The upcoming half-marathon I'm signed up for is a race, and an act of revenge on ulcerative colitis, ten years in the making.

Donor fatigue is real, especially when natural disasters keep decimating the poorest parts of the planet. So I save my request for your donations to support IBD initiatives to just one time each year. Now's that time.

Despite raising money and quasi-awareness, the ALS ice bucket challenge reflects the sad state of charitable giving, where inanity and vanity trump compassion and morality.