Seth sent this article on a century of manufacturers making outrageous claims to the masses that they can deliver the unrealistic image of beauty coveted in that particular time period. So far, I have yet to see a product or service truly deliver on their promise. But, we continue to buy these products and services at a fantastic rate.
As the article points out, most people know that the product will not deliver but continue to believe it might. Healthy eating habits, exercise, hydration and geneticsplay the most important role in how we look. So, why do we continue to believe the hype?
Well, we live in a culture that relies on instant gratification and faith. Together, instant gratification and faith, mixed with a mediated culture that churns out advertisements containing airbrushed and photoshopped images at a dizzying rate with a remarkable increase year to year and it’s no surprise that people continue to consume these promises despite the overall failure tyo deliver.
We’re trained to be consumers from the time we are toddlers and we are assaulted with glossy images at every turn. Take a look around and make note of how many spaces and how many times a day you are NOT prone to an advertisement. As this article depicts, this is not necessarily something new. What has changed, though, is the degree to which we are subject to the messages from advertisers, the value of physical beauty above all else and the unrealistic and unattainable definition of beauty that is being sold.
Women and food. Food and sex. Women and food and sex. Food as pleasure. Women as food.
Victorian women were advised not to be seen eating by their mothers since eating food meant one ingested (and defecated) said edible and this was considered sensual and, goodness knows, a good Victorian girl was not a sensual or sexual creature. Only bad girls had the inner flame of sexuality burning. Food could ignite that passion and cause a good girl to go bad.
Carl’s Junior has played on this age-old Victorian sentiment for quite some time by depicting overly sexed and objectified women as the edible and eating the edible. The bad girl ( as in sexual) for the taking.
I began my yoga practice in 1996 and knew I had stumbled upon something exhilarating, insightful, challenging and delicious. There weren’t a lot of yoga studios in 1996 and I had to truly seek out a practice that fit my personality and my needs. My friend, Marla, led me to Bryan Kest in 1997 and by 1999 I ditched the gym and developed a dedicated and consistent practice with Bryan and Caleb Asch.
My yoga practice was a wonderful constant in a sea of change and chaos. It also provided a truly unique place to get to know my body in a new way. It was the first time I paid attention to my body’s rhythms and desires without imposing my own expectations and will. I became more forgiving, more loving and more in tune.
My teachers and my practice inspired me to give up my obsessive tendency to beat my body during a workout and made movement pleasurable, beautiful and loving. My teachers and my practice taught me how to respect and nurture my body, accept my body and, best of all, love my body.
As a person with a past rooted in dieting, obsessing, over exercising and generally abusing my body, this was new and welcomed territory. The yoga mat had been one of the few places in our media-driven, thin-obsessed and youth-oriented culture that I was not subject to these distorted messages about what I should look like or who I should be. I could just be. Sometimes that meant happy, other times sad, often times tired and curled up in child’s posed without judgement and at other times, fierce and energetic.
As yoga became more and more absorbed by the mainstream and yoga studios popped up around town like Stabucks coffee houses, I noticed yoga’s message of unity and acceptance become filtered through the lens of the dominant consciousness and consumerism. I began making public commentary on these changes in 2003 that I presented at a variety of conferences and public lectures: Celebrity Yogis: The Intersection of Yoga, the Cult of Personality and Consumerism, Yoga and Popular Culture, McYoga: The Spiritual Diet for Consumer America, Consuming Spirituality and Spiritual Consuming: Capitalizing on Yoga, and the McDonaldization and Commodification of Yoga: Standing at the Intersection of Spiritual Tradition and Consumer Culture.
I was particularly interested in the reproduction of mainstream beauty standards in the pages of yoga magazines. All the models were thin and polished. After examining the mainstreaming of yoga for several years with frustration and sadness, I put down the yoga magazines and withdrew from the increasingly commercialized yoga community that had previously provided me with solace and acceptance and made my practice more personal and, in many ways, made an attempt to safe guard it.
It worked.
Recently, though, I picked up a copy of Yoga Journal and was dismayed to find advertisements for diet pills. I’d noticed more and more corporate ads before I abandoned my subscription but this hit home. Not only had Yoga Journal succumbed to accepting corporate dollars for products that seemed unrelated to a healthy yogic lifestyle but now they had allowed the ultimate self-esteem crusher to enter: advertisements that reinforced larger cultural messages telling individuals that they must lose wight and that they don’t have to do the work of eating healthy and exercising.
Pop a pill.
In so many ways, the proliferation of ads for diet pills confirmed what I had already known for years: yoga had passed through the filter of the mainstream capitalistic consumer culture, and in passing through that filter, had emerged altered.
Yoga had come out thinner, sleeker, more polished with soy latte in hand, designer yoga bag slung over a lean shoulder and a bottle of diet pills in the belly.
