....and players like Andrew Bogut (AUS), Yao Ming (CHI), Nowitzski (GER) and Gasol (ARG) are working-class paupers who regular Joes can identify with?

Reality check, GW: Each b-ball team that made it to the Olympics has two classes of players: very rich men (e.g who play in Euro leagues) and filthy rich men (NBA players).

Rippin' on the Redeem Team by itself for having entitled millionaires...when in reality all the other national teams have the same...is unfair and unjustified, to say the least.

As for the moral failings of Kobe, Kidd, etc., you have a point about celebrity and athlete worship in our country - but do YOU know for a fact that players on other teams have absolutely no skeletons in the closet? Well, do you?

The original Dream Team was created because the amateur US teams of yore found themselves battling against professional b-ballers on other country's teams.

Either everyone should be true amateurs - or the US gets to play on the same keel as everyone else. Take that up with the IOC. In the meantime, your case against the Redeem Team is purely emotional, not logical...sorry to say.

Look, I realize in the fantasy world of SOME feminists, humans choose romantic partners solely based on their views on hyperinflation & quantum theory, the last 5 books they have read, etc. and not at all based on physical attraction...

But in the reality for the rest of us, there are a few beautiful people and many average/plain people...and our ability to find sex and love is, to a large extent, dictated by our abilities to find people who are at least somewhat physically attracted to us (personality, intelligence etc. being part of but NOT the whole equation).

So for an average-looking or even unattractive woman seeking a relationship in an area / scenario where there are more attractive females, odds are she not be as successful as if she were in an area where females are scarce.

Is this really so pitiful? Or necessarily misogynistic in some way?

I think the mayor's choice of words was cringe-worthy...but his heart and intentions were in the right place.

Beggars are not choosers. And as someone who's experienced loneliness, I think it's pretty cruel for Tracy and other women to mock the men of Mount Isa for desiring female companionship of some kind.

----------------

One final point: I'm guessing from looking at her pic/video that Tracy is considered attractive, beautiful, yada yada yada; does she have any context of what life is like for a non-beautiful adult female?

I wonder how this plays into her scorn of the mayor's pleas; can we hear some responses about this from non-traditionally attractive women?

But the stuff she features simply can add a little convenience, fun or joy to the user's life.

I think most women in her greater audience are smart enough to understand this, no?

I also think most women can understand that loving yourself is not mutually exclusive from wanting to be more fit, e.g. losing 15 lbs to be more athletic and fit into your fave clothes.

Self-acceptance does not necessarily mean that one cannot consider self-improvement; I think they can/should both go hand in hand.

If you read this letter thread, LW, please ignore all the prudes straight-jacketed by their suburban WASP conventions...

You want a tattoo(s)? No problem. I would advise you to think CAREFULLY about what you want, and where you want to get it. Also, be sure to use a licensed shop (there are many around, unless you live in an ultra-konservative place like Utah).

But by all means, if you want a tattoo, get a tattoo!! Fuck the prudes.

I have a couple discreet ones, and I have no regrets. (AND I am gainfully employed at a white-collar medical research position. So there.)

--------------

Otherwise, I agree with some previous posters who say involve your husband in your activities. He did not cheat death like you did, but if he is truly your soulmate then the two of you will have a blast.

And as for the previous writer who scorned you for wanting to end "stagnant" friendships...can any of you honestly say you DON'T KNOW or have not experienced friendships that have run their course?

You owe nothing to those people but dignity and politeness. ANd by all means, if you want to seek new friendships, do so!

You are a survivor, LW. Live your life as best as you see fit.

Just because your old friends & fam - and the myopic curmudgeons on this comment thread - cannot understand the thrill and hope imbued in A Second Chance does not mean you should go back to the same, grinding old routines.

Simply take your hubby with you on your New Journey, 'kay?

As Alice Sebold once wrote: "Just have fun, kid." =)

Just curious: which one of the following is dictating your talking posts as you post on this thread?

--Geraldine Ferraro

--Jesse Jackson

--Gloria Steinem

--Rev. Wright

--Karl Rove

--Miss Hillary herself?

*******

Please share this for me with your talking point overlord(s):

Old is the new Irrelevant.

Bitch is the new Bitter / Feline. (puma, that is)

Black is the new President.

**************

Better get all your coping mechanisms ready for the morning of November 5th. Just sayin'...

Whether this stem cell approach works or not, the industry and its profit motives are not gonna change.

And if it does work, and breast cancer survivors (Christina Applegate, anyone?) wish to use it to regain natural-looking breasts, then who the hell are we to say no?

Perhaps the proecedures may even shine new light on challenges / benefits that will face future stem cell applications.

I vote for Hooray.