I was looking for something last night [can’t remember what] and I came across an article on the BBC site.

Apparently Comic Relief money is being invested in arms, booze and tobacco.

Heh!

Now I happen to think they are eminently worthy causes but it seems some people aren't happy?

I have a company pension.  I paid into it over the forty or whatever years I worked, but I know the amount I paid in wouldn't cover the cost of the pension.  That is why there are such things as pension funds.  There is a board who looks after my pension, and it's their job to invest the money wherever gets the highest returns.  If they want to buy shares in tobacco, booze or arms that's more than fine by me.  If they want to invest the money in Big Pharma, then so what?  I despise Big Pharma for their greed, their lies and their winner takes all and fuck the patient approach, but if my pension fund gets a good return then fuckit.  If the company withdraws the fund from Big Pharma, are the latter going to go bust?  No.  They wouldn't even notice the difference, so why shouldn't I grab some of their massive profits?

These idiots who complain about investment in their pet hate of the day really need to cop on.  If I had donated to Comic Relief I would be more than happy that the trustees were getting the best returns for the charities.  On the other hand, if I discovered that the trustees weren't getting the best returns because of some self-righteous namby pamby "principle" I would be pretty pissed off.

Of course the article implies that the arms companies are gleefully buying bullets and bombs with the cash.  What people fail to realise is that buying shares in a company merely means that you are entitled to a share of the profits.  And if a company is profitable then why the fuck not take a slice?

There was another little nugget of gold about half way through –

Comic Relief also appeals for money to fight Tuberculosis and has given over £300,000 to a charity called Target Tuberculosis.

Target TB believes that smoking may be responsible for over 20% of TB cases worldwide.

While raising funds in 2009, nearly £3m of Comic Relief money was invested in shares in tobacco companies.

That really made me laugh out loud.

So Target Tuberculosis – a charity which presumably knows a little about TB – thinks that 20% of all cases are caused by smoking?  Rather strangely they get it right on their own website –

It is an infection caused by bacteria (Mycobacterium Tuberculosis), which mainly affects the lungs, but can affect other parts of the body such as the spine or brain. Only TB carried in the lungs is infectious.

Yes.  It is an infection.  Caused by bacteria.  Maybe those bacteria are heavy smokers?  Or maybe Target Tuberculosis are just jumping on the "smoking causes everything" bandwaggon? 

Or maybe someone in the BBC is just a fucking idiot?

But then everything seems to be run by idiots these days.