Bonnie Fuller posted an article at the Huffington Post yesterday called, “Cougars and MILFS rule! 40 Year-Old Women are WAY hotter than 20 Year-Olds.” While I appreciate the celebration of more mature women as desirable, intelligent and beautiful beings, I was put off by the title. Maybe it’s just me but I don’t find the term”cougar” or “MILF” flattering. Second, the article mentions women such as Sandra Bullock, Valerie Bertinelli (giving her props for her latest People Magazine cover in which she dons a bikini and shows off her 48 year-old body), Cindy Crawford and her nude cover for Allure Magazine, Julia Riberts and Nicole Kidman to name a few.
Fuller states that this is evidence that age is no longer an issue:
Need more evidence that Age has gone the way of the dinosaur? It used to be that the standard Hollywood refrain for Hollywood actresses was that there were boohoo, no good roles, for them, moan moan, over the age of 40. As for magazines: cover models used to be doomed once they hit 30.
And if an actress became a mother, it was the kiss of death, instantly zapping their sex appeal. Society was like Elvis, who couldn’t get hot and bothered for Priscilla once she gave birth to Lisa Marie.
Now here’s the new evidence: Julia Roberts mom of three, 41, is the much admired star of the new crime thriller, Duplicity. Meryl Streep, 59, and Nicole Kidman, 41, still can’t keep up with the roles they’re offered. Michelle Pfeiffer, 50, stars as the ultimate cougar courtesan in the soon-to-be released film Cheri. Courtney Cox, 44, is also starring in a new sitcom, appropriately entitled, Cougartown. Salma Hayek, 42, and Sandra Bullock, 44, just rocked on the last two covers of In Style magazine. Oh, and Calista Flockhart, 44, is to be Hollywood’s latest blushing bride after finally bringing Harrison Ford to his knees.
Call them cougars or call them MILFS, just don’t call them over. Let’s discuss Demi Moore, 46, and Madonna, 50. The two Kabbalists are the envy of younger women everywhere. Demi, for her sexy, un-plastic-surgery-looking looks and devoted 15 years-younger, GORGEOUS husband, Ashton Kutcher, 31, who Twittered this shot of her over the weekend, and Madonna for her rock hard body and years younger lovers, A-Rod, 33, and Jesus Luz, 22.
Where do I start?
Well, first of all, Cindy Crawford’s sudsy nude centerfold graces Allure’s anti-aging issue in which Crawford shares her “secrets” on remaining in shape after children and reveals her anti-aging secrets as well. Surprise! Surprise! Crawford has her own line of anti-aging product that I would imagine fetch quite a price. This reminds me of an ad campaign Christie Brinkley did several years ago for an anti-aging moisturizer with the caption, “In don’t mind aging…as long as I don’t look like it.” Uh? Contradiction? Schizophrenic messages? Not to mention that fact that the caption next to her photograph says,” This is what 43 looks like.”
Uh, not really. Um, not at all.
I don’t know a lot of 43 year-old women or for that matter 23 year-old women that look like Crawford. I also don’t now a lot of women that have the time, money or energy to maintain her exercise regimen. Let’s face it, Cindy Crawford is not like most of us.
The other women mentioned in the article don’t reflect the average woman either. The culture has come to “accept” more mature women (if that’s what you want to call it) and, personally, I enjoy being a 30-something woman a lot more than I enjoyed being a 20-something woman. But, I don’t feel this article focused on women that represent the average woman nor do I feel this article focused on what truly makes a woman over 30 sexy: her intellect, her life experience, her charisma or the complexity of her character. In keeping with the mainstream culture’s obsession with a narrow standard of physical beauty, the article spends too much time discussing the physical appearance of women that don’t actually look their age but appear much younger thanks to products and services their celebrity status can afford them
In the end, the reality is that the culture has come to “accept” women over 30 as long as they still look like they are in their 20s.
Laura Ingraham slams Meghan McCain for her weight and Meghan McCain fires back on The View. I am digging Meghan McCain. Focus on what she has to say, not her ass.
The bottom line is that Chris Brown’s assault on Rihanna the eve before the Grammy’s is a teachable moment. The couple has been a media staple as a couple and individually as mainstream musical icons. No matter what we think about the media and it’s passion for celebrity lifestyles, the media’s coverage helps construct reality and influence public opinion on a range of issues.
Our society’s tolerance of women being battered is glaringly obvious from the statistics:
1 in 4 women will experience domestic violence during her lifetime
One third of female murder victims are killed by their intimate partner
Men’s violence against women is the No. 1 cause of injury to women—surpassing even car accidents.
Most cases of domestic violence are never reported to police.
