>area woman, makeup IS an essential skill for females.<

Er...why? Come on, tom--you sound like that Anonymous idiot who keeps insisting 'round here that all women everywhere can "get" men at the drop of a hat.

>It is not essential for males. Well, I admit that if makeup could help my depressingly ugly pan, I would use it, but spackle, grout and epoxy paint would probably be required for me.<

:) You sure a good foundation wouldn't help? ;)

>Look, I love music but I can't sing or play anything. But I can appreciate the art and craft and hard work that goes into music. The same with makeup.<

It's one thing if you love to do it. But it's quite another if you are made to feel 1) you are worthless without it; 2) if you don't keep up with every single fucking, ever-expensive cosmetic trend that you're worthless or not feminine. I experimented with makeup mostly when I was 15-17 and had periods later on when I would try out new items. By the time I was working my first support job in media (a field that demands long hours and high-pressure work,) I came to the conclusion that I 1) wasn't going to lose valuable sleep to get up two hours early (or more) every day to fix my face; 2) didn't have the time or inclination to stop every couple hours or so to do "running repairs"; 3) wasn't going to spend every moment of every day worried that I wasn't made-up enough and people would laugh at me if I got outside a lipstick line or something; 4) wasn't going to spend a good part of my cash flow trying to keep up with disposable trends or affording the "best," i.e., the most expensive cosmetics. _My_ essential skill was learning how to keep it simple to meet my life's demands--and to avoid that paranoid "I'm never pretty enough" head that keeps too many women perpetually insecure (and eventually spending a quarter of their lifetime income on makeup.) A good face wash/scrub and some acne spot cream for occasional breakouts; a good lip gloss to keep my lips from getting chapped, and I'm good to go. If it's a real formal occasion, I wear light foundation and lipstick, but (mercifully) those situations are rare. :) In short, makeup taken to the level women's magazines and cosmetic companies would have us think is right isn't neccessary. Knowing what's works for your life _is_.

>Obviously, "anonymous", you are not a female who has been subjected to a car full of males yelling things at you while merely walking down the street.<

"Anonymous" is using a nifty little trick that sexists (and repressive-types in general) love to pull. Women's personal experiences are not valid. Guys like brightstar can rant all day about how women just want men for money and "Anonymous" would never expect them to have any more proof than "That's what happened to me." But to prove sexist behavior, women better have at least three witnesses (all male, 'cause all those wimmeniz are hysterical and can't be trusted), signed depositions, and videotape. What's the matter, anon--if it doesn't happen to you, it doesn't exist? I will bet you every single woman on here has a story about getting publically dissed about her appearance by some male jerk. But because you refuse to believe it, they are lying, right? Moron.

the cosmetic market targeting younger and younger girls--I wonder if part of that is because women wise up as they get older and don't use makeup as much as the beauty industry is accustomed to profit-wise.

>Just from reading all this "oh oh I've been SUBJECTED to this and that" you can see who the Americans are.<

Why--because non-Americans prefer to suck up insults and let people with those attitudes go on to affect their lives? Talk about an idiotic statement... And I seem to recall that the practice of dueling (in which men got the chance to blow away someone who "insulted" them) is a European invention, no?

>This is the world we live in, take it or leave it.<

Progress comes from people _not_ taking crap. If you are still living in the Stone Age, my apologies--you have no experience with this.

>If a bunch of high school boys drives past you and makes all kinds of rude remarks, it maybe bother you in the heat of the moment, but it shouldn't matter 2 weeks from then on.<

It's not just one incident (would that it were.) It's an ongoing series of incidents that you can't avoid and happen because some loser feels like shit and wants to dump on you.

>Give it ten years and the very same boys will be sitting across from you suited up, in the interviewee side of the table begging you for a job.<

Most likely they will be the guy interviewing you and dismissing you as a candidate because you aren't good-looking enough. Or they will be executives at magazines and cosmetic companies who put tons of money into promoting a look most women couldn't attain with all the money and time in the world.

>This is makeup. You do, or don't do. Look at the celebs around you before and after, the makeup job. That is proof enough that anyone with effective application of makeup, can transform themselves.<

So what? Why should women want to "transform" if they are happy with their looks? And even if one does transform, that's never enough--there will always be some beauty standard one can't meet. The only way to win this game is not to play...

>Today, there are men who apply makeup. The difference before and after, is also at times fairly striking.<

Hey, if they want the hassle, fine. But I will bet you anything that they will never get the same amount of pressure to always look good that women do.