Like the church is a business that sells religion. Whatever it takes to sell more, that's what the owners will do.
Women in swimsuits is no more mercenary or exploitative a practice than the business of professional sports. Pro sports is built on a pyramid of broken bodies of millions of young men.
Women have body-image issues and men have body-sport issues. Society screws both genders equally.
strawberryshortcake Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Never bothered me. I figured, we all have boobs, > they're mostly the same. ========================= Wrong, Strawberry! Some of us don't.
It used to bug me, quite honestly, being constantly reminded of what I did not have, but I had to let go of stuff like that. What bugged me more was people making nasty comments about my lack of attractiveness, like, "Boy, he must love you for yer brains, honey, or else you got money!"
That never bothered me, and it still doesn't bother me now. Then again, I never grew up in a Mormon bubble. As I grew up in southern California near the coast, I saw similar swimsuits at the beach in the summer.
What bothers me: Perhaps they should use swimmers as models to keep the photo spread relevant to the topic of the magazine in general. From a magazine editing point of view, the SI swimsuit issue is bullshit and just obvious pandering.
The other thing that bothers me is: Women like and watch sports. Men swim and wear swimsuits. Maybe it would bother me less if there were a couple of beefcake guys in little speedos, frolicking in the sun and surf as well.
Goose, gander, all that.
If you're going to do something that's completely pandering and irrelevant to the general theme of your publication, at least pander to everyone. Otherwise, it's just commodifying and objectifying women.
LOVE the ESPN Bodies issue. They've featured Indy Car drivers (not Danica, and she's NASCAR now anyway) and all kinds of different, beautiful, sculpted athletes. Both men and women.
<...it's just commodifying and objectifying women.>
Yep! It bothered me before I was Mormon, while I was Mormon, and it still bothers me for this very reason.
Sadly, it's not even unique anymore. It's just one more place where women with "perfect" bodies (very low percentage of body fat, enhanced breasts, fake tans, dental veneers, muscles sculpted by endless daily workouts supervised by professional trainers, etc. etc. -- and of course they are all quite young and none have been through pregnancy and childbirth) are glorified and paraded around as the standard.
Men expect their women IRL to look at least somewhat like those models and believe that they themselves "deserve" a woman who looks like that.
It never bothered me, even as a TBM and doesn't bother me now. Once, when I was first married, I caught DH looking at a copy of it and he was mortified - you'd think I caught him looking at some shameful, hard core porn instead of beautiful women in swimsuits. But that's easy for me to say because he's always very respectful of me, around me. He doesn't flirt with waitresses like my dad and he looks away of the VS ads on TV, because he doesn't want to hurt my feelings. It's very obvious from his actions I come first, even if he takes a second glance at other women occasionally. It's no more than I do when I can't help checking out a guy with a pony tail. I just love guys with long hair but I wouldn't trade out DH for one nor would I ogle one when he's around.
I had 2 annual swimsuit issues arrive on my turf. Both times they were found by a female family member and trashed. This might explain some of my personal issues. Best not complain. It only enhances my character. I'm a real character....perhaps someday like an aged bottle of scotch.
It doesn't bother me one bit because I know that what I am getting turned on by is not reality and that even though they are all insanely hot, it is nearly impossible for 99% of women to achieve that look; however, I also enjoy looking at a sexy mom at the park. I understand that even though I exercise almost every day, I will never look like a male model either and I'm fine with that.
So true. The last therapist I went to had a super hot receptionist so I had to stop paying her before the session to avoid her hotness and instead would pay on my way out...I have enough issues to talk about during therapy and that shouldn't be one of them.