women in kilts

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

Like DWFII I, too, felt that having given my opinion I would move on... but you know, he's right (as is arrg-isle). Political correctness aside, ladies seem to be dividing themselves into two camps: Lipstick ladies and Log Cabin ladies. And it seems that the Log Cabin ladies are the ones who are clamoring for social approval to dress and act like men. They are also the ones who, tucking their plaid shirts into their men's jeans and lacing up their combat boots, often complain the loudest about media images that do not conform to their physical genotype. Barbie Dolls, Laura Croft, and slender women are somehow bad, while a Rosie O'Donnell, Queen Latifa, and far-from-slender women become their sometimes highly politicized archetypes of desirable femininity.

Frankly, I don't care what someone wears, even if their choice grates against several thousand years of ingrained aesthetics-- I am conditioned to ignore those things which do not please the eye. But, like DWFII says, this is an example of trying to reduce everything to the lowest possible denominator, using the excuse of entitlement rather than expending the effort to raise standards, be they personal or collective.

Unlike DWFII I do not see western society moving towards androgyny, but I do see a concerted effort on the part of many women (perhaps some unknowingly) trying to push society in that direction. Certainly I don't see any sort of political activity on the part of men campaigning for a more androgynous society.

Retro Red has posited that, at least for some, this desire to be androgynous may stem from problems with personal identity. Perhaps, perhaps not. I do believe that it takes more effort to project femininity than it does to project masculinity. Queen Latifa makes the effort, and despite her size, looks feminine. Rosanne Barr (or whatever her last name is) doesn't make that effort and as a result does not exude the same levels of feminine charm or-- dare one say it-- desirability.

And desirability, in my view, is what this is all about. If someone has been conditioned through two decades of political correctness to feel that they are not desirable, then adopting the guise of some other persona may provide them with a degree of psychological comfort, without having to actually do anything to make themselves more attractive.

We all agree that everyone is different, but the difficulty seems to arise when androgyny is used an excuse to erase those lines of "differentness" for reasons of political correctness.

Mods can feel free to remove this posting if they feel it has strayed too far off topic.