Cover of The Stepford Wives

It really is everywhere!  Advertising uses sex to tempt us to buy.  Where did all the B.B.C. English speaking prim and proper ladies go?  Perhaps these stereotype “Stepford wife” types were not good advertising potential, but does sex have to be used so much?  I’d rather see more funny adverts, though that is a personal opinion.

Sexualising children is something I really don’t like.  It is like pimping them to me.  I hate to see the pageants in America, and was horrified to read about a mother who was jabbing her 8 year old daughter with botox to keep her young looking as she was sure this little pageant competitor would grow up to be an actor, singer or model one day.  Vicarious living?  Endangering the child by attracting paedophiles to her?  And selling padded bras for 5 year old?  Come on now!  What is that about?  I’d boycott shops who did sell them as I think children should be allowed to be children, not little “mini-me” tarts wearing make-up to kindergarten. 

Do we really want to see people jumping into bed with each other on the soaps every time we turn on the T.V. or do you agree with me that it isn’t “realism” to show all that because I don’t “really” go watching my friends in their bedrooms.  Realism is that people do things behind closed doors where nobody sees it.  Realism is also that there are people who do say “No.”  There are people who do it and get nothing out of it, and not everyone is moaning and groaning in ecstasy after a five minute encounter between the sheets or in the back of a car. 

Do we really want our children knowing too much about sex too soon?  Or to see what is verging on porn?  I was horrified when I went to the local library one day and saw a group of tittering children crowding around a computer watching a cartoon of Marge and Homer Simpson having sex.  Apparently there are a lot of cartoons of this kind and the “child safety” settings don’t pick up on those, so teenagers are showing younger children were to find them. 

I won’t even get into the issue of too much porn on the Internet other than to warn that while searching for images people I know have clicked on some which looked a little naughty only to find that they were virus ridden traps.  Make sure you have good virus protection on your computers if you are doing any naughty surfing folks, and do check your children’s browsing histories to see where they are going on the world wide web. 

OK, so I’m 58 and grew up in less enlightened times so call me old-fashioned, but a bit of morality and common sense would be nice in advertising and the media.  I really don’t want to see children sexualised, or to see young people given advice on how to do great oral sex.  I don’t like adverts breaking up a good movie on television and certainly don’t want to have to watch airbrushed and computer enhanced “perfect” scantily clad females acting sleazy as if they want to have sex with a pot of yogurt. 

I’d rather keep sex in the bedroom! 

Cover via Amazon

1.) The Crowning Touch: Preparing forBeauty Pageant Competition by Anna Stanley – Amazon.com $6.89

2.) How to Win Your Crown: A Teen’s Guide to Pageant Competition by S. A. Bordenkircher – Amazon.com $12.95

3.) 101 Secrets to Winning Beauty Pageants by Ann-Marie Bivans- Amazon.com $23.68

4.) Catching the Crown by Lu Parker- Amazon.com $19.95

5.) The Ultimate beauty Pageant Notebook by Cherie Wimberly – Amazon.com $19.99

6.) High Performance Beauty: Makeup & Skin Care for Dance, Cheer, Show Choir, Pageants & Ice Skating by Christine Dion- Amazon.com $18.96

7.) Beauty Pageants: Tiaras, Roses, and Runways by Judy Alter- ValoreBooks.com .64 cents

8.) High Glitz: The Extravagant World of Child Pageants by Susan Anderson, Simon Doonan, Robert Greene- Amazon.com $26.37

9.) Pageant: The Beauty Contest by Keith Lovegrove – gohastings.com $1.99

10.) Live From Atlantic City: A History of the Miss American Pageant by A. R. Riverol

11.) Yes, You Can Heather! The Story of Heather Whitestone, Miss America 1995 by Daphne Gray & Greg Lewis

12.) Miss America: In Pursuit of the Crown: The Complete Guide to the Miss America Pageant by Ann-Marie Bivens

Many are buzzing about her response to the question that was given to her.  The question was  “What is one big mistake you made in your life and what did you do to make it right?” to which she answered  “You know what, sir, in my 22 years of existence, I can say there is nothing major, major — I mean, problems — that I have done in my life, because I am very confident with my family with the love that they are given to me. So… Thank you so much that I am here! Thank you, thank so much!” 

