If a cigarette company offered to sponsor you, would you take it? If no, is there a dollar amount where you would say yes?
Never having been sponsored before I would be excited to have that opportunity. However, cigarettes are one of those vices that I've never tried and don't like at all. The health impact on people is huge plus they smell like smoke afterwards, which is equally disliked.
This question makes me think of Lance Armstrong and his advertisements for light beer. Isn't the message that he's sending is you can still be an excellent athlete and drink like me? Drink this beer and you'll be an awesome athlete. It's a conflict between good and evil and sends the wrong message.
Initially I would say no but money is a driver for behavior. Would I say yes if offered 500K? A million? Since my days of possibly being an elite are gone (well they never actually existed), I've never had a sponsor and probably won't ever get to a level to be sponsored, I'll be righteous and JUST SAY NO. I would pass up being sponsored by a cigarette company to be a positive influence for my nieces and nephews sake and all their friends.
17 comments:
I'd say there's a difference between light beer and cigarettes. I'd say yes to light beer :) ...no to cigarettes. Ah, so easy to remain righteous when it's not even a remote possibility :)
Have a great day!!
Light beer = not only no, but hell no. Cigarettes would depend on the logo...
I would have to go with no on this one..I know money is huge, but still...Cigarettes...I think they are gross anyway, yuck!
I'd definitely say no to cigarettes but I think beer is different. There's nothing wrong with drinking in moderation but there is something wrong with smoking even one cigarette, especially since they're highly addictive. It also makes sense that Lance endorses the ultra light because it's the closest thing to a "health conscious" beer but just because you're an athlete doesn't mean you can't drink. I think it would be hilarious if they got an athlete to endorse the taco bell diet menu.
Anne-totally agree its easy to be righteous when we never will have to make that decision.
Jamoosh-you crack me up. you could be a sponsor for a make your own brew company.
Chris-I'm with you. Double Yuck
Allie-I hadn't thought about it but you're right there's nothing wrong with drinking in moderation and a light beer is probably a better "healthy" choice, although Jamoosh would disagree.
There is NO amount of money cigarette company could offer me for sponsorship.
Oh, sorry, if it was enough to buy them out and run them to the ground then yes.
The cigarettes will be a definite no for me. I campaign strongly against smoking and there is nothing worse for me than sportsmen/women that smoke. The beer I’ll consider for sure. In South Africa beer companies sponsor some of our national teams. SAB (South African Breweries) is involved with sports at different levels. Some ultra events are also sponsored by breweries.
I think the beer is different too. I would say no to cigarettes, and yes to the beer :)
I don't think I could ever say yes to that regardless of the money. Smoking is just too harmful...
No! Yuck! But.......if I was offered 5 million, could retire and go to all the races I wanted when I wanted. Hmmm. No worries. No one is ever going to sponsor me. So no no no!
Hi - thanks for visiting my blog and for your encouraging comment! Completing that 20 miler really has boosted my confidence, you are absolutely right :)
I'm gonna be really un-PC here, and go against the pack (pardon the pun) and say yes, I could definitely be bought for a high price. I would accept sponsorship from a cigarette company. I would love to take their money and put it to good use, directly help someone in need, a family get care or education for their child, give someone a fresh start in life - I really don't think it would matter to them where the money came from. No corporate money is "clean" anyway, may as well put it to good use. Besides, my wearing a logo in some race wouldn't exactly send people running en masse to get a pack of unfiltereds...I just don't have that kind of influence! Sometimes the end justifies the means. Cheers!
I'm a definite NO!
I will never be in this position, but I'd say NO. The people in my house smoked incessantly and I suffered from breathing problems and a terrible cough. The doctor told my mom this was the cause, but they continued on. It wasn't until I was 14-19 that they started to smoke outside and that was after a long battle mainly put up by me.
I helped nurse my grandma (the main maternal presence in my life) for about four months with my mom aunt and hospice's guidance (lung/bone cancer). She passed while we held her hand one night. No amount of money would make me endorse a product that could cause this kind of death.
Very good question! I am sure there are a lot of people in these ethical situations. There is such a responsibility when you are in a position of influence. I don't think I'd ever want to be in the spotlight like that. The scrutiny would kill me.
man you ask such good questions! I will never be at a level of sponsorship so I don;t have to really deal with it but I'm just so against cigarettes. My entire running career started and has been based around Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and preventing cancer...how could I allow my running to become something that could promote a cancer causing agent? Money always complicates things. I bet there are many athletes for go with a sponsorship of a company they don't really believe in. But again...I will never have to worry about this =)
i think i'd be a sellout for some $$$! lol. i would hope to turn it to a "this is what not-smoking helps you to do" though. and i'd have to be freakin' awesomely fast.
cigarettes are so gross though.
Absolutely not, smoking was one of the worst things I ever did and I would never promote or advertise it.
Absolutely NO WAY! I'm a health care provider and this is against several tenents that I believe in. No matter how much money, NO WAY.
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