Yet women stay in these relationships. Do they have some sort of mental illness? No, Smith tells me. It’s a social behavioral problem on the part of the victim and the abuser, not a psychiatric disorder. “The crux of the problem is that violence is something the perpetrator uses to get control of the other person. [An abuser] may also isolate the woman from her family and friends so she feels like he’s the only one she can rely on.” Of course, financially strapped women, especially those with kids, might have a hard time breaking away, and some justifiably worry that they’ll be killed if they do. Rihanna doesn’t seem to be in this situation, but Smith says it’s often hard for a woman to simply break the emotional bond with the person she’s still in love with.
There has been a growing awareness of domestic violence in recent years. One men’s organization, A Call to Men, is working to change men’s attitudes through education. The group sent out a press release saying that “possibly much of what [Chris Brown] has learned is unfortunately, from the collective body of men, which continues to teach our boys that male dominance, control, privilege, and entitlement is the correct way to behave.”
As stated above, the couple’s rumored reconciliation is another teachable moment. Oprah has taken this event and utilized her own celebrity and access to the cultural mainstream to send strong messages about the prevalence and pattern of domestic violence and the danger of reconciling with one’s abuser
“And also, love doesn’t hurt. I’ve been saying this to women for years: ‘If a man hits you once, he will hit you again.’ “
Oprah clearly understand the power of both Chris Brown’s and Rihanna’s actions and their influence and impact on young fans.
“It makes me so sad that I said to the producers, ‘I want to do a show about it this week dedicated to all the Rihanna’s of the world,’ ” Winfrey said, citing a statistic that one out of four women in the country are battered.
Sitting at the table with Winfrey, Gayle King echoed her friend’s sentiments while she also weighed in about the pop stars’ relationship.
“My thing about this is, if you guys want to get back together, I’m okay with that, but at least take some time,” she said. “I’m so worried that she’s sending the wrong message to the fans. And him, too.”
The media and it’s celebrities can influence us for better or worse. I hope more media outlets and media figures utilize this tragic moment as a reality check and a teachable moment for young fans.
Sadly, the coverage by Cosmo Girl! was severely lacking in depth.
This is some pretty sad news to start the week off with, but it is certainly worthy of talking about. Perez tells us that Chris Brown was arrested after a pre-Grammy party on Saturday night for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend Rihanna. Apparently the couple was arguing in their car when it turned physical and she ended up at the hospital in tears with “contusions and bites.” Brown turned himself in to police the next day, posted $50,000 bail and was released. Both he and Rihanna backed out of the Grammy’s the day of. That is just so sad (we even named them one of the Best Couples of 2008), arguments with your significant other should never turn violent. We wish Rihanna the best and for Chris to get help.
The rest of the “article” discussed the Grammy’s various performers.
Bristol Palin and her fiance, Levi Johnston, have split despite plans to work together and raise their child, Tripp.
As a new mom (I gave birth to my son 3 weeks ago), I can vouch for the stress and strain a newborn baby can put on individuals not to mention the changed dynamic created in the couple’s relationship. Thankfully, my partner and I planned this baby for many years and the arrival of our son has allowed us to create a new bond and relish in this process. But, on countless occasions, I imagine what it would be like to have an unexpected, unplanned pregnancy. WHOA! I can’t begin to imagine the challenges and strain an event like that would out on a couple, especially a teen couple.
I don’t think the public is too surpsied to hear about this split. Upon announcing the obvious pregnancy, Sarah Palin proclaimed that the couple would get married and raise this child in a legitimate union, sanctioned by God and law. Somehow, this statement was meant to justify a teen pregnancy by a daughter born to a woman that does not believe in sex education, access to birth control or safe and legal abortion. Yet, Sarah Palin said the decision to have a child was a “choice” and that her daughter, Bristol, and the child’s father, Levi, would make the best of the situation.
I never believed that marriage was making the best decision for this couple. But, it’s a clear example to all of those individuals that felt it was the appropriate solution and applauded it that life for these two teens is not what Sarah Palin predicted it would be.
From Bristol’s recent statement, it sounds like choice was not in the equation from start to finish.
Bristol also said that “everyone should be abstinent but it’s not realistic… [sex] is more and more accepted among kids my age.”
Bristol also warned about the dangers of teen pregnancy and said that she should have waited 10 years before having children.
Apparently, the washing machine has done more to liberate women than abortion and reproductive rights. So, on this important day, forget all the contributions that all of the women’s movements globally have made on women’s lives. The washing machine has transformed our realities more than anything else. Go clean the nappies.
46, and Madonna, 50. The two Kabbalists are the envy of younger women everywhere. Demi, for her sexy, un-plastic-surgery-looking looks and devoted 15 years-younger, GORGEOUS husband, Ashton Kutcher, 31, who Twittered this shot of her over the weekend, and Madonna for her rock hard body and years younger lovers, A-Rod, 33, and Jesus Luz, 22.
