It's Victim of the Patriarchy Sunday!

There is a discussion on KR about the Britney photos seen round the world. It branched off into a discussion of the objectification of women, and while I don't disagree with the poster's intent it was so serious and intense young feminist I wanted to laugh. I am a feminist, but sheesh.

Let's keep perspective - we are talking about Britney here. Her last infamous video involved ear-splitting belching and going, "Huh?" and her last famous photos were barefoot in a public restroom. It's not like her willingness to flash her vajayjay for the paparazzi is going to derail her admission to Harvard Law School or ruin her chances of a political career. Like the Hilton critter, she's just a rich white trash girl overstaying her 15 minutes of fame. And this is just trash doing what trash does, so let's ignore her until she puts her drawers back on, or better yet, just ignore her, and quit making it a statement about the objectification of women.

Oh, and someone else took offense at the playful euphemisms used in the discussion - including vajayjay, which is now an official part of the lexicon thanks to the esteemed surgeon Dr. Miranda Bailey and the writers of Grey's Anatomy. If you can't say vajayjay while talking about Britney Spears' ladybits, what on earth has feminism come to? Lighten up, y'all!

If you haven't found The Anonymous Woman yet, she collects some good stuff for discussion. I had to comment on the Dove thread, because again, some of the comments on the linked discussion just made me sigh heavily. I love being a woman, I love all girly things, I don't mind being an object of male attention now and then, and I love the fact that I can do all of this and work in land development and be taken seriously for my contribution to the construction of millions of dollars worth of dirt stuff. And because I work with men every day, I can tell you for a fact that a whole lot of them are as looks, clothes and body conscious as we are, and if they are busting their butts going to the gym and selecting their clothes with care (and yes, they are straight and over 40), the least I can do is do the same. I have had years of being the fly on the wall with the boys, and trust me, we are ALL insecure about our appearance and trying to look our best and fight off Father Time. I'm delighted that the media has caught up and is giving us Diane Keaton for L'Oreal instead of some 18 year old, because honey, I have a lot more discretionary income to blow on cosmetics than the average 18 year old, but if you insult me you ain't getting a dime of it.

And if being a sucker for cosmetics makes me a victim of the patriarchy in some people's eyes, so be it. I know what I have achieved on my own in my life, especially in the last 5 years, and I'm secure enough as an intelligent and accomplished woman to keep on hunting for the best wrinkle cream and the perfect red lipstick, because it's fun to be a woman.