Letters to the Editor
healthyskeptic
Published Letters: 671 Editor's Choice: 14
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-- naturewoman
[Read the article: Doctors: No more designer vaginas!]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I would often look at my scars - the symbols of motherhood - and ask myself if I should have them repaired.
Are scars really "the symbols of motherhood?" Who says "I love my stretch marks and scars, and got this kid as a side effect."
If I scarred my arm pulling a child from burning car, a noble act to be sure, I'd still have corrective surgery if I could afterwards. Not that there is anything terribly wrong with a little scarring, but I don't get the "badge of honor" scarification thing either.
What's the motivation? ... And I feel sorry for these people.
That strikes me as extremely strange. I understand Michael Jackson looks weird, and some people seem obsessed to an unhealthy extreme. But the prevalence of knee-jerk hostility towards cosmetic surgery seems itself extremely shallow, phony, and kinda ugly.
Sure it's surgery. But it's a lasting result. We have our hair cut thousands of times, not to mention toenails and fingernails, ear piercings, etc. And people wear makeup, color coordinate, iron clothes, change fashions, etc. Everybody spends enormous time, energy, and money over a lifetime beautifying themselves in various ways. Even aborigional people.
A nose-job is really a drop in the bucket by comparison to cost and effort. The idea that anyone is "natural" is really bullshit. Perhaps Garden of Eden, Origional Sin, bullshit. Or Or just hippy bullshit.
So if someone wants to modify their nose, or whatever, and isn't seriously endangering themself, what's the big deal? If one doesn't like the aesthetic result, that's one thing. But don't moralize it.
It's actually the people with fear and hostility towards others having surgery that are insecure and putting their noses where they don't belong.
And a century from now people are all going to be heavily modified, probably with gene therapy, implanted computers, titanium joints, and who knows what else. We'll look back on this like Victorian Lace Collars, and wonder, "what were those small minded people so worried about?"
As for me, I'll stick with my abdominal scar and my flabby labia over the knife any day. There's nothing more liberating than self-acceptance.
Whatever works for you. An abdominal scar and big labia don't sound bad. But I don't agree "self-acceptance" is necessarily great. It can also be apathy.
Expression of beauty, to improve and beautify oneself and surroundings, cosmetically or symbolically, often comes from inner joy. Conversely, many people "accept" themself to death by lack of exercise, bad eating, drug addiction, smoking, etc.
(and btw, no I've not had any cosmetic surgery done. But nor do I see a problem with it.)
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--anonymous, designer vagina
[Read the article: Doctors: No more designer vaginas!]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]There is a percentage of cosmetic surgery that goes awry, and I believe it's standard procedure for surgeons to make that clear, as well as explain what they're attempting to do, in detail.
Did you question your surgeon beforehand about where and what he was going to do? You say he hacked away at what he considered extra labia, and that it completely surprised you. I find that very difficult to believe. If that happened I think you could sue him for malpractice.
Also you say the vaginal opening wasn't surgically corrected to your liking, and you required physical therapy afterwards. But you had problems to begin with right? And presumably the doctor warned you about the possibility of scarring and the need for further therapy.
I don't even leave my car with the mechanic without a specific job order and clear instructions. I would never just drop off my car and say "fix it." Let alone my genitals.
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there are no "people" online
[Read the article: TriXie says "Play nice"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]A person is a physical being. There are no "people" online, nor in video games.
While we'd all like to imagine ourselves as highly rational and moral beings, morality is mostly evolved instinct in regards to personal interaction. That's why we can read statistics of hundreds of thousands dying horrible deaths, and feel little, be moved to tears when we see one person in a documentary movie, and truly feel great pain when it's someone we actually know.
Even real-life people are easily dehumanized given circumstances which prevent real human connection. The Hollucaust, Abu Graib, etc.
Which leads some people to think video games, or forum, etc are dehumanizing people in the real world. How silly.
They're entertainments as dehumanizing as chess debate clubs. The differences (more graphics, online communities, etc) are insignificant in regards to rational ethics and instinctual morality depending on real human>human interaction.
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mental illness is big business
[Read the article: Feminist blog goes to the dogs]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]You all deserve one another. Being crazy is the new activism. Insanity is the new hate. -- (~~~~)
No kidding. And someone is always profiting too.
There are healthy and unhealthy breeds, good and bad breeders, right and wrong environments for specific breeds. It's not difficult to grasp.
The fanaticism and angst of Feministing readers isn't exactly surprising. It's a personality disorder that doesn't limit itself to a specific issue. Dworkin as an extreme archetype. She had a wide range of mental problems. Radical feminism just made her famous and paid the bills.
Such people frequently become dysfunctional. Nervous wrecks after years of encouragement towards constant overblown paranoia and outrage. What they really need is to cope with emotional issues. But it's easier to sell them a magazine or TV show or such.
It's sad that Feministing and such exploit them. And to a lesser extent so does BS. But then the tabloids have been selling stories of alien abductions, and Jerry Springer has been selling much worse, for a long time. It's become a huge business.
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So what?
[Read the article: The Hillary Clinton Nutcracker]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]OMG!!! Flory found an obscure product on the internet!!! Clearly it's time for Flory's to start hyperventilating!!!
There are 300 million people in America. How many of these will be sold? Tops 10,000 perhaps? Perhaps 1 in 30,000 people will buy one of these.
And how many of those will be sold to actual "misogynists" and how many sold to feminists to kick off "The Misogyny" conversations.
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-- brightstar65
[Read the article: The Hillary Clinton Nutcracker]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Nobody cares. Get a life.