Women's body issues: men's fault or women's?

Ohhh... FanTASTic!! I can eat more now because a may-un gave me permission to!

Anyone who reads this article and buys this line of bull, listen up for a minute: It is not "other women" but society that gives women these body insecurities, and society's ideals of female beauty are very much modeled on those of a very specific ruling class of men.

Hey guys, you like your woman just the way she is and don't want her to feel like she has to be model skinny or live up to some stupid and unrealistic ideal? That's great! I commend you for thinking for yourself (kinda) and not just caving to society's ideals. (No sarcasm there. I really mean that.)

But!! That still doesn't mean that women's body issues are only the fault of other women.

And ladies, if you feel insecure about yourselves only because you think no man will ever find you attractive, take heart: There is assuredly some fella out there who wants to do you doggie style.

Oh, NOW...

I really think the National Organization for Women should can it with this crap. It only reinforces the idea that feminism is just for upper-class white ladies. You know, I 'get' that a Bo-tax would disproportionately target middle-aged women, but at the same time, Botox is a luxury, not a necessity. And it's only become so popular because of our society's fucked-up ideals about female beauty and aging. By opposing the so-called Bo-tax, NOW is kind of saying it's OK for women to be judged on their physical appearance.

In my opinion, the real effort needs to be in expanding basic gynecological health services and prenatal care to all women (and for that matter, expanding basic healthcare to include EVERY American). Botox is a luxury, but a routine pap smear is a necessity that many women go without because they don't have health coverage.

Furthermore, NOW and other feminists need to push body acceptance. People age, and even in youth, we often don't live up to the unrealistic ideals of female beauty put forth by the media and advertisers. A woman's worth goes far beyond her physical appearance, and real feminists everywhere need to emphasize that. We may never be able to change these whacked ideals, but we can do our best to not be held slaves to these ideals, and to me, that means not giving a damn about the Bo-tax.

And one more thing... If you really want to avoid wrinkles in old age, you would do much better to stay out of the sun and slather on the SPF when you go outside. Protect yourself against skin cancer, too!