Appeals to Pathos in The Denver Post

In the Denver Post, I found two articles or adds that each made me react in a different way. The first one was a letter to the editor having to do with the war in Iraq. In the letter it talks about how the reader dislikes how troops are viewed as just numbers or military property rather than humans. One of the reader's relatives got hurt in the war, and was sent back with a hurt leg. This article, trying to get sympathy for troops and their families, had a picture of a man in military uniform, crutching along with a hurt leg. This was a successful emotional appeal because it made me feel sympathetic towards troops and their families, and made me feel that the military should be more forgiving with their soldiers.
The second add was a cancer fund advertisement that says "DONATE YOUR CAR" in large bold letters. I think this add is also supposed to make you feel sympathetic and want to help or donate to the cancer fund as advertised. I did not feel this way though. I did not feel sympathetic towards the fund, yet I felt the ad was lacking information and made me not want to donate because it left me hanging.