteer with four different organizations on a regular basis, and maybe a dozen more or so every now and again. Not only does volunteering enable you to give back to your community and support causes you believe it; it also makes you feel good as a person—as if the time you’ve spent is meaningful and, in some cases, even spiritual. You also make new friends and connections, learn new things, and usually have an overall fun experience.

However, sometimes so-called do-gooding is pretty damn hypocritical. I’ve seen some pretty bad “green-washing” and whatnot lately that really makes me cringe. From the Susan G. Komen Foundation working with cancer-causing KFC, Wal-Mart donating money to help end the poverty that it creates itself, and hundreds of people planting trees on Earth Day so simply go about their business by the next day—and, in some cases, the same day—it can be pretty depressing.

One of the worst cases of hypocritical “do-gooding” that I’ve ever seen is in the case of magazines. On one page, you’ll learn about safe cosmetics, green cleaning products, and how to donate money to this or that cause; on the next, there is an advertisement for a product that does the exact opposite of what the previous article promoted. Want to help fight hunger? Shop at Wal-Mart! Say no to cancer? Wear this product containing cancer-causing agents! Worried about the environment? Buy this gas-guzzling “family-friendly” minivan! It’s enough to make your head spin.

The worst part is that I think many people don’t make the disconnect. Every person I talk to is simply shocked that so many lipsticks contain lead and other carcinogenic ingredients; didn’t their magazine say stay away from this or that to not get cancer? Shouldn’t the makeup ad on the next page reflect those same values?

Essentially, I think it should not be legal to even use all of these chemicals, of course; many countries have banned certain ones. Why do we ban some and not all of the dangerous agents in our system? Until we do, I think they should come with similar warnings from the Surgeon General like cigarette packages do.

I also think that magazines should either be green or not; they shouldn’t confuse their readers by ping-ponging back and forth. If you are dedicated to a cause, you really support it, and you want to help stop something (or promote it), you shouldn’t turn around and do the opposite for a buck.