Now this response may have cost her the title that only the judges know.  But one thing was for sure, Miss Raj was certainly happy to have reached that point regardless of whether she won the title or not. Some people are quick to say that she bungled it, others remain sympathetic and say she did a good job.  I tend to agree with the latter.  Considering all the hardship and challenges that she’s been through to reach that pivotal point in her life,  to me is enough to be considered a success. Besides she seems all  to happy about her achievement and so with many of our countrymen just as Pacquiao did during his boxing matches.  And that is all what matters.

I believe in the old adage that winning isn’t everything.   Perhaps the biggest triumph here was her timely contribution to restore  the Filipino image which we need so badly.  So to Miss Raj “Thank you, and thank you so much!”

Difference?

By Stephanie Fleming

Miss Universe, Miss USA, Miss America, Little Miss Sunshine……It can all get a little confusing. So, what is what? Isn’t the USA the same as America? Well let’s see. If you look up the definition of The United States of America, one answer you will find is- A country of central and northwest North America with coastlines on the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. If you were to also look up America, you would find- place name short for The United States of America. So you could surmise that they are indeed the same. So can’t you assume that the pageants of the same names would also be synonymous?  You might  think so; however nothing could be further from the truth. The Miss USA pageant and Miss America pageant are two totally different pageant systems.

The Miss America organization began as a “beauty” pageant in 1921. It prefers not to be called that anymore due to the fact that swimsuit and evening wear only comprises 35 percent of the overall score.  Miss America has become known as a Scholarship Pageant awarding Scholarships to girls from all 50 states including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. The Miss America pageant including its’ state affiliates is the largest provider of scholarships for women in the United States. In 2006, it awarded more than $45 million dollars in scholarships.   The pageant was initially held in Atlantic City, New Jersey and continued there until the organization moved to Las Vegas, Nevada in January of 2006.  Miss America contestants each have a platform that they spend the years’ reign in their state educating others about. She is considered to be a role model as Miss America is heavily involved in community and charity events during her time as queen.  She travels approximately 20,000 miles per month and her location changes every 24 to 48 hours.  Her reign last for one year until she crowns the next Miss America, but the experience lasts a lifetime.

The Miss USA pageant was born in 1950 when then Miss America, Yolanda Betbeze refused to pose for publicity photos in a swimsuit.  Catalina swimwear decided to pull its sponsorship from the Miss America organization and create their own competition.  Some owners of the Miss USA pageant have been Gulf Western, ITT Corporation and current owner, billionaire Donald Trump who purchased the organization in 1996. The first Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants were held in Long Beach, California. There were only 30 delegates in the first pageant and for 2 decades of the pageants history, many states decided not to compete. The District of Columbia, Alaska and Hawaii do send a delegate to the Miss USA pageant.  Competition is comprised of swimsuit, evening gown and interview. No talent competition. The winner of Miss USA goes to the organization’s sister pageant, Miss Universe. If Miss USA wins Miss Universe, the runner up of  Miss USA carries out the remainder of the year.  Winners are awarded with cash and prizes and public exposure.

There has been controversy involving both organizations. There have also been many women to use each pageant as a platform to further their chosen careers.  There are benefits to both and I am sure there are as many similarities as there are differences. They both provide women an opportunity to express themselves freely as they see fit and that, in and of itself is progress and a good thing.

There’s pressure everywhere these young girls turn to be more beautiful and thinner. In our society 15% of young women have some kind of disordered eating patterns. (Random House). Miss America 2008 is a recovering anorexic. She suffered as a teen and struggled through high school. Her platform issue is on eating disorders. 1% of female adolescence have anorexia. That means 1 out of every 100 young women between the ages of 10 and 20 are starving themselves to death. (Media, Eating Disorders and girls). Who is to blame? Beauty pageants are guilty because of what they promote. Striving to be a beauty queen is a danger to the physical and mental health of our young girls today.

9 out of 10 girls age 14 and 15 claim to have suffered depression with 6% saying life just is not worth living. Top sources of what produced this feeling was pressure to look good, that’s 94% of our girls trying to fit into the beauty queen image. (Virtual Library of Newspaper, Articles). Low self esteem is becoming a crises in this country. Not measuring up is a prblem and can lead to distructive behavior. 75% of girls with low self esteem reported engaging in negative and potentially harmful activities. This leads to disordered eating, drugs and even hurting themselves. (Low Self Esteem is at a Crises for girls). Beauty pageants are a source for girls to look to and compare themselves to. There are just yo many negative results that stem from pageants.

“Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder” (Margaret Wolfe Hungerford 1878 “The Duchess”). Teens behold what they think is beauty in their eyes, and where do they get information on what beauty is? Beauty pageants are one source they view and see what others see as beauty. Nicole Hunter wrote a paper on “The effects of Beauty Pageants” she was four when she competed in her first pageant. Now she does not know what it feels like to be pretty without firsy putting on make-up. When she would lose a pageant she would compare her self to the girl who did win. Which in turn would lead to poor self image and low self esteem. Beauty, talent and a knock out body add up to a beauty queen contestant. Not all of our teen girls can live up to these standards so what is left is a society of young girls obsessing with their looks. So mothers think twice before entering your daughters into beauty pageants.

Works Cited.

1. Low self esteem crisis levels for girls Jim Liebolt-Senior Editor for Homewood(source PRN News Wise)

2. Media,Eating Disorders and Girls Sandra Williams March 26, 2007

3. Nicole Hunter “Effects of Beauty Pageants” cause and effect paper linking beauty pageants to low self esteem, eating disorders. Copy write 2007 UN:LIZAC 1217 at writing.com

Random House Eating Disorders Statistics, BBCUK February 24, 2005 Bliss Magazine

4. Virtual library of newspaper articles “Girls teenage years a misery.

Hills

Miss Lara Dutta won the Miss Universe Beauty contest held in Nicosia, Cyprus in the year 2000. Before she became Miss Universe, she was very active as a film actress in India where she won a Film fare Best Female Debut Award. She was also active in modeling and she received various awards as India’s top model. After being crowned Miss Universe, Lara was appointed as Ambassador of Goodwill at he UNFPA. Lara Dutta is still active in India’s film industry as an actress and at the same time she pursued her career in modeling.

Pryanka Chopra

Miss Pryanka Chopra won the Miss World beauty contest in 2000, same year when Lara Dutta won the Miss Universe Beauty pageant in Cyprus. She was 18 years old when she won the Miss World title. Like Miss Dutta, Pryanka is also very active in the film industry of India and has likewise won several awards as a Film Actress. She aims to continue her movie career in India.

Reita Faria

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Miss Reita Faria won the Miss World Beauty contest in 1966. She is the first Indian to wear the Miss World Crown. She was 19 years old when she won the Miss World title. She is one Indian beauty that did not pursue a career in the movies or entertainment. Instead she continued her studies in medicine and eventually became a doctor. She is married to David Powel and eventually moved to Ireland where she raised a family with her husband. They have 2 children and 5 grandchildren.

Aishwarya Rai

Miss Aishwarya Rai won the Miss World in 1994. Miss Rai was a model before joining the Miss World contest. After winning the Miss World contest, she moved to London for a year and after completing her reign, she continued modeling and eventually became an Actress.

Diana Hayden

Miss Hayden won the Miss World contest in 1997. She was 24 years old when she won the Miss World Crown. She became the third Indian woman to win the Miss World title. Just like the other Indian beauties, Diana Hayden eventually joined the movie industry as an actress and host to a popular TV show.

Sushmita Sen

Miss Sushmita Sen won the Miss Universe Beauty contest in 1994. She was born on November 1975. She was 18 years old when she won the Miss Universe Title. About two years after her reign ended, she also joined the movie industry in India and eventually won the best supporting actress award. Along with the other Indian beauties, she is enjoying her life as an Actress.