The same myopia apparently led the Susan

Yet some of those we encountered were more concerned about politics than about saving women's lives.Gucci outlet, cheap gucci online, gucci 2012 new arrivals for sale.

People demanded to know what we did to screen out "illegal aliens." One individual launched into a monologue about how people who were uninsured didn't have insurance by choice. Another man proclaimed that abortions caused breast cancer.

The same myopia apparently led the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation to step into a pile of mess from which it is still struggling to extricate itself.

On Wednesday, Komen made a public announcement that it was pulling the plug on its funding to Planned Parenthood for breast cancer
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screenings -- $680,000 a year. Komen officials could have waited until their next budget cycle and simply not renewed the grant. Yet, instead, for reasons known only to them, they decided to publicize what they had to have known would be a controversial decision.

Komen said Planned Parenthood shouldn't be eligible for grants because the organization was being investigated by Republicans in Congress. By investigation, they are referring to the witch hunt by GOP extremists trying to prove that Planned Parenthood used federal funds to pay for abortions.

No one at Komen is suggesting that Planned Parenthood used the breast cancer foundation's money for anything but cancer screenings.

Komen insisted the decision had nothing gucci outlet to do with the fact that Planned Parenthood is an abortion provider.

Yet in the last several days, emails and other evidence has suggested that Karen Handel, a former Georgia gubernatorial candidate and anti-abortion crusader who is vice president of public policy at Komen, was the driving force behind the decision. Handel ran for governor on a anti-abortion platform and pledged to defund Planned Parenthood. According to news reports, Handel pushed for a new policy that would prevent Komen from funding any organization that was under investigation by local, state or federal authorities -- for the sole purpose of cutting off funding to Planned Parenthood.

The move triggered a public-relations nightmare for Komen. Planned Parenthood, meanwhile, made out like bandits, as abortion rights advocates, whipped into a frenzy by the media and blogosphere, rushed to donate to the organization.

After two days of withering criticism, Komen reversed itself. On Friday, Komen officials said they would continue to fund existing grants, including Planned Parenthood's.

"They learned a painful lesson," says Peggy McGuire, executive director of the Women's Cancer Resource Center in Oakland (www.wcrc.org), which received a $25,000 Komen grant for a community health advocate program. "I am just awed by the power of social media and the broad coalition of support that came out in support of breast cancer."

All seven Komen affiliates in California denounced the decision.

Many people who are still smarting over Komen's decision to defund Planned Parenthood say they will never give the organization another penny. There are also those upset over Komen's about-face who feel the same way.

Both sides argue -- for different reasons -- that Komen is putting politics above saving lives.Gucci wallets, cheap gucci wallets 2012 outlet for men and women.

For those who want to support the fight against breast cancer, there are plenty of other worthy local organizations that serve